Who applauds when a plane lands? Which cruise line is trying to stop passengers from hiding rubber ducks around its ships? And how many Americans say they have had sex on a plane?
Travelers have no shortage of strange rituals, superstitions and viral trends, some harmless, others expensive or downright dangerous.
Where do the rubber ducks go?
Cruise line Marella recently asked passengers to stop hiding small rubber ducks around its ships for future guests to find. The company cited the burden on crews tasked with clearing abandoned items from ships, as well as concerns about creating additional plastic waste.
Travel website Shipacation subsequently reviewed the policies of other cruise operators. Royal Caribbean, for example, reportedly bans the ducks only in the “Central Park” areas of its ships, where they could damage live plants.
(Photo: Kitthanes, shutterstock)
Keep the mattress inside
Cruise passengers have found other ways to entertain themselves between ports. Marella has also discouraged travelers from decorating cabin doors with signs, magnets, posters and flags, a popular way to make otherwise identical corridors feel more personal.
Carnival Cruise Line, meanwhile, warned passengers in March against taking cabin mattresses onto balconies as part of a viral challenge to film themselves sleeping outside. Those who do it could reportedly face fines of up to $500.
Who applauds the pilots?
Anyone who assumes clapping after landing is mainly an Israeli habit may want to think again. According to a survey by airline Wizz Air, Georgians lead the way, with 75% saying they applaud pilots after landing, followed by Bulgarians at 70%.
In Hungary and Romania, around half of passengers clap. In Switzerland and Britain, the figure falls to about 30%. Passengers who fly less often are more likely to applaud, perhaps because they are more impressed that they actually made it back to the ground.
Relief was cited by 34% of respondents as a reason for clapping, while others said they wanted to express gratitude to the crew. Another 20% admitted they clap simply because everyone around them does.
Touch the plane for luck
Some travelers prefer a quieter ritual. A 2016 survey found that 17% of passengers said they feel safer if they touch the outside of the aircraft before boarding.
For some, it resembles knocking on wood. Others kiss their fingers before touching the fuselage. One tourism expert told Fox News that travelers often aim for the airline logo, sometimes while saying a short prayer.
The very expensive coin toss
In China, a more dangerous superstition has occasionally led passengers to throw coins toward aircraft engines for good luck.
If a coin actually reaches the engine, the result can be hours of delays, mechanical inspections and, often, the arrest of whoever threw it. In one case in eastern China, a passenger was reportedly fined the equivalent of $17,000.
Sex on the plane?
A survey by travel website The Vacationer found that 29% of Americans said they had had a vacation hookup, including 18% who said it had happened more than once. The figure was 34% among men and 24% among women.
Twelve percent said they had had sex on a plane, while 8% reported doing so on a bus, 9% on a train or subway, 6% in a taxi and 6% on a ferry.
The site estimated that about 30 million Americans have had sex on an airplane. Still, 77% said they had never had sex on any form of transportation without a private room.
The ultimate endurance test
Another travel trend that took off on social media in 2024 was “raw-dogging” long-haul flights. The idea is simple: no movies, no phone, no computer, no headphones and no books. The most committed participants also avoid eating, drinking and even getting up to use the bathroom.
Norwegian soccer star Erling Haaland said in 2024 that he completed a seven-hour flight this way, although some online commenters noted that the challenge may be somewhat easier from a premium seat.
Erling Haaland
(Photo: Luca Bruno/AP)
The trend was initially associated with tests of masculine endurance, but has since spread more widely among travelers looking to turn a long flight into its own peculiar challenge.