After Losing Thousands of Dollars Worth of Gear at Baggage Claim, I’ll Never Travel Without This $24 Gadget

As a travel editor prone to misplacing things, I never leave for a trip without an army of Apple AirTags carefully placed among my belongings. I like to keep them in my passport holder, tech organizer, and, of course, tucked away in any checked bags. Never have I been more grateful for my AirTag diligence than on a trip last December, when my ski bag stuffed to the brim with equipment, clothes, and toiletries went missing. 

I was heading from New York City to Colorado on a work trip, which would involve testing brand-new ski and après apparel in addition to reviewing hotels and shooting videos for Travel + Leisure’s social platforms. With so much on my to-do list, my ski bag was overflowing with everything from $400 Moon Boots to costly jackets, plus all my equipment for the mountain. The contents of the bag were easily worth over $5,000. Needless to say, when I arrived at Eagle County Regional Airport in Vail and my trusty Thule ski bag was nowhere to be found, I was on the edge of panic mode. 

Apple AirTag

But first, let’s rewind to how I got into this mess in the first place: After landing, I knew I had to start filming for work soon, so I took a few minutes in the bathroom to freshen up before heading to baggage claim (in retrospect, not the smartest idea, I know). 

By the time I got to the oversized luggage area beyond the terminals, all other passengers were skipping off to their various resorts, and my Thule ski bag was nowhere to be found. Without it, it’d be impossible for me to finish the timely assignments I’d traveled across the country to do, not to mention get my highly anticipated runs in. 

I whipped out my phone and headed to the Find My app. Sure enough, the little white Dove emoji I had assigned to my ski bag’s Apple AirTag was making its way down I-70. Although airport staff at baggage claim had me double — and triple check — around the area to look for the bag, I knew it was on its way to Vail Village. 

Meanwhile, a Thule snowboard bag in the same blue slate hue as mine had seemingly been abandoned. Putting two and two together, I explained to the airport staff that the other passenger had likely left with my bag (despite it being larger and thinner). Luckily for me and the wayward snowboarder, they’d affixed a luggage tag to their Thule bag.

The staff told me their policy was not to use the tag’s contact information until they’d received a missing report from a likely owner. Thankfully, I myself have no such policy. I punched the number into my phone — well, I called a few combinations of numbers I thought might be the ones scrawled across the shabby, handwritten paper tag, before finally getting through to a cellphone with a Mexican country code. 

Apple AirTag 4-pack

When a woman picked up on the other end, I let out a sigh of relief that could probably have been heard back in New York. I explained the situation and she chastised her husband for grabbing the wrong bag without checking the luggage tag (or that the bag was snowboard-shaped, but that’s neither here nor there). In another stroke of luck, the couple happened to be staying at the same hotel as me. They promised to give my ski bag to the bellhops at Four Seasons Vail.

During that 40-minute drive to the hotel, I kept peeking at Find My app for reassurance that my beloved bag — and its pricey contents — were safe and sound at the Four Seasons. There it was when I arrived, bulging with the heft of (over) a week’s worth of on- and off-mountain supplies.

Since my baggage claim debacle, I’ve not only doubled down on my Apple AirTag usage (if you can catch the four-pack on sale, why not throw one in every single suitcase, handbag, and makeup case you travel with?) but also vowed to start using luggage tags of my own. After all, that shabby paper tag had made contacting the snowboarding couple a whole lot easier and spared me an even more anxiety-ridden ride to the hotel. 

Looking to stock up on everything you need to keep your stuff safe on your travels? Keep scrolling for more Amazon deals below. 

More Travel Essentials to Shop: 

TagVault Apple AirTag Wallet Holder

Lanteso Apple AirTag Holder 4-pack Set

Ovener Silicone Luggage Tag 5-pack Set

Sure Lock Luggage Lock

Love a great deal? Sign up for our T+L Recommends newsletter and we’ll send you our favorite travel products each week.