Travel Kinky and Travel Safe
Uncertainly about the new regulations and procedures for air travel have most of us a little concerned. Here's a reposting of an excellent article from Midori which originally appeared on Carnal Nation. Are you preparing for a sexy getaway with your sweetie? Maybe you're heading off to AVN, or some kinky event like Dark Odyssey or the Fetish Fair Fleamarket, and hoping for some action. Airline luggage limits, increasing fees and regulations set by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), and other government security agencies can make packing a huge headache. Here's some practical insider info on how to pack smartly while avoiding a lengthy non-consensual interrogation scene with Homeland Security. I figure, with years of frequent travel and my taste in toys and sexy, kinky destination events, I have a bit of experience and research to draw from.
Forget rumors from acquaintances and gossip you read on-line.
First, you need to know the rules and regulations that apply to both your departure and destination locales. This is of particular concern if you travel internationally. Go directly to the government agency in each destination country. Simply search on line for "air travel regulation" in each country. Here are a few popular resources:
USA: Transportation Security Administration list of permitted & prohibited items.
Canada: Canadian Air Transport Security Authority packing information.
UK: UK government air travel info page
The US State Department has an excellent traveler advisory page. Here's the Country Specific Information page. The Criminal Penalties section on this last site is very revealing. Who knew that your poppy-seed bagel could get you tossed in the stockades in Dubai?
If you can't find the official security agency information, contact your airline and request the official travel info site for the destination city. If the airline employee doesn't know, insist on talking to someone else who does.
Be careful with porn, including non-penetrative kink smut. Some countries are less accepting of it than others, according either to law or by the discretion of the individual screener. For example, Canadians may be known as being polite and reasonable most of the time, but don't try to bring porn into their country. Fortunately, Canada has lots of great homegrown smut. Buy local and you can both play it safe and contribute to the local economy.
Packing Tips
Now for the practical lowdown on packing your sex toys and kink tools:
E-Stim devices, like the one above, can easily be mistaken for explosives by x-ray machines.
What Not to Pack: Anything that might be considered to be a weapon or device of restraint should be packed in the checked luggage.
You think it's a toy, but they may think it's a weapon. Sometime we forget that our beloved play toys have their roots or non-kink use as a weapon. Airport security is only concerned with an object's potential hazardous use. That gorgeous single-tail? It's a weapon. Lead-shot filled baton or heavy chain? Ditto. Ropes and heavy restraints? Totally suspect. Check them all in the suitcase with the fantasy wear and toiletries. Handcuffs and metal fetters? Never, ever take them in your carry-on. Some items look like a weapon on the luggage scanner screen. The tangle of wires, batteries and attachments of a high-end electrical toy, such as the ErosTek, may appear to be a bomb. Make sure to pack the instruction manual with the kit so you can easily explain what it is. Amusingly, electric hot rollers for hair often look like bombs as well.
Some toys are illegal or conditionally legal in some countries. Play piercing needles without prescription and accompanying medication, stun guns, Sjambok and pornography can get you in trouble in many countries. If the item is rare, expensive or of sentimental value, consider leaving it at home. Packed items go missing all the time for several reasons. You could have left it behind in the hotel. Bags fly open, zippers slide open, and items drop out onto the floor and go into the void. Some baggage screeners and handlers are thieves. The screener may decide, sometimes incorrectly, that an item is hazardous or contraband and remove it. You have no practical recourse beyond filing a lost item form—and that usually goes nowhere.
Safe for Carry-On Luggage: Standard sex toys, such as vibrators, dildos, cock toys, etc usually aren't a problem, but most people choose to check them instead of taking it on the plane. Of course if you're packing for a short trip with only carry-on luggage, it's good to know that's dildos are ok in your on-board bags. If you get bored on flights, MP3-compatible vibrators, like those made by OhMiBod, are always a lot of fun. Remember to turn them off for takeoff and landing, like all other electronic items.
Other items generally safe for carry-on luggage:
Condoms & safer sex supplies.
Lube and lotions, as long as they're in a 3.4 ounce (100ml) bottle or less and fit into a 1-quart plastic bag, as per TSA regulations.
Feather tickler things.
Scarves.
Belts.
Small paddles.
Scissors with blades under 4".
Sleep masks. (We generally call them blindfolds.)
Batteries.
Your filthy mind.
Have no shame—or ship it ahead.
Be prepared to have the contents of your carry-on or checked bags displayed in public. Don't be flustered or embarrassed by anything in your bag. If you do, it makes you look suspicious. Additionally, you'll slow down the process, which staff and fellow travelers hate. Many security screeners are considerate and won't go waving around your 2-lb butt-plug, but they can, and some have. I've had a dimwit screener swing my flogger around while asking what it was. Another screener tried, quite unsuccessfully, to humiliate me by pulling out my sex toys and brandishing them at me. I grinned wide, pulled out one of my books and encouraged him to consider spicing up his sex life with his wife.
Because strangers will be handling your toys, consider putting each item in your suitcase in appropriately sized re-sealable plastic bags or clear plastic boxes. This allows the handlers to examine the items with out direct contact. Trust me, they appreciate that too.
If you do not want to risk any chance of PDA (public display of accessories), ship them in advance via a traceable and insured shipping method.
Airport Dress and Behavior
Dress to blend in. Dress to underwhelm. Don't attract attention. In short, be boring. I find this helpful in any airport but especially so when crossing national borders. The tired tourist or the bored businessperson is always a good default look. Your goal is to get through all the procedures as smoothly and quickly as possible.
I know several women who dressed to the nines in fetish wear or swinger party wear and full glam make-up to travel, and not surprisingly were then held up at the border and questioned about whether they were sex workers. Some were and some weren't, but they were grilled and some were denied entry to the country. Couples dressed provocatively may also attract unwanted administrative attention.
Avoid getting an unfavorable note in your traveler records associated with your passport, as that'll come back to haunt you every time you cross that border. To the best of my knowledge, what information they store about you as a visitor to each country will vary from nation to nation. What I do know is that my friends who have had serious problems entering a country continue to be scrutinized in subsequent visits. How long will that last? It depends on the security policies of each nation.
Huge D/s and metal permanent collars are a bad idea. The security agents don't give a rat's gonads about your commitment to your lover/master/mistress/handler/keeper. It'll just hold you up at the security station longer than you need to. The same goes for complicated fetish footwear, metal boned corsets and complicated accessories. If you have body piercings, consider jewelry that won't set off the metal detector. If the jewelry does set off the metal detectors, wear clothing that you can easily reveal the body mods in question when you're taken to the little room.
Cooperate and be polite.
Keep any flamboyant D/s behavior protocols or sexual behavior outside of the airports and other security area. Pulling your human pet through the airport on a collar and leash is really not a good idea. (Yes, that's a true story.) If protocol behavior is important to you, develop a whole series of stealth behavior suitable at airports and during Homeland Security interrogations. This is not the time to be dramatically performative to express your leather pride, poly pride, whatever pride and protest your right to sexual freedom. If asked by a luggage screener about a toy or your relationships, don't lie about what it is, but don't go into inappropriate details either. It's okay to say, "Oh, I like role-playing games with my partner," or "That toy is for a bit of naughty sex." It's not cool to give detailed description of your heavy scenes or orgies. Respect the screener's limits, too.>
If you're poly or you swing, you don't need to explain your dynamics and relationship geometry with all your partners traveling with you.If you're GLBTIQ, be mindful of where you're Out. You might be considered a criminal in some countries just for being who you are. You also want to avoid language that can be misunderstood to be potentially criminal or non-consensual. Don't talk about "pain", "daddy-girl" or "Daddy-boy" scenes, "interrogation," "abduction," "confinement," "rape," "torture," "prisoner," "master," "slave," "slave auction," "gang-(anything)," etc. Yes, these are all hot and arousing words for play but they simply arouse suspicion out of context. Instead of saying a metal ring is a cock & ballTorture device, say that it's something fun for the guy to wear during sex.
If you're in a D/s relationship where the submissive isn't allowed to speak for themselves, suspend that rule during official conversations and interactions with airport personnel. Immigration will not take kindly to your Masterly behavior and can out-Top you by putting you into detention for contempt. Don't engage in visible or blanket stirring sex acts in your airplane seat. It's rude to the flight attendants.
Good Things to Pack for a Sexy or Kinky Weekend
In addition to your usual play toys, here are some other items to make your away-games score higher.
Big latex or washable vinyl sheets. (It's really rude to make a big mess and expect maids to clean it up.)
Light: Headlamp or battery operated lantern. (Much sexier than most hotel room lights.)
Trash can liners or recycled plastic bags. (Great for throwing in post-play toys and clothes for cleaning later.)
Extension cord. (Magic Wand, anyone?)
Music or white noise machine & portable speakers.
Robe, if going to a place where they don't provide a bathrobe. (Don't scare the room service delivery person!)
Extra batteries for any battery-powered toys
Splurge on inflatable sex furniture—and don't forget the air pump!
Travel-size packets of dish soap. (Effective toy cleaner.)
Portable under-bed bondage device.
Truck bed bungee stretch net with hooks. Works for great instant bondage points over the bed.
Try not to leave a huge mess for the maid to clean up. At least put away the toys and leave a huge tip.
Safe travels!
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