Flying With A Guitar

Once upon a time flying with a guitar was easy. All you had to do was get a seat towards the back of the plane. This ensured that you’d be among the first to board the plane, which meant there’d be plenty of overhead space available, so you’d be pretty much guaranteed to find a spot for your instrument. Also, a Snickers bar cost about a quarter.

Things have changed.

Now that boarding priority and checked baggage have been both been monetized, my old go-to rules no longer apply. So flying with a guitar is more of a challenge now than ever before. I don’t have the perfect answer, and neither does any of my friends who fly regularly with a guitar. But I  almost always get my guitar on the plane. I have a few tips and observations on the subject so read on!

Guitar Danger

The most dangerous times for your guitar are when it travels from the check-in desk to the baggage area (it goes along a series of conveyor belts that often includes dangerous drops to a lower level) and when the baggage handlers are loading and unloading the bags onto and from the plane. You may have seen some videos about this.

Also, all my life I heard that one should detune the guitar before checking (i.e. take a little pressure off the neck), and I’ve always done that. Some folks say that this is an old wives tale, but so far I haven’t experienced any ill effects from detuning, so I’ll probably keep doing that if/when I have to check a guitar. Certainly no need to do so when the guitar is with you on the plane.

• A guitar will almost always fit in an empty overhead compartment, though there are some planes with compartments that are too small. Some smaller planes have very small overhead compartments, and some of the larger planes have compartments that are tall and deep but not wide enough for a guitar.
• All planes have closets either for Business/First class or for the flight crew, and sometimes for whoever needs them.
• Folks will try to take your guitar when you check in. I sometimes sort of hide the guitar, or if asked I say I will gate check the guitar. See above about the most dangerous time for your instrument when flying with a guitar.

Gate checking seems to not always be what it used to be.

Back in the day, gate checking was super safe – someone would walk the guitar from the gate to the plane (no drops or belts along the way, and it would go on top of all of the luggage already loaded in) and after the flight someone would walk the guitar back to the gate and deliver it into your hands. Recently, however, I was forced to gate check and they actually checked the guitar from the gate but then didn’t deliver it to me at the gate. Rather they had it sent with the rest of the luggage to pickup at baggage claim. This is not as good a system as the old system, and I don’t know if it’s now universally like this or if this was a one-off, but it’s still better than regular checking, as the baggage all travels on the same level or up (no conveyor belt drops).

• The earlier you board, the better chance of getting on the plane with the guitar and also of finding overhead space. For peace of mind I will sometimes pay the extra charge for early boarding or premium economy or whatever it takes to get on early. On some flights, booking Premium economy is actually a good deal if you’re checking more than one bag and paying for early boarding, so that can be worth considering.
• I always try to get the guitar to the gate and I say nothing about it if I have to check in at the desk in person before going through security. When boarding, if they try to get me to gate check I tell them how important my instrument is and that I’d really like to try to get in on the plane.
• If they absolutely insist on gate checking and won’t allow me on the plane with the guitar I ask everything about the gate check process and where/when I will get the guitar back.
• Assuming they don’t make me gate check, as I’m boarding I tell the closest attendant that I don’t want to take up unnecessary overhead space, so is there any chance I can use a closet. You’d be surprised at how often they say yes. I think it helps to frame it in terms of not taking up more overhead space than necessary – you’re trying to be helpful, and not just looking out for yourself.
• If they don’t let you use a closet, just look for the nearest empty overhead bin. If they’re all full then you have to go back to the attendant and tell them there’s no space and can I please use a closet.
• Catch-22 – They’re more likely to let you on with a soft case/gig bag, but if they force you to check your guitar, then you’re less protected. A harder case is safer if you have to check it, but they’re a little more likely to make you check a hard case. My compromise is to use a small hard case with backpack straps. My theory is that the less you look like you’re lugging something big, the less likely they are to stop you in the first place. Weirdly, I think this is a better argument for a nicer/smaller/lighter case than the actual protection those cases give you. Just my 2 cents.
• Be as nice as possible to everyone along the way. In my experience, flight attendants will return the respect you show them. Ultimately they will decide if you can get your guitar on board, so there’s absolutely no profit in antagonizing them. And I have also run into a very few stubborn attendants who weren’t going to let me on the plane with my guitar no matter what I did or how nice I was. Once, on the last of four legs of a flight I had made to Spain to pick up a new Manuel Reyes (hijo) guitar, the attendant made it clear that there was no way in hell I was getting on her plane with my cello (she absolutely insisted on calling it a cello no matter how many times I told her it was a guitar). So I told her to rebook my flight and went on the next flight out from JFK to Boston, where my guitar-cello fit just perfectly in the overhead bin.
• The closest thing to a guarantee that you’ll get your guitar on board is to fly Business or First class, which is not something I can afford (except for that one time during the pandemic when flights were empty and we were moving to Spain. We got Business class tickets for the price of premium economy and I’m not going to lie – it was nice).

So those are my thoughts and observations on flying with a guitar. We’d love to hear any tips or experiences you all have on the subject, so be sure to leave them in the comments so we can all learn from one another.