Are you planning to travel in the near future? If you vape, you’ll want to take your vape gear with you because it isn’t always easy to find a vape shop when you’re abroad. When preparing for your trip, it’s also smart to stock up on your preferred e-liquids before leaving. Many travelers who prioritize cleaner ingredients choose organic vape juices at Velvet Cloud to ensure consistent quality and avoid relying on unfamiliar products while overseas.
Bringing a vape on a plane isn’t quite as easy as it would have been when you were a smoker because you can’t just throw your vape, e-liquid and spare parts in your pocket like you can with a pack of cigarettes and a book of matches. Also, airlines have special rules that you have to obey if you want to travel with liquids and devices with lithium-ion batteries. Vapes have both of those things, so the rules will apply to you.
If you want to bring your vape on a plane, you need to know how to do it properly. Here’s how to pack your vape gear for flying.
How to Bring Your Vape on a Plane
We’ll begin this guide with an overview of the things you need to know when bringing your vape on a plane. Here’s how to pack all of the different types of vape gear that you might have in accordance with TSA regulations.
Vaping Devices
Because a vape has a lithium-ion battery, you need to pack it in your carry-on bag. Lithium-ion batteries are never allowed in checked luggage due to the potential fire risk. If you forget about this rule and put your vape in your checked bag, it’ll most likely be found and confiscated. When packing your device, don’t forget to turn it off. Charging a vape is never allowed on a plane – not even in your bag – so don’t connect your device to a battery charger.
Spare Batteries for Vaping Devices
Some vapes have removable batteries, and since they’re lithium-ion cells, the same rules apply as with the devices themselves. You need to pack your spare batteries in your carry-on bag. Put them in a protective carrier that keeps them from getting bumped and isolates them from other metal objects.
E-Liquid or Filled Vape Pods
Airlines have rules that apply to liquid products when they’re carried in the passenger compartment, and those rules apply to bottled e-liquid and pre-filled vape pods. If you want to pack those items in your carry-on bag, they need to be placed in a quart-sized zip-top bag along with any other liquids that you want to carry onboard.
Note that e-liquid bottles carried in the passenger area can be no larger than 100 ml. You can also pack additional vape juice and filled vape pods in your checked luggage however you like. Consider taping your e-liquid bottles to help ensure that they won’t leak.
Empty Pods, Coils and Other Spare Parts
If your vape requires spare parts like empty pods or replacement coils, those items have no special requirements since they don’t have batteries and don’t contain liquids. You can pack them however you like.
Rules for Flying with Your Vape
So, what are the special rules that you need to follow when you bring your vape on a plane? They’re essentially the same as the rules for smokers. You aren’t allowed to use or charge your vape on the plane, so it needs to stay in your bag at all times.
People are sometimes tempted to “stealth vape” on planes because you won’t exhale a visible cloud if you hold the vapor in your lungs long enough. Those who try it are typically caught and sometimes have to suffer public humiliation.
Don’t even do it in the bathroom because planes typically have vape detectors these days. If you’re concerned that you might have a tough time getting through a long flight, bring nicotine pouches or some other form of alternative supplementation.
Rules for Vaping at an Airport
If your flight has a layover at an airport, you should know in advance that you probably won’t be allowed to vape there. At least 635 airports in the United States are now completely smoke free and have no airside smoking areas at all – and you can’t vape in an airport unless you’re in an area where smoking is allowed. If you want to vape, you’ll most likely need to leave the terminal and find a marked smoking area outside.
If you’re at an airport and aren’t sure whether it has a smoking area or not, you can always ask an attendant for help. Some airports do have airside smoking areas that aren’t well marked.
These same rules apply when you’re flying internationally, although you’re more likely to find an airport smoking area if you’re in a country with a higher smoking rate. If you’re in an international airport that doesn’t have a smoking area, you’ll have to go through customs in order to go outside and vape. You’ll find that it’s much easier to bring alternative nicotine supplementation instead.
What to Know When Flying Internationally with Your Vape
As we bring this guide to a close, we’ll leave you with a few important tips that you’ll find helpful if you’re planning to travel internationally as a vaper.
- Don’t assume that you’ll be able to find your favorite products where you’re going. Some places might have much higher prices that you’re used to paying. The available brands, flavors and nicotine strengths could be different. There are some places where vapes with nicotine aren’t available at all. It’s best to pack all of the supplies that you expect to use during your trip.
- Vaping is banned in a few places. In Thailand, for instance, there’s a total ban on the use and possession of vapes. If you’re traveling internationally, it’s always your responsibility to research the current laws before you go. Don’t assume that the authorities will be easy on you because you’re a tourist.
- There are strict laws that apply to public smoking just about everywhere, and the laws that apply to smoking almost always apply to vaping as well. If you’re in a place where smoking isn’t allowed, you should always assume that vaping is also forbidden.
