There’s a running gag among airplane commuters that involves wearing all of your clothes at once instead of just buying a bigger suitcase and paying a checked baggage fee. If you’re worried about the weight of your bag, you could always implement tricks like this person did, or you could embrace the gag as a viable solution. The latter is something a TikToker named Mattiegascar (@mattymendy) did while traveling.
Matty documented his travel “hack” in a viral TikTok that’s garnered over 188,000 views as of Saturday. While many found his dedication to the joke amusing, others said they, too, tried this and couldn’t recommend it in good conscience.
A text overlay in Matty’s video reads, “GRWM [get ready with me] for my 1 carry-on item only flight.” He places his recording device on the floor in the airport and then begins to show the multiple layers of clothing he’s wearing on the flight.
He dons multiple pairs of pants, multiple t-shirts, and a button-up short-sleeved flannel on top of it all. He rocks a baseball cap and rolls a single carry-on suitcase throughout the airport, and a pair of shoes in the back pockets of his clothing.
This tactic appears to be a traveling “hack” he’s implemented so he can bring as much clothing with him as possible while only bringing a single carry-on onto the airplane with him.
@mattymendy fit check! #jetstar #ootd ♬ Circus – Color Clownies
For domestic flights, many airlines sell “basic economy” tickets, which are often non-refundable (for 24 hours and outside of extenuating circumstances like significant delays and/or cancellations) and come with several stipulations.
As is often the case with basic economy seats, passengers will be offered the lowest possible travel cost for their airfare. However, they can only bring one personal item, such as a backpack.
Small carry-on luggage with basic economy tickets usually comes with an additional cost, as do checked luggage. Some airlines, like Frontier, even purportedly implement strict policing measures when it the size of the “personal items” folks are allowed to bring onto airplanes. One user even went so far as to prove that the bag they were bringing on board was clearly in compliance with the airline’s personal item policies, with some accusing the company’s agents of receiving commissions on every passenger they clocked for a personal item charge.
Other passengers have shared their “hacks” for saving money on traveling with luggage and skirting high prices for bags/luggage. For example, one Spirit Airlines customer elected to ship their items home using a parcel service for $35, instead of dropping that cash on checked luggage.
One viewer was impressed at Matty’s ability to get all of the clothes on in the first place, writing, “HOW did you get all those jeans on?”
Another thought that this technique would result in a lot of logistical issues, commenting, “Going to the bathroom would be insane.”
Someone else said that their own attempt and implementing this hack in their travels didn’t go over so well.
“I did this once and almost passed out,” they wrote.
Another thought that Matty must’ve been going away for a long time if he was traveling with that many pairs of jeans.
“My question is how long are you going for to need 4 pairs of jeans lol,” they asked.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Matty via TikTok comment for further information.
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