• Sports Express Luggage & Sports Equipment FAQs.  DHL, FEDEX, UPS and USPS are also options, but check for their current policies and prices.  Other options are:  Boards 7ft 2inches and smaller can be shipped via Greyhound Package Express (GPX) for $55. Boards 7ft 3inches and bigger can be shipped via Forward Air (FWA) for $79. These are terminal-to-terminal shippers, meaning you will have to pick the closest terminal to you and pick up the board there."
• Pilot Air Freight. One user reported that the price was good ($99 including insurance). They also have experience with boards so that made me feel more relaxed. FedEx gave me a quote of $250 and UPS gave me one quote of $125 and another of $7,000! Of course the woman laughed at that quote but it is their system that spits out the numbers. I told her I could probably pay the shaper to fly out here, put him up in a hotel, buy the materials, etc for that money!!!
• Greyhound Bus Freight.

• An CRSurf reports on flights to Costa Rica. AirFareWatchDogBlog has a chart on checked baggage fees (as of 5/08) and shipping alternatives (USPS, UPS, FedEx, DHL, etc.).
• Surfline.com has been posting fairly current information (as of Dec 2008).
  
• Kayak.com provides a link to check on airline fees, including basic baggage fees
  
• FlyingFees.com has a slick interface for calculating baggage fees. Lots of other useful info for the flying traveler.
  

Notes:

American
Delta	Old News: Caveat emptor. Information on surfboards as checked baggage can be found here. A surfboard or boogeyboard, which is less than 62 inches will be accepted as a part of the customer's free baggage allowance and boards in excess of that size will be charged as excess baggage. Please be advised that when booking a flight on Delta Connection Carrier Atlantic Southeast Airlines such baggage would be accepted subject to availability of space at the time of check-in.   Sincerely, Online Customer Support Desk http://www.delta.com
Hawaiian	The Boogie board will be included in determining the free baggage allowance and when in excess, each item will be subject to the excess baggage charge for a single piece.  Surf and Paddle boards will not be included in determining the free baggage allowance and will always be subject to charge. Note: For the purpose of this provision, each container may have up to a maximum of two (2) boards. Each container will be charged at the above rates. No limit will be set to how many containers each passenger may check.  Bicycles will not be included in determining the free baggage allowance and will always be subject to a charge, whether or not presented as a single piece:  i) Between points within the State of Hawaii: $20.00 USD;  ii) Between Hawaii and points in the Continental USA: $50.00 USD; iii) Between points within the Continental USA: $50.00 USD.
Southwest	Sporting Equipment - One (1) of the following items of sporting equipment may be checked in as one of the two (2) piece free baggage allowance for each fare-paying passenger at no charge:  Snow ski equipment encased in a container or containers acceptable to Carrier and including no more than one (1) pair of skis or one (1) snow board, one (1) pair of ski boots, and one (1) pair of ski poles; Scuba equipment, provided air tanks are empty and all accompanying  equipment (BCD, mask, flippers, weight belt, etc.) are encased together in a  container acceptable to Carrier.  Charges apply for bicycles and wind surfing boards.
TACA
US Air	I have never had a problem checking my paipo board w/gear in bag.

Surfers' least favorite song is more popular than ever
by Matt Walker of Swell.com
March 21, 2001

It's every traveling surfer's fantasy. You're at the airport on the way to some far-flung surf destination. Beside you is a triple board bag filled with gear. On your back is a light carry-on. The agent calls you to the counter and asks how many bags you wish to check.

"Just one," you reply, and point to the bulging cocoon.

"That will be $75 per board. Could you open the bag for me please?"

You look next to you and see some plaid-panted fogey checking three fifty-pound trunks plus a golf bag for free and -- snapping beneath the sheer injustice of it all -- grab the agent's little pin-on wings and stab him repeatedly until he realizes the error of his ways and with his last breath of life decrees all excess board charges illegal until the end of time.

Well, keep dreaming. Surfboard charges aren't going anywhere. In fact, they're getting worse.

"Everything's really changing," explains Carol Holland, mother of former 'CT pro Todd Holland and owner of Cocoa Beach travel company Surf Express. "Lacsa, [a Costa Rican airline] who has historically offered free surfboard baggage, no longer does so. Other airlines are increasing the cost. People are traveling with more shit than you've ever seen before. But it doesn't matter. It's their option how they pack. And it's the surfer's option to pack as defensively as possible."

It's not just surfers. For those of you haven't been paying attention, there's an airline crisis in the United States. There are more travelers than there are flights.  Gone are the days when you could check as many suitcases as you wished. Most airlines now limit passengers to two checked items. If you're lucky, maybe they'll count your board bag as one -- but not in the US. And with everything from Thanksgiving turkeys to medical supplies making their way on these same planes, less space is being allotted for passenger luggage. So, if you want a bigger chunk of real estate you better be prepared to pay for it.

"Surfers are not being mistreated," insists Holland. "Airlines are just charging because they have to. We're asking for special handling. Remember: a suitcase, you don't care if it goes on the bottom or the top. All you want is for that thing to go up the little conveyor belt and you stack them all up. We want surfboards on the top. Plus, there are other problems. With some planes you can get them in the baggage door but you can't turn them. And in some cases, you can turn them, but not if the plane is 50% full. Meanwhile, the public is saying they want low fares, the cost of labor's going up, cost of fuel is going up, and airlines are growing more streamlined. Loading a surfboard doesn't fit with what the public is telling them to do. Do you want everyone's airfare to go up to balance the cost of your bag?"

The good news is, whereas before it seemed surfboards were the only items subject to the charges, the rest of the free world's paying now as well, including scuba gear, sailboards, golf clubs, and even antlers. The general rule for American and international carriers is be prepared to pay extra for anything that has more than 62 linear inches (that's length plus width plus height) and weighs more than 80 pounds. On international flights, expect a fluctuating scale depending on the destination and to pay even more for items over 109 inches.

Of course none of this explains a few traditionally pesky matters. One is the airlines' notorious indifference to surfers' complaints. (Of the five American airlines contacted, only TWA responded immediately to an interview request. The remaining companies only replied upon leaving messages that the article may not come off favorably if we didn't get a response.)

But a snooty airline representative is hardly news. The most annoying detail is figuring out why some airlines ask to pay individually for boards inside a single container. After all, you don't pay per article of clothing in your duffle bag.

"I don't know if people are taking it too literally because it says 'Surfboard:  $75.00'," guesses TWA's representative, one of few airlines willing to discuss the subject. "But we're aware of the case and how it's going to be the same size whether there's three boards or just one with lots of socks around it. As far as we're concerned, one container equals one piece of luggage equals $75 dollars."

On the other hand, when asked why you have to pay for two boards in the same bag, Southwest's spokesperson says, "Because there are two -- that's why."

Clearly, reason is about as common in air flight as a decent meal. But once you accept that you will be paying some amount, the best approach is to determine which airlines are going to give you the best deal by calling ahead of time, and then take the proper steps.

"If you travel with two shortboards packed together carefully in one soft-sided board bag, you'll probably travel at the lowest cost with no hassle," offers Holland. "Adding that third board seems to be a gray area. Four? Hang it up, they're gonna say unzip the bag."

"If you want to be assured that the board's going to get there then take up the least amount of space with the greatest amount of protection," she continues.  "Keep in mind that there are embargoes during certain times of the year, so you may show up at the airport and find you have to sign a statement that says you are aware that your board may not go on the same flight as yours, so check in way early."

Any finally?  "Don't get too smart. On a tight flight, somebody is eyeballing that thing trying to figure out how to get it on the plane. If you want it on the plane, pay the fee."
--Matt Walker