• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Nonstop Points Logo

Nonstop Points

Life is short, and the world is wide.

  • News
    • Airline News
    • Credit Card News
    • Hotel News
    • Trip Reports
  • Reviews
    • Airline Reviews
    • Credit Card Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Lounge Reviews
  • Tips
    • Award Travel
    • Deals
    • Personal Finance
    • Travel Tips
  • About Us

Why You Need to Check a Bag Full of Food:

October 31, 2021 by Payton Turner Leave a Comment

a blue and red airplane on a runway

Nonstop Points has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Nonstop Points and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. This post may contain affiliate links; please read our advertiser disclosure for more information

When you go on a family trip to a vacation rental, after the long drive or flight that last thing you want to do is to go grocery shopping. Most of us, especially during a global pandemic, choose

rental vacation units over hotel rooms because of access to kitchen space. Not only is it sometimes easier and more convenient to cook (especially if you have a lot of allergies in your travel group), it is undeniably safer during these unprecedented times.

On a trip to Colorado this past winter where we knew we would most likely be cooking from our rental unit, we tried a little trick. Because we were flying Southwest which includes 2 free checked bags per person, we decided to fill a cardboard box full of snacks and other food we would need, especially in our first couple days there and try to check it. 

The good news is that it worked! The agent was able to help us check the box of snacks, cereals, spices and more and it got to our Colorado unit successfully. The bad news: the box was not in good enough shape after our journey to transport the left over groceries home at the end of the trip. Additionally, it was quite the hassle to check a box.  It doesn’t have wheels or handles so it is difficult to carry, especially when you you also have to carry skis. Another issue is to prevent the box from being misplaced by covering up anything that had previously been on the box such as Amazon logos and shipping labels. It makes sense to cover the box with information that the baggage team can use to get your bag to the right place, all time consuming. Overall, the plan was helpful to get our food to the right place but difficult in the sense of checking a cardboard box.

On another trip we tested a new method: pack the food in a suitcase. This method worked much better. The food arrived in the suitcase ready to go and better than ever. 

If you have ever flown into Denver with the intention of skiing, you know the road up into the mountains is at least an hour and a half. When we got into our car, we were incredibly hungry but we had our snacks ready to help us power through the drive. When we woke up the next morning, we didn’t need to search far for breakfast. We had our food ready before hitting the slopes. 

Checking a suitcase full of food may sound odd, but I assure you, it can be greatly beneficial and worth your while. I might avoid checking a cardboard box though!

Nonstop Points has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Nonstop Points and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. This post may contain affiliate links; please read our advertiser disclosure for more information

Related

About Payton Turner

Payton Turner is a University of Virginia student whose passion for all things travel has led him and his family to the far corners of the earth. While loving the luxurious life of first class, his AvGeek heart is just as happy in the back of the plane taking off on his next adventure.

Reader Interactions

Responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser’s responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Search

Keep up with the latest travel news and tips to maximize your travels
Invalid email address
Thanks for subscribing!
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

Credit Cards

a jet plane on a runway

Why to Pick Your Least Flown Airline for Your Fee Credit

November 21, 2021

Footer

Nonstop Points Logo
Nonstop Points shares the latest travel news and tips for helping students and young adults maximize their travels while being financially responsible.

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

About Payton

Payton Turner is a University of Virginia student whose passion for all things travel has led him and his family to the far corners of the earth. While loving the luxurious life of first class, his AvGeek heart is just as happy in the back of the plane taking off on his next adventure. Read More…

Payton Turner: View My Blog Posts
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
  • Contact Us

© 2025 · Nonstop Points
All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nonstop Points with appropriate and specific directions to the original content.

Cleantalk Pixel