71% of Travelers Now Avoid Checking Bags as Growing Rebellion Against the Airport Experience Continues, New LugLess Survey Reveals

Business Wire

12 hours ago

DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- LugLess, the easiest and most affordable luggage shipping service, today announced findings from its 2025 State of Summer Travel survey, revealing a growing disconnect between traveler expectations and the current air travel experience.
'Travelers are paying more and getting more. That is, more delays, more stress and more lost bags, which taints the airport experience,' said Audrey Kohout, co-CEO of LugLess.
Taking insights from 1,019 U.S. consumers, ages 18 to 65+, the survey found that despite economic concerns and rising costs, most Americans are still planning to fly, but they're increasingly unhappy with what air travel has become.
Airport anxiety is on the rise, even as travel demand remains high
Despite inflation and recession fears, only 11% of Americans plan to fly less this year. Of those scaling back, cost (55%) and aircraft safety (29%) are the top concerns. However, the majority are still traveling — just with more stress than ever.
The worst parts of the airport experience, according to travelers:
46% constantly fear their flight will be delayed or canceled
46% say the overall airport process takes too long
32% dislike the crowding and fear getting sick
Unsurprisingly, 71% of travelers now avoid checking bags entirely, citing cost (36% find it too expensive) and convenience. In fact, 34% wear extra layers of clothing to avoid paying checked bag fees. When a larger suitcase is unavoidable, 59% say they'd be willing to spend $100-$200 on a luggage shipping service to reduce airport hassle.
Regarding when travelers arrive at the airport, most follow the two-hour rule, while 28% arrive within an hour of boarding. This risky behavior is likely in light of little repercussion, with only 24% missing a flight. However, many (43%) are repeat offenders, having missed two to three flights due to traffic (36%), medical emergencies (32%) and oversleeping (29%).
TSA troubles and travel faux pas are making things worse
While 35% of respondents face stress throughout the travel journey, the TSA experience is particularly draining. Thirty percent fear their expensive items will get thrown out by security, with 35% confirming TSA agents have tossed their items. Respondents' other TSA fears include being flagged for an extra screening (27%) and extra luggage searches in front of others (16%).
One reason travelers may shy away from extra luggage searches is due to what's in their carry-on, with 22% having had embarrassing personal items pulled from their bag. In particular, travelers admit to carrying everything from ashes of loved ones (11%) to sex toys (10%) to drug-related paraphernalia (10%) in their bags.
Once on the plane, frustrations continue. Travelers' top pet peeves include:
Talking loudly: 64%
Playing music or videos without headphones: 57%
Eating pungent foods: 54%
Removing shoes: 46%
Hogging both armrests: 46%
Frequent bathroom trips: 25%
Trends that may impact the summer travel season ahead
Summer remains the peak travel season, with 46% of respondents planning trips between June and September. Influenced by shows like The White Lotus, 78% of fans say they've planned or want to plan a trip based on the show's filming locations, including Hawaii (61%), Italy (50%) and Thailand (38%).
However, many people still haven't adopted tools that could reduce friction when trip planning or traveling. Sixty-nine percent of respondents aren't using Apple AirTags, despite 94% agreeing it's a smart solution for tracking bags. And even with all the hype surrounding AI agents within tech circles, general America isn't fully on board with using it for easier travel booking, with only 38% of travelers interested in AI travel agents. However, those who are curious about AI agents want help with:
Booking flights, hotels and transportation (68%)
Researching and building an itinerary (57%)
Finding restaurants based on preferences (44%)
Finally, while skiplagging — purchasing a connecting flight itinerary with the intention of only taking the first leg of the route — hit mainstream news over the past few months, 76% of travelers have confirmed they haven't participated in the trend. But most respondents (43%) said they'd consider it if it saved them money.
'Travelers are paying more and getting more. That is, more delays, more stress and more lost bags, which taints the airport experience,' said Audrey Kohout, co-CEO of LugLess. 'The survey results reinforce what LugLess has long known: Travelers want convenience, control and calm — not chaos. We're helping lead that shift by removing one of the biggest headaches from the travel equation: checked bags. By helping travelers simplify their trips without breaking the bank, LugLess is making the airport experience feel like the start of a vacation — not a hurdle to overcome.'
To learn more about LugLess, please visit https://www.lugless.com/.
Methodology
The Propeller Insights survey commissioned by LugLess surveyed 1,019 U.S. citizens, ages 18 and over, across the U.S. in February 2025. Survey responses were representative of the U.S. population for age, gender, region and ethnicity. The maximum margin of sampling error was +/- 3.0 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.
About LugLess
LugLess was created to bypass the inefficient, outdated and broken process of checking luggage. Our technology leverages existing logistics networks to make shipping luggage easier and cheaper than checking a bag.