MIAAirport Guide

Oversized and sports equipment at Miami airport

Checking and collecting oversized and sports equipment at MIA: airline rules, where to ask when it's not on the carousel, storage for big items, and parking and taxis that fit.

A golf travel case and a surfboard bag on a baggage cart in a check-in hall
Checking oversized bags

Check big items at your airline’s check-in counter, which for most airlines is on the 2nd level (departures), and ask your airline’s baggage office where they come out when you land. MIA says each airline handles its own baggage. That puts your airline in charge of how boards, golf bags, bikes and instruments are checked and delivered. On American, most sports gear travels at standard bag fees with no oversize fee, up to 115 inches in total and 70 lb.

What American allows

American publishes these rules for sports equipment:

Item How it’s charged
Golf bag (clubs, balls, tees, one pair of golf shoes) Standard checked bag fee up to 50 lb. Overweight fee from 50 to 70 lb. No oversize fee
Bicycle (non-motorized, pedals off or wrapped, handlebars turned sideways) Standard fee up to 50 lb. Overweight fee to 70 lb. No oversize fee
Water sports boards (wave skis, boogie, skim, paddle and speed boards, kiteboards) One bag can hold several boards and counts as one checked item
Windsurf equipment (any 2 of board, mast, boom and sail) $150 for every 2 pieces up to 70 lb. Free bag allowance doesn’t apply
Fishing gear (2 rods and 1 reel in a case, plus tackle bag) Standard fee up to 50 lb. No oversize fee

Read American’s conditions before you pack:

  • A bike that isn’t in a hard-sided case is treated as fragile. American says it’s liable for damage to sports equipment only when it’s in a hard-sided case and the outside of the case is visibly damaged.
  • Remove or protect fins, keels and skegs on boards so they don’t damage other bags.
  • Pack only the listed items in a sports bag. American charges a bag with anything else in it as a standard checked bag, and oversize and overweight fees may then apply.

MIA publishes no sports-equipment rules for other airlines, so their sizes and fees come from each airline’s own baggage page. Our airlines page lists every airline at MIA and where it checks in.

Checking it in at MIA

Our terminal guide shows which concourse and counters your airline uses, so you can walk a bike box straight to the right desk.

If you want the box or bag wrapped, MIA has wrapping stations on the 2nd level before security. Our guide to wrapping and protecting bags at MIA explains why the on-site wrap is the one to use.

Collecting it when you land

All the carousels are on the ground floor, Level 1. If a board, bike box or instrument doesn’t come round on the carousel, don’t wait: go to your airline’s baggage office and ask where oversized items are delivered. MIA lists these baggage offices on Level 1:

Airline Baggage office
American Airlines Door 2, 786-591-3500
Delta Door 24, 305-870-6445 or 305-870-6446
Air Canada Door 30, 458-262-6926
United Door 23, 786-382-2245
Southwest Door 24, 786-299-5615
Frontier Door 14, 786-305-5856

Luggage carts are available at baggage claim for $9 per cart. If an item arrives damaged, report it at the same office before you leave. Our guide to delayed or lost baggage at MIA covers the report and the deadlines. If you leave a bag or case in the terminal instead, MIA’s lost and found handles items found in the terminal, garages and drive areas.

Leaving big items at the airport

Communitel Baggage Storage, MIA’s baggage room, takes items far bigger than a suitcase. Its daily rates run to $22 for items from 40 inches to 4 feet and $24 for items from 4 to 10 feet. The counters are before security in Concourse E and Concourse H. You need a photo ID and your flight ticket. MIA’s own pages list the baggage room’s hours two ways, 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., so call before you count on it. Our luggage storage page has the number.

Getting it to and from the airport

  • Driving with boards or bikes on the roof: MIA’s Flamingo garage takes vehicles under 7 feet only. Taller vehicles can use the High-Vehicle parking area labeled at the Ibis garage, beside the Dolphin garage’s east side, or Economy Park-and-Ride. Our parking page lists each garage and lot with its rates.
  • Taxis: the taxi stand is on the arrivals level outside baggage claim. Miami-Dade’s taxi rates add a 30% surcharge above the meter for SUVs and vans, which you may need for a bike box or golf bags.

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