Are you planning to travel in the near future? If you are, you’re definitely going to want to bring your vapes. After all, the last thing that you want to experience is a late-night nic fit because you’ve just arrived in an unfamiliar location and have no idea where the nearest vape shop is. If you have your vapes on you, there’s no need to worry.
So, can you bring your vapes on a plane? You bet – and it’s actually quite easy to do as long as you follow a few simple rules. In this guide, we’ll explain everything that you need to know about packing your vapes for air travel.
Do you use disposable vapes? Read our guide to bringing disposable vapes on a plane for even more information. Also read our list of the best small vapes to learn about some great travel-ready options.
Where Can I Find the TSA Rules for Bringing Vapes on a Plane?
The information in this guide is true to the best of our knowledge at the time of writing, but regulations can sometimes change with little notice. It never hurts to get some information straight from the source. Here’s the link for the TSA rules on e-cigarettes and vaping devices. We’ll summarize those rules here and also provide a bit of additional information to make sure that you’ll have a stress-free trip.
How Can I Pack My Vapes for Traveling on a Plane?
The vape gear that you might want to bring on a plane will fall into four general categories. Those are:
- Vaping devices
- Vape juice and pre-filled vape pods
- Spare vape batteries
- Vape coils and empty vape pods
We’ll discuss these categories individually. They each have their own distinct rules, which are summarized as follows.
- Lithium-ion batteries and devices with lithium-ion batteries always belong in your carry-on bag. They’re never allowed in checked luggage.
- Any liquid items that you want to pack in your carry-on bag need to be placed together in a single clear plastic bag.
We’ll continue by explaining how those rules apply to bringing vapes on a plane.
How to Bring Vapes on a Plane
Since a vape has a lithium-ion battery, you need to pack it in your carry-on bag if you want to bring it on a plane. This rule applies to all types of vapes because lithium-ion batteries are never allowed in checked luggage.
- If you’re bringing a vape mod with a manual fire button, make sure that it’s turned completely off.
- If you’re bringing a puff-activated pod system without a fire button, removing the pod will effectively turn the device off.
- If you’re bringing disposable vapes, leave them in their original packages to prevent leaking. If you have a device that’s already been taken out of the original box, you might want to put pieces of tape over the mouthpiece and airflow hole.
- You may also be allowed to travel with a vape in your pocket. However, the screening agent makes the ultimate determination here and could ask you to move the vape to your carry-on bag.
You can put a vape in your checked luggage only if the battery is removed and packed separately in your carry-on bag. If you do this, you might want to put a sticky note on the vape explaining that the battery has been removed.
How to Bring Vape Juice or Filled Vape Pods on a Plane
If you want to bring vape juice or filled vape pods on a plane, the TSA rules for liquid items will apply. If you want to bring these items in your carry-on bag, you’ll need to put them in a zip-top plastic bag no larger than one quart in size with all of the other liquid items that you want to bring into the plane’s cabin. The TSA rules require you to remove the liquid bag for separate examination when you go through the security checkpoint at the airport.
You can also put bottled vape juice and pre-filled vape pods in your checked luggage. There are no special rules or restrictions in this case, although you might want to put tape over the bottles’ caps to help prevent leaking.
How to Bring Vape Batteries on a Plane
As you might imagine, bare lithium-ion batteries fall under the same rules as devices with batteries if you want to being them on a plane. If you have spare vape batteries that you want to bring, they’ll need to go in your carry-on bag. Don’t just toss them in the bag, though, because there’s a real risk of fire when other metal items touch a lithium-ion battery. Put the batteries in a secure carrier that isolates them from the other items in your bag.
How to Bring Vape Coils and Empty Vape Pods on a Plane
Other vape accessories like vape coils and empty pods have no specific rules that apply to them since they don’t contain lithium-ion batteries or liquids. You can pack them in any way that works for you.
How Many Vapes Can You Bring on a Plane?
If you’re a very frequent vaper, you might be here because you want to know how many vapes you can bring on a plane. Even the longest-lasting disposable vapes only last several days at the most before they require replacement, and you might want to make sure that you have enough vape gear to last your entire trip.
- In most cases, there is no specific limit as to how many vapes you can bring on a plane. You should note, though, that it’s a very good idea to use common sense here. If you try to bring more vapes than you could possibly use during your trip, a security official might have some questions as to what you intend to do with them.
- If you’re traveling to a foreign country, that country might have limits on the personal importation of vapes. You’ll want to obtain clarification on that before traveling.
Can You Vape on a Plane?
No airline allows passengers to vape on their planes. When it comes to air travel, vaping falls under the same category as smoking – it isn’t allowed under any circumstances. Breaking this rule could subject you to a fine and may even result in you being banned from that airline in the future.
Because vaping devices are so much more discreet than cigarettes, some people make the mistake of trying to “stealth vape” in the bathrooms – or even in their seats – on airplanes. Don’t even try it. At this point, all flight attendants know what vapes are. They also know what passengers look like when they’re trying to stealth vape. You won’t fool anyone, and you might get into very big trouble.
Nicotine gum can be a very useful tool for traveling; bring some to keep your nic fits under control.
Can You Vape at an Airport?
When we talk about how the same rules apply to both vaping and smoking when you travel, we’re not just talking about what happens on the plane; it applies to everything that you do throughout the trip. You can’t vape at an airport except in the areas that are designated for smoking. Elsewhere on this site, we published a guide to the best airport smoking lounges in the United States. A lot has changed since then, though, because smoking areas within airport security perimeters are becoming less common in much of the world as time goes by. It's likely that some of those lounges no longer exist.
Here's what you need to know about vaping at an airport.
- You can only vape in the designated areas that are set aside for smoking. Ask for help if you’re unable to confirm whether the airport has a smoking area.
- If the airport has no smoking area in its security perimeter, you’ll have to take your things and leave the airport if you want to vape. If you’re in a foreign country, there’s an added challenge here because you’ll need to go through customs and enter the country. That’s massively inconvenient, and it’s another reason why bringing nicotine gum when you travel is a very good idea.
Know the Local Laws and Use Common Sense when Traveling with Your Vapes
Having a good experience when you travel with your vapes basically comes down to two things.
- Obey all relevant TSA rules when it comes to bringing your vapes on the plane.
- When you want to vape, use common sense. If you’re in a place where smoking isn’t allowed, you should assume that you aren’t allowed to vape either.
Don’t forget that the vaping regulations in the United States are more permissive than in some other countries, and it’s important to know the laws in your destination country before you travel.
- Make sure that possessing and using a vape is legal in your destination country.
- If sales of vapes aren’t legal – but possession is – make sure that you know what the laws are regarding personal importation.
- In some countries, the only vapes that are legal for sale are ones without nicotine. If this is the case in your destination country, you need to know whether you’re allowed to import vapes with nicotine.
- Wherever you’re planning to go, you need to know if there’s a limit on how many vapes you’re allowed to import for personal use.