To throw away presents?

[Sausages18]

Visiting my partner’s family in Europe, travelling with a 2 year old. There are a lot of family and we brought presents from the UK for everyone - tried to find nice things that were still relatively small and light enough for us to travel out with. We maxed out our luggage allowance on the (budget) airline with our stuff, toddler stuff, and a bag of presents.

I am grateful that people spent time and money on gifts for us in return. Some lovely things! But the stuff we’ve been given is massive and heavy. For example a huge and rigid soft toy, a giant book that probably weighs 5kg and fills the bottom of a suitcase, a toiletries set in an enormous metal tin, huge thick bottomed glass jars of preserves.

The only way to get it all home is to pay for another suitcase on the plane AND probably hire a larger car for the next week as we are already stuffed to the gunnels.

AIBU to chuck most of the stuff away or give it to charity before we leave? And AIBU a massive bitch to be a bit annoyed that no one considered the practicalities of giving a family flying with a toddler such a massive load of stuff to carry?

I think you say "Thank you for the lovely gifts. Obviously we can't carry them on the plane so could you please post them to us" Job done, they will never make the same mistake again.

Parcel2go.com, pack the stuff up and courier it back. In the UK it can be cheaper to courier luggage than pay the airples to carry it.

Ha! I was given a set of china le cruset last time I came.

I have had this exact problem after my child's christening abroad. We divided the stuff up into wanted and stuffed our suitcases til they were groaning, and about half of it was donated on the last day to the church which is the place where charity is distributed in that country. A lot of the toys were unsuitable (age 3 and above for a baby) or just very flamboyant/large which is the point of them being given but not practical. I also left some of the clothes which were more culturally suited to that country (that's me being polite).

No harm done and hopefully some much more needy children given toys and clothes!

Sexnotgender I would have left a child behind to make room for the Le Creuset casserole.

I have posted things from the UK to France.
Went to a diy shop, bought a plastic crate and sent 25kgs for £19.
I used Parcelmonkey which gives you quite a few suppliers. It arrived in3 days.

i’ve had to chuck things quite regularly (we’ve relocated internationally several time). loads of good bye gifts after the movers had left... People just don’t think, but then this doesn’t mean i have to think for them. off to the charity shop, or the bin (or next to the bin with a “help yourself” sign).

I use a company called Unibaggage. They do door to door .30kg for around £20:.
I agree that it’s extremely thoughtless of them !

The cost of postage would be astronomical. Don't even consider it.

I think asking for help posting them home is a natural way of bringing into conversation how limited you are with luggage and you are so greatful they spoilt you all so much but you can't take it all on the plabe. My cousin in Canada found this when mama was still with us she had never flown and didn't know about luggage limits etc

No idea on he other stuff (courier is a good call) are the toiletries nice? You could take them and dump the tin they're in?

Sounds like clutter. I'd take it to a charity shop.

We flew back from Oz to get married in the UK to make it easier for family and friends to attend and specified on the invites that we had everything we needed already at our home overseas and that we were going hiking in the Alaskan wilderness for our honeymoon so wouldn't be able to carry anything other than our tent, clothes and food, so please, please, please no presents.
We also nominated a charity that people could donate to if they really wanted to give us a gift.
While most people understood, at the ceremony we still got given a bedding set, crockery, cutlery and other impossible to transport gifts. We were flying out the next morning and had to ask my PILs to donate it to the charity

Oof - I feel you!

We just had Christmas in NZ. Months before, I said to MIL, "oh, lovely to send us with gifts, but small ones, obviously!" She agreed.

My parents gave us a tiny gift each - both fit in a single cufflink box. She gave us three sizeable and pointless ones. You win though!

@Sausages18
What did you do?
Looks like my suitcases will all close. Will see what the baggage scales say tonight. Wish me luck!

People are utter morons at Christmas. There was a thread on here not too long ago of someone who has asked their relatives not to make gifts at Christmas, yet still they served up their presents of tat; indeed, expected the recipient to come round to theirs to collect their presents.

What part of "no" doesn't mean "no" just because "It's Christmas"? It's bad enough when you're a struggling family who cannot reciprocate; but when it's going to mean excess luggage you can't afford, it's obnoxious.