FLYING KAYAKS TO ECUADOR

Although it is getting harder each year to get kayaks down to Ecuador and most other countries as excess baggage many paddlers are still successful by checking in early and calling them surfboards. Unfortunately the airline personnel are getting more hip to this and increased airport security requires most large checked items to be hand inspected making it more likely to be refused.

We have found no secret airline or system to getting a kayak on board and it is pretty much a hit or miss deal. Most airlines have restricted oversize baggage during the holiday seasons so check with your carrier about their embargo dates, usually around Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. Our recommendation is to NEVER send a kayak as cargo. It almost always involves a huge amount of time and money to extract the kayak from the aduana (customs).