quixdraw wrote:
Simple, cheap, ship 55-200, insured, to your first Hotel - "Hold for Guest." Same on return, you will have the box from delivery - any post office, UPS, Fedex, etc. Don't really understand the issue, air, tiny car, same areas AZ, NM, 2 FX Nikons, 4 lenses + no problem. The only time it was a bit of an issue was when I brought the 80-400 in a separate case - awkward, but I still got away with it.
This is likely a good suggestion. However, I have had recent packages that were handled roughly (or dropped ~5' off the conveyor). I would be uncomfortable with this strategy. Having said that, proper packaging (box in a box plus foam), a lens might survive the trip(s).