13-05-2025
People are only just realising there's a hidden feature in airplane bathrooms that they never knew existed
A surprising hidden feature in some plane toilet has left passengers with their 'mind blown'.
The little-known item was exposed in a video shared to Instagram by traveller @helenespassport.
In the video, the traveller films herself in the plane toilet as she prepares to throw a bit of tissue in the bin.
But instead of pushing down the lid of the small countertop bin to throw away her rubbish, she uses a small pedal on the floor of the cubicle to operate the bin's lid.
Helene says: 'Mind-blown! There's actually a button to open the trash bin in an airplane bathroom. Who knew?'
In her caption video, she adds: 'Most people have no idea this exists. Ever struggled to throw something away in an airplane bathroom?
'Instead of awkwardly pushing the flap, look for the [hidden] button. On several planes, the trash bin has a small button or latch.
'It's not always as obvious as this one and it can be a bit more hidden, which is why so many people end up pushing the wrong spot!'
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Helene Jansen | Adventure travel (@helenespassport)
In the video, the traveller films herself in the plane toilet as she prepares to throw a bit of tissue in the bin. But instead of pushing down the lid of the small countertop bin to throw away her rubbish, she uses a small pedal on the floor of the cubicle to operate the bin's lid
But while Helene was impressed by the 'hidden' feature, she warns: 'This is unfortunately not on all planes, but totally should be.'
And the commenters seemed to agree.
'Lazycrazytravelers' says: 'Very few aircrafts have this option. But they should all have it!'
While another user adds: 'I've been on dozens of planes [since I saw this] and I'm convinced these pedals don't exist.'
