Student Baggage Allowance in China Southern Airlines

[Alex Whiteman]

I'm having some difficulty communicating with the customer service - so I'm asking here.

Maybe someone has done this already.

I got myself a ticket between two mainland cities - all this online as there's no CSAir office where I live.

Now, the checked baggage allowance is 20 kg for my ticket. . . but somewhere on the website it says I should inquiry about my baggage allowance as a "student from overseas" - nothing more.

I inquired over the phone and via mail. . . but no luck.

So. . . has anyone used this airline to travel to a city to study. . . or maybe some other Chinese airline with a similar policy? I got some stuff out of Google but I'm not sure if it's the latest info.

I'm not sure if the fact that I got my ticket online prevents me from accessing the extra baggage benefit. . .

[imron]

How much extra luggage do you wish to take?

[fanglu]

I looked into this a few years ago, but it was for an international flight. They told me you had to get a 'student ticket' when booking, and that it was for Chinese students studying abroad, rather than foreign students studying in China. Having said that, my Thai friend simply asked at the checkin counter in Beijing (told them she was a student) and was given an extra 10kg free on a flight to Bangkok.

[Moving_away]

Several years ago, when I moved here (as a non-student), I could get such a 30kg ticket. I didn't inquire about a student ticket especially. There was a class on the plane, at the same price of the normal 20kg ticket, and my travel agency could secure one for me. I knew about the existence of such a class since my wife did exactly the same half a year before me (she's Chinese and thus had not so much difficulty calling their information line). Mind you, that's from abroad to China, and 3 years ago at that, so I'm not sure of internal flights, as fanglu also mentioned. My experience with China Southern internally is indeed always 20kg (but I never really had a need to inform otherwise).

Also inform about other luggage possibilities with China Southern. For example, they work together with KLM and on their shared flights it is possible to just add an extra piece of luggage for a very reasonable extra fee.

[Alex Whiteman]

Ahh. . . so complicated

Last summer I used up to 30 kg for a month in Beijing.

This time I'm going from 6 months to a year, starting in winter. . .

Even if I diversify my wardrobe and have less of everything. . . I still see myself carrying at least 30 kg.

Maybe I can try and change my ticket during my stopover right before - if it economically makes sense. . .