The other day I was in London visiting friends and I received a curious email from American Airlines. The email introduced a “new” partnership the airline had with AirPortr, a baggage pick-up service in London. When I received the email I immediately became excited as I’d now have something to write about for the blog. However, once I started doing some research I’ve become quite confused by the email. I’lll explain in a bit.
First Off, What Is AirPortr?
Well, it’s something that excludes the “e” from Porter so you know it must be hip and trendy (read: Tindr, Flickr, etc.). If that’s your first thought, then you’re not exactly wrong. AirPortr is a baggage handling service in London which offers home to airport transportation for your bags. The service works for both departing and arriving passengers and I actually can see a lot of value in either.
Essentially, if you have an international flight which arrives or departs from London you can use AirPortr so you don’t have to worry about your checked bags. When departing from London, AirPortr will get your bags from you and take them to the airport for you. Likewise, when arriving in London, Airportr will retrieve your bags and take them to your destination.
Overall, the idea behind AirPortr is very simple and I’m surprised there aren’t more services like this offered in other major metropolitan cities.
How Does AirPortr Work?
AirPortr is incredibly easy to use actually. First, you begin by visiting the AirPortr website. Next, select how many bags you are checking in to your flight, your airline, and your departing and arriving city. If traveling from the United States there are a few qualifying cities currently on offer. If your city pairing does not qualify for the service you will receive an error message.
Assuming you select a qualifying city pairing you’ll be given the option to continue.
After selecting continue you’ll reach a page to select your flight. On this page, look for the flight you are on and click on it. If the flight is not listed, you can search by flight number.
Once you’ve identified your flight, AirPortr will give you your options. In the above example, my only option is to have my bags delivered to me in London. AirPortr only operates in London so I can’t have my bags taken to the airport for me in Chicago.
Next, you need to tell AirPortr where you want your bags to go. In my case, I requested the bags be delivered to my hotel.
Ok, you got me, I’m not staying at the incredibly fancy The London EDITION, but it would be nice… However, after selecting your flights and baggage destination you’ll find delivery options and prices.
In this example, the cost was £40 to deliver my bags in a select 1-hour delivery window. Likewise, the cost was £40 to select a 3-hour delivery time slot.
My Take On AirPortr
When I first read about AirPortr I passed it off as another silly travel service. After all, what lazy person can’t be bothered to handle their own luggage. However, after a few minutes of though I realized how handy this service could be. For example, if you and your family are traveling from London it would be nice to simply have your check baggage picked up at home and handled for you. By using this service you don’t have to worry about all of your families bags as you make your way to the airport. This service is especially useful for anyone who typically takes public transportation to the airports. Imagine having a few kids and having to worry about all of their bags!
Likewise, I see real value in using this service upon arrival in London, especially if staying at a hotel. Think about it, when using this service you can simply hand your luggage off at the airport and begin exploring London. Gone are the days of having to haul all of your bags to your hotel (where you probably can’t check in yet anyway) and waiting to get your bags in the room. Instead, you can have them delivered to your hotel and waiting for you when you arrive. Thanks to a service like this you can hit the ground running the moment you arrive in London instead of wasting precious time worry about what to do with your luggage.
Final Thoughts
Yes, I realize I probably sound like a spokesman for the service, but trust me, I absolutely am not. Instead, I just actually see a lot of value in a service like this. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve found myself on public transportation, hauling a bag, simply because I have to drop it somewhere before I can begin exploring. Also, because I bring my luggage on public transportation, I find that I’m an easy target for pick-pockets who prey on tourists. Instead, I would much prefer to pay a small fee to have my bags waiting for me at my hotel when I arrive later in the day.
As far as the cost of the service goes, I actually think the cost is quite reasonable. £40 for two bags isn’t cheap, but it’s what you would pay for a cab or an Uber. Instead of using a car service and still having to deal with my bags I’d much prefer to pay the fee, jump on the tube and begin sightseeing. I’m not saying that I would use this service every time I fly to London, but I could see myself using it. I’d be especially included to use it if I landed early in the morning and wanted to use the full day to sightsee.
Lastly, the reason I’m confused by the email is because it seemingly introduced a “New” service. However, after doing a bit of research I found that this service has actually be around for almost a year. In that year I’ve flown with American several times to/from London and never received an email about AirPortr. So for that reason I find it surprising that I only just now received an email about the service and I find it odd that the email advertises the service and partnership as “New.”
Featured image courtesy of AirPortr
