• Never use the word fire or anything to do with fire. Instead, use juggling equipment, sport, circus or performance equipment.
• Make sure your wicks are well burned off and don’t contain any fuel residue.
• Put everything in ziplock bags to cover the possible smell.
• You can wash your tools with warm water and soap, so most of the black goes off. Let them dry well.
• Put socks or pink fluffy protection (doesn’t look dangerous, hahaha) around your equipment, so it’s not directly visible.
• You can even disconnect the chains from your poi heads, and store them in separate bags.
• We recommend putting your fire poi in your check-in luggage. Don’t lock your bag, if they want to check it, they might break it. You can add a note, explaining it’s juggling equipment and your phone number.
• If you take a staff, see what the maximum luggage sizes are to see if you can take it without having to pay extra. A thick staff bag will protect your staff during transportation.

TIPS ON FLYING WITH GEAR, FROM SRIKANTA

FLYING WITH LONG STAFFS/ OVERSIZED LUGGAGE
After leaving the Cirque du Soleil, I reduced the length of my staffs from 162cm to 142cm to avoid paying oversized luggage fees. While each airline has its own limits and fees for oversized luggage, 152cm-158cm is the average limit for many airlines before paying additional fees. However, there is no single rule which applies so you had best research fare rules prior to booking.

Many budget airlines (especially in Europe) will charge a fee for any bag which doesn’t resemble a standard suitcase regardless of the length. In general, the nicer the airline, the less likely they are to charge you extra fees for your baggage.

Check out this great worldwide baggage fee chart: http://www.farecompare.com/about/worldwide-baggage-fee-chart/

FLYING WITH FIRE TOOLS
With over 10 years of flying around the world with fire tools, I’ve yet to have any problems or anything confiscated.
These are tips based upon what continues to work for me:

• Pack your tools with care
• Make sure to have burned off any excess fuel from your wicks.
• I always travel with gloves, dish soap and a sponge/ cloth to clean my tools and wicks prior to flying.
  Check in counter
• If you are like me, you will show up with a bag big enough to fit a mummy inside. There will be questions.
• Most importantly, never say ‘fire’ and avoid any connotation with weapons. I say that I am a circus artist and that I do object manipulation/ juggling. I talk about ‘batons’ and ‘dance’ while avoiding ‘swords’ and ‘martial arts’.
  Many airlines charge extra for golf/ kite surf/ sports bags so with a bit of luck and charm you can dodge the looming fees with happy talk about circus and art. Not always.
  Carry on luggage
• I don’t recommend traveling with fire tools in your carry on luggage, although I’ve seen it work once (from Las Vegas to LA). If anyone dares to try or has more info, let me know and I’ll add it here.

FLYING WITH LIGHT TOOLS
As of late 2014, airlines must abide by new rules regarding lithium batteries. Limits have been placed on the voltage allowance of lithium batteries in checked luggage. As many of the light dance props on the market use lithium batteries, they are subject to these rules. Even though the limit is way above what you could reach with a checked bag full of light dance tools (most tools are 3-12 volts), as the voltage isn’t specified on your tools, there is a risk that they be confiscated.
The same rules don’t apply to carry on luggage so we recommend traveling with all of your light dance props in your carry on luggage. We’ve tested this a few times without any problems. The average capacity of light dance props (from pyroterra for example) is 3.7 volts/ 700mah.
More info on traveling with lithium batteries: http://www.airfrance.fr/common/image/pdf/en/Bagages_batterie_lithium_en.pdf