Wine-drinkers rejoice: Another airline has joined the list of carriers that make it easy to bring wine home from your trip to California’s wine regions, including Napa Valley, Sonoma County and Livermore Valley.
Beginning Oct. 6, Delta Air Lines will allow SkyMiles members who are at least 21 and departing from select airports in Northern California and Sacramento to skip the $45 checked bag fee when checking one case of wine.
To be eligible for Delta’s new SkyMiles “Wine Takes Flight” program, passengers must: be flying on a Delta or Delta Connection flight on a paid or an award ticket, be flying nonstop or connecting to a destination within the U.S., and be leaving from one of the program’s participating airports.
Delta says the list may expand, but for now, these are the originating West Coast airports where Delta Air Airlines will allow you to fly a case of wine for free:
- San Francisco International Airport (SFO)
- Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport (OAK)
- San Jose Mineta International Airport (SJC)
- Sacramento International Airport (SMF)
- Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport (STS)
To ship your wine, you will need to follow some standard packing rules. Your box must weigh no more than 50 pounds and be within Delta’s 62 linear inch baggage size limit. Your wine must also be securely packed in an approved shipping box or container and be left unsealed so that the gate agent can inspect it at check-in. Cases may contain up to 12 750-milliliter bottles that are unopened and have their original labels.
Other airlines that let wine fly free
Delta’s SkyMiles Wine Takes Flight program is a welcome money-saving perk for passengers.
And it joins the free wine shipping programs offered by Alaska Airlines (which debuted its Wine Flies Free program in 2007) and Southwest Airlines (which rolled out its Sip and Ship program in August 2026).
Southwest’s Sip and Ship program currently applies to flights departing from 19 airports in California, Oregon, Washington and Idaho.
Here are the airports in Southwest’s Sip and Ship program:
- California: Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR), Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT), Long Beach Airport (LGB), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport (OAK), Ontario International Airport (ONT), John Wayne Airport (SNA), Palm Springs International Airport (PSP), SMF, San Diego International Airport (SAN), SFO, SJC, Santa Barbara Airport (SBA) and STS
- Idaho: Boise Airport (BOI)
- Oregon: Eugene Airport (EUG), Portland International Airport (PDX)
- Washington: Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), Spokane International Airport (GEG)
Here are the West Coast airports currently in Alaska Airlines’ Wine Flight Free Program:
- California: California Redwood Coast–Humboldt County Airport (ACV), BUR, FAT, LGB, LAX, Monterey Regional Airport (MRY), OAK, ONT, SNA, PSP, Redding Regional Airport (RDD), SMF, SAN, SFO, SJC, San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport (SBP), SBA and STS
- Idaho: BOI, Idaho Falls Regional Airport (IDA) and Friedman Memorial Airport (SUN)
- Oregon: EUG, Rogue Valley International Medford Airport, PDX and Redmond Municipal Airport (RDM)
- Washington:Bellingham International Airport (BLI), Seattle Paine Field International Airport (PAE), Tri-Cities Airport (PSC), Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport (PUW), SEA, GEG, Walla Walla Regional Airport (ALW), Pangborn Memorial Airport (EAT), and Yakima Air Terminal–McAllister Field (YKM)
Bonus benefit of the Alaska Airlines’ Wine Flies Free program
Alaska’s Wine Flies Free program has a hidden benefit that can be just as valuable as, if not more valuable than, the waived baggage fee.
At select wineries and tasting rooms in Oregon, Washington and Idaho that normally charge a tasting fee — which can range from $15 to $40 per person — your fee may be waived if you show your inbound boarding pass and Atmos Rewards membership. Many wineries also waive tasting fees if you purchase a bottle.
Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
Source: thepointsguy.com
