Okay, the good news is, my wife & I just booked a tour with Escape Adventures for May 15-19.
We chose this tour

Anyways, It's been a few years since I've travelled w/ my mountain bike. Every time I've travelled in the past, I used a bike bag, and checked it with my luggage, and boarded the plane. Sometimes the gate agent charged me, sometimes they didn't. I'm sure that's all changed with the Homeland Security stuff going on these days...

So, I have a few choices, trying to find best price since I have some time to prepare.
Does anyone have any opinions or experiences?

1. Bring it w/ me on plane in bike bag/case(up to 85. surcharge each way)
2. Ship it out there, (could be logistical problem) Escape charges 90 to recieve it, & build it up and have it on the truck when we arrive for the tour.
3. Ship it out there to our first arriving hotel or a UPS shipping outlet, and build it up myself. 'Dont know the cost. Maybe 60 bucks?(could be another logistical problem...)
4. ...gasp....Rent - which I cant imagine doing but I suppose it can be an option.

Oh yeah, my wife is renting a bike, since she really wants to try out a full susp bike. Escape Rentals cost 175 for the week.