Poi on planes

not exactly what it sounds

My dad lives in the Caribbean and i should be going to see him at Xmas. I really want to show him poi, spesh fire (mainly to scare him coz hes a bit of a wimp ) but is it a huge hassle to take a set of fire poi on a plane?

As loads of new rules have come into affect since 9/11 (as in, not allowed to take nail clippers on a plane!?!?) is having a big lump of metal on a chain with wick around it, considered a weapon?? And would i be able to take my set with me?

Ta muchly,
Beth

basically, what i belive to be ok is if you take already burned wicks in the HOLD luggage in a SEALED container and keep schtum about having them..its ok..

if you have unburned wicks (still yellow) then its even easier...take them only on HOLD luggage in whatever you want...remember that you will need an airtight container to return with if you burn them out there...

they wont let you go as cabin luggage (the people at heathrow wouldnt even let me take devil sticks on board {cos they've got lovely soft foam padded ends and are very sharp and everything...}

tailed poi are fine to take on bourd a plane with...ive even been on with beamers and globalls which ARE weapons!

I find the best way is to put your chains alone in the checked luggage, and make some temporary wicks out of blue jean material while you're there to use... they're good for a few burns and that's all you'll need on a short vacation

awwwww!!

i though someone had started up a HoP version of the 'mile high' club.

i agree with the others. wrap them up, seal them, chuck them in the hold luggage, and dont bother telling them. if they enquire, try to pass them off as part of a kinky S & M costume.

I'm not sure about all this -- I could see them asking questions about balls on chains if you tried to take them carry-on, but if you just stick them in your suitcase, why would they care? My sister flew in to town a while back with her fire poi, and I'm pretty sure she had standard wicks, nor did she mention any difficulties getting them through.

Well... if you put fire poi in your checked luggage and practice poi in your carry on you should be fine.

I have done alot of flying and have had 0 problems even with fire poi in my carry on!

yeah,shouldnt be a prob if you dont tell anyone,i recently flew to new zealand with my fire poi wrapped in a plastic bag stuffed into the bottom of my rucksack and i didnt have any trouble,so you should be cool!

i wonder if when they asked you what they were, and you showed them a poi display with your practice ones would they still left you on teh plain, or would they just think you to be crazy and insane?

unless in newzeland or hawiee? as im sure its more common there?

layter days

My carrier threw a hissy fit over my wicks 'cause they smell like parrafin. Most carriers will not even consider anything that has had the slightest suggestion of combustables anywhere near it. Wrap them well, stick them in the hold and do not say a thing. Most airlines have a problem with chains, even my training squash-balls-on-a-chain had to go in the hold, god alone knows what they would have made of the beamers.

Keep shtum an everyone's happy

My carrier threw a hissy fit over my wicks 'cause they smell like parrafin. Most carriers will not even consider anything that has had the slightest suggestion of combustables anywhere near it. Wrap them well, stick them in the hold and do not say a thing. Most airlines have a problem with chains, even my training squash-balls-on-a-chain had to go in the hold, god alone knows what they would have made of the beamers.

Keep shtum and everyone's happy

hehe I've flown with ridiculous amounts of paraffin-drenched toys including a fire tutu with about 16 wicks round it. Got through with just a few funny looks.

The thing they were most worried about was the wings of part of a stilt costume which they spent ages scanning for explosives

and lucky you, your Dad lives in the Caribbean - wow!

Im so glad that someone bought this up.... My bestest buddy had a problem when he was checking in and flying to nz from here...they wouldnt even let hime take his double staff even theough they had been rewicked and everything!!! shock horro... and because I flying out in two days I was wondering how I was going to get around all this.. I wanna take my doubles but I dunno if I can... aside from poi which can be put into the airtight containers...what do you do with doubles?

avert their attention by taking huge amounts of ridiculously gigantic / oddly shaped stuff with you and they'll never notice your staff.

usually works for me

* muses about placing a prostethic limb in bag*
ahah

i got my concentrate airborne in a postal tube strapped to my backpack under the plane ... no questions asked...
the container in the hold luggage idea for poi shouldnt be a problem tho...
but shower... cause a strong smell of kero might be a lil suspicious

val, depends how the wicks are screwed on. is it possible to take the wicks off, and hide them in your bag? are they easy to put back on? if so, youll just be taking 2 poles on the plane according to the airport guys.
good luck.

Im so excited!!! I leave in 24 hours...woohoo!!! going to get my staffs rewicked today.. and get them all cleaned up and stuff...

maybe you could disguise your staffs as crutches.....

Anyone flown a recent domestic flight with Virgin? I'm flying to Canberra 10th January, returning to Brisbane 23rd Jan. I'm going to check with the airline tomorrow whether or not I can take my staff. My concern is that they'll let me, and tell me it's also fine to bring it back, but that on my return flight I'll get some difficult employee telling me a different story despite my "but-but-but!!" I have a single staff, with a proper odour-sealing staff-bag. I have used wicks on there with residual citronella fuel. Should I push it through the checked luggage attached to my backpack, or send it through separately as "fragile goods" declaring it as "performance equipment" or what? Should I de-wick before the return flight?

I know rules change all the time, which is why we keep asking these same questions, so sorry if it gets annoying! But surely you folk understand the torment of potentially having toys taken from you. I'll be arriving the day before Moonfest, so I'd be heartbroken if for some reason I couldn't bring my staff back with me immediately...

I'd recommend shipping anything with a fuel smell on it. Fresh wicks are fine to take on a plane, just don't have them attached to the chains. Take the chains off and use them as bag straps and the finger loops can be zipper openers.
Never once have I been stopped by security and all my poi stuff minus the fuel has been disguised as carry on luggage.

ahhhh... right im going to have to bump an old thread - sorry!

Ive been trying to find out about poi on planes but everything seems to be about fire....

I want to take my sock poi to france with me this weekend but am worrying as im sure i read somewhere that they wont let u take juggling balls on planes because u cant get to see inside them or something (incase i had filled them up with naughties!)

my poi are made using juggling balls and i was worried that this might be a problem. can anyone help!?!? xxx

My mate Brian (Ah-hi-ma) went to Oz for a year and they confiscated his juggling balls on arrival. I however took mine to Indonesia just after the Jakarta bomb and had no trouble with Juggling balls, fire poi, OR a 5ft fire staff (2 peice in a suitcase) I think I may have been lucky as I flew throught Kuwaite as well. But pretty sure Balls are a No No.
His were taken because of Fruit and veg laws! they were filled with dry beans...

Crap!

I'm going to the US in less than a fortnight, and if thats the case I'm in the site- I don't think I'm taking fire gear and this could leave me without sock poi as well

ARSE!

Get some tennis balls. to replace juggly ones...
Or get some juggly balls out there. they must have some somewhere....

it might be a good idea to contact the airliner and just ask for written comfirmation of everything they say

im trying to decide if i wanna take my fire poi with me to turkey

anyone know anything?

I fly from the US to Europe all the time and I've never had any problem with anything. (I'm sure I've said this on another related thread.)

I bring fire poi, my fire plate, sticks, wicks, socks, balls, oversized hula hoops... everything.

Then again, I've got one of those blue passports which US immigration seems to prefer.

Though they did seem to have a problem when I forgot and left a knife in my carry on bag. Damn facists.

Anyone got any idea's on taking a bottle of parafin in your rucksack?

lol i think that would be a no dragonsani :P

i might risk it but i dont wanna loose my fire poi :S hmmm
dont think i will as fal4 is the weekend after

Tried it once...
Amsterdam to Banjul, the Gambia.
no problem, untill they checked my rucksack.
10 euro tax to enter the country and then (from 50) after bargaining 5 euro to bring two bottles of parafin into the country.
Very sweet deal. I was there on a diplomatic mission,city to city link. It was a one week trip and I learned Gambians to spin fire....

They did the most amazing things with sharp objects, but I was the Tubab doing fire. Kids and adults laughed when I played with sock poi, but once I started with fire, I really got some respect. Also for the fact that I tried to speak wolof, thier language