New collection service for travellers’ luggage at OR Tambo 

Travellers flying from the OR Tambo International Airport can now choose to not drop their baggage at the traditional check-in counter, following the launch of BagPortr.

BagPortr will collect the passenger’s bag from their home, hotel or any preferred point of collection (initially only within Johannesburg) within the terms of the service, before delivering it to OR Tambo International for loading on to the traveller’s flight.

Founder Juan van Rensburg said: “The passenger’s booking experience has evolved to the online space. However, the passenger’s bag check-in process has remained the missing piece of the puzzle. Bag drop queues have become longer than the check-in queue and passengers are in need of a better solution. The ‘mobile check-in and bag drop’ if you like, where passengers merely collect their bag at their destination, offer the convenience and peace of mind.”

The company offers a boutique baggage collection service to Air France and KLM travellers, as an alternative to standing in the bag drop queue at the airport. Once the passenger has completed their online check-in process, the bag collection is ordered online and collected up to four hours prior to their departure. The bag will be collected, security-sealed, and transported under strict security conditions, in line with the airline, Civil Aviation and airport security guidelines.

Travellers will pay approximately R350 per bag, depending on the time of collection. Any additional bags on the same booking will be 50% less of the cost of the first bag, collected from the same address. Bags can be collected from any address up to a 60km radius of the airport.

“We are exploring partnerships with various airlines and airports continuously. These partners recognise that this alternative way of checking bags could be a massive value-added and customer-friendly service within their range of product offerings. We are excited to launch the service with these partners,” says Juan.

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.