Air travel hack using fishing gear really works: ‘Absolutely every time’
There’s no such thing as a bad day when you’re fishing — and no such thing as extra baggage charges when you wear a fishing vest.
Travel hackers on TikTok are putting function before fashion in the latest trend, with savvy airline passengers using pocket-laden vests — often worn by anglers to carry their myriad gizmos — to fill with belongings they can’t fit in a carry-on.
In one clip with over 1.8 million views, TikTok user @cheapholidayexpert shared a video from the perspective of a traveler who carefully tucked belongings into the many pockets of the vest — managing to squeeze in a portable speaker, deodorant, pack of cards, bikini and more into their many small pockets. They even shove a laptop in a larger pocket in the back of the vest.
“After stuffing my pants in a neck pillow and using a duty-free bag, it was only time before I reached the heady heights of leisurewear,” @cheapholidayexpert joked in the caption.
The fishing vest hack is an iteration of other popular air travel hacks that have circulated the app. TikTokers have previously touted hacks like stuffing extra clothes into a travel neck pillow or wearing layers of clothing to wear on the plane as the ultimate way to avoid an extra cost.
Many creators have tried the latest hack and say that it helped them save money by avoiding additional checked bag charges.
“Great travel hack for budget airlines and early check-ins,” creator Natasha Hunt-Stanley gushed in a clip, adding it’s helped her “get around those high [baggage] charges.”
In an email to The Post, Hunt-Stanley, who lives in the UK, said she’s used the trick “five times, [over] eight flights and one train journey.”
“When I wear [the vest] over a black outfit it’s barely noticeable,” the thrifty traveler said, adding it’s worked “absolutely every time.”
In the clip, she shows herself wearing a fishing vest packed to the brim with smaller pockets packet with travel essentials such as portable chargers, earphones, snacks and passports and the larger ones filled with clothes.
The user then showed herself taking a tote bag out of the vest and stuffing the vest into it.
“So I don’t look like a crazy person,” she joked.
In another video, attorney and frequent traveler Julie Waters tested the technique with a fly-fishing vest for her upcoming Spirit Airlines flight.
In her video, Waters claims to have stowed a week’s worth of clothing into her vest. Along with her carry-on luggage, the mom successfully made it through security without having to pay for an additional item.
“No one batted an eye, but a friend did make a comment that someone could have thought you were some kind of crazy Unabomber-type person so that would be the biggest downside,” she told the Wall Street Journal. “What I really want to try is the pillowcase one, where instead of a pillow it’s full of clothes.”
For Hunt-Stanley, who frequently travels with budget airlines such as EasyJet and RyanAir, it’s a game-changer.
“It’s such a winner for budget airlines and early check-ins,” Hunt-Stanely said. “Especially when there is a pool to lounge around.”
The Post has reached out to RyanAir, Spirit Airlines and EasyJet for comment.
