Should we lose half a day collecting a delayed suitcase before a two-night trip ends?

People, dialogue, baggage updates and prices are fictional.

‘It's at the airport now. Let's go and get it,’ Harry says over breakfast. His partner Ava looks at the clock: their only full day in Chicago is already beginning. After their US domestic flight the previous evening, Harry's checked suitcase did not arrive. He filed a baggage report before leaving the airport.

The airline's imagined tracking message now shows the bag at the arrival airport, but nobody has confirmed it is ready for collection. A phone agent says hotel delivery might be that afternoon or the next morning, without giving a firm time. The couple's quoted return taxi fare is $86. A local shop has the basic clothes and toiletries Harry needs for about $62; his medication and documents are already with him.

The [US Department of Transportation's guidance](https://www.transportation.gov/lost-delayed-or-damaged-baggage) says airlines must compensate reasonable, verifiable, actual incidental expenses caused by delayed baggage, subject to liability limits. That does not promise payment for every purchase or for this proposed taxi trip.

Harry dislikes buying replacements for things sitting nearby. Ava dislikes spending their one sightseeing day waiting for a bag they might not even be able to collect yet. What should they confirm with the airline, and how would you choose between collection, delivery and buying the minimum?