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[inthelab]

I just realized that I'll have to pay $15 or more each way to bring my poster next month.  Unless I moosh it up and stuff it in my lone suitcase, which has to contain enough clothes for a week of vacation plus conference.  And during this week, labspouse and I will be going to a remote national monument to hike (Chiricahua National Monument), touring around Tucson, then up to Phoenix for the conference (at a posh resort, and my abstract already won an award, so I have to look nice for pictures).

So wise fora folk, should I mail the poster to myself at the posh resort hotel for $4.80, delivery confirmation included (and mail it back home at conference end), moosh it up, pay the stupid bucks to check it, make the poster my lone carry-on item (and do without food on the trip), or -?

[mythbuster]

Could you just have it printed when you get there? Other wise I vote for mailing it there and ditching it at the end of the conference.

[inthelab]

If I knew where to get it printed, I'd consider it.  I don't want to ditch it, since it already won an award and I want to hang it up outside my lab.  It's sort of expected around here.

[sciencephd]

I'd mail it.  What's the downside ?

[avidreader]

If you're really trying to save, count it as a carry-on: toss it in a large flat bag (or roll it if you can) then add your snacks casually to the bottom of the bag. Or your pockets.

AR.

[the_myth]

Mail it.

This is why "poster sessions" are a bore. 

[kissa_mau]

I'd mail it. Then I'd bring a digital copy and know where the closest Kinko's with large print services is. I think they all do poster sizes now, don't they?

[abitatd]

I've never had any issues rolling up my poster, putting it in a poster tube and hauling it onto the plane with me as carry-on. No airline I've traveled on thus far has ever tried to take it from me at the gate or charge me more to carry it on. Just make sure you don't have thumbtacks at the bottom of the tube - TSA does seem to take issue with that for some reason.

[hgtor]

Print two copies, mail one to your hotel, and leave the other home to hang later.  This is assuming you have free or cheap printing services on campus.  It costs us $3 to have a poster printed at the architecture computer lab on campus. 

Kinko's prices for printing posters are outrageous.  I left mine at airport security once and had to print another copy when I arrived at the conference.  Kinko's charged $125 to print it.  Now I print and mail ahead just to alleviate the worry of losing it along the way again and the hassle of carrying the unwieldy tube.

[locutus]

I'm slightly confused. Is the issue the poster counting towards your overall number of bags or do you think the poster will be too big to carry on?

I've never had a problem with either.

[doctor_torrseal]

"make the poster my lone carry-on item (and do without food on the trip)"

I don't get it.  Is there an airline that says one carry-on only?  Most say you can bring a  roll-aboard and a "personal item" (big handbag, laptop bag, backpack, etc).  I think virtually any airline will let the poster tube through along with two bags, because it takes little space or weight.  If you're worried about that, bring a backpack and have the poster tube sticking halfway out of the backpack.  Once you're on the plane, take it out.  The carry-on rules are to keep a small number of people from abusing the space by dragging two overstuffed suitcases on board - which they used to do.

Also, if you're worried about carrying food, you can put a sandwich in your coat pocket  Air travel is a big pain in the neck now, but people are hyping the problems above the actual level.

[anon99]

And during this week, labspouse and I will be going to a remote national monument to hike (Chiricahua National Monument), touring around Tucson, then up to Phoenix for the conference (at a posh resort, and my abstract already won an award, so I have to look nice for pictures).

Can't labspouse put your carry on items (food, etc) in with their items and then you take the poster?

[inthelab]

I'd mail it. Then I'd bring a digital copy and know where the closest Kinko's with large print services is. I think they all do poster sizes now, don't they?

No, they don't.  The poster size is 4 feet by 6 feet.

[inthelab]

I've never had any issues rolling up my poster, putting it in a poster tube and hauling it onto the plane with me as carry-on. No airline I've traveled on thus far has ever tried to take it from me at the gate or charge me more to carry it on. Just make sure you don't have thumbtacks at the bottom of the tube - TSA does seem to take issue with that for some reason.

I don't want it to be my only carry-on, since I have to fly cross-country and need to bring my own food on board.

[inthelab]

Print two copies, mail one to your hotel, and leave the other home to hang later.  This is assuming you have free or cheap printing services on campus.  It costs us $3 to have a poster printed at the architecture computer lab on campus. 

Kinko's prices for printing posters are outrageous.  I left mine at airport security once and had to print another copy when I arrived at the conference.  Kinko's charged $125 to print it.  Now I print and mail ahead just to alleviate the worry of losing it along the way again and the hassle of carrying the unwieldy tube.

It costs $50 to $70 to print color posters at my school; these are really big posters, 4 feet by 6 feet.