Arab baggage: Travel habits that might deserve plane evacuations!

Published April 25th, 2016 - 03:33 GMT

Headlines have recently been blasting news of mistreatment of Arab passengers for nonsensical reasons that stem from racism and fear. While it’s unacceptable and illegal (and downright discriminatory) to undermine Middle Easterners’ rights to travel freely, Arab passengers may not be so innocent as we’d like to charge in our rush to their defense!

In the name of honesty and humor, we saw fit to call out, in sweeping but fond generalisations, the Arab creed’s collective resistance to certain codes of travel etiquette. Here we highlight habits and bad behaviors that have come to be considered characteristic of Arab travelers as identified by our Arab crew (and not just self-hating ones!)

Would these constitute valid reasons for getting Middle East passengers ejected off aircrafts? Check out Al Bawaba’s hall of horrendous habits in airborne Arabs. Roll your eyes, but don’t call security just yet!

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Arabs never travel lightly - not just the female of the species! Arabs abroad are hardwired to shop like they live in a desert, even now that the Mideast is a mall mecca (or Mecca Mall in Amman!). 30 kilos is not going to carry your 5 year (wardrobe) plan plus that of your expectant family and friends. And check-in counter trauma is a thing.

Forget flying solo: 50 of your closest FB or family tribe drop you off at departures waving like it's a WWII train station. Spot this rowdy entourage trying to elbow past security at the point of no return, or at arrivals, breaching the nothing to declare passage to the baggage carousel! Let your loved one uber it— astaghfarallah (God forbid)!

A more obsolete one that some Arabs still practice for "Godspeed"! Throwing water at the departing car/ train/ plane, to ‘clears the path’ for travel prosperity. You're bound to appreciate the cultural tradition if a passenger on your flight suddenly splashes you, or better yet asks you to throw your cup of much needed hydration his way!

Arabs and their sunflower/ watermelon seed pecking ways: They can be seen cracking seeds, discarding the shells (nut and seed, not mortar, shells) as they go. At least on the plane they can’t chuck them out the window!

Dressed dapper! You might wonder why men are suited and booted and women fully glammed-up, when you’d be better off in slacks or trackie bottoms for that long-haul stretch. Maybe it’s for the security interview that you’ve come to expect as a traveling Arab.

Maybe Arabs aren’t alone in indulging the digital tracking compulsion of 'checking-in' virtually for their friends to 'like' (those same friends that just dropped them!). Repeat FB sharing your location every 5 mins while standing within in check-in distance to the Business Lounge has a distinct Arab flavor about it though. No comment.

Arabs (think Brits and teabags) are programmed to carry food on flights, undeterred by the stink, dairy bans or border police mistaking dried thyme for suspicious herbs. Whether it’s the nomadic desert gene, or that convenience stores don’t stock Zaatar; obligatory tanks of olive oil and white cheese accompany any self-respecting Arab traveler.

Arabs got heavy-duty baggage! Whether it’s their fanciest Louis Vuitton luggage, Samsonite set or most bashed up old school bags passed down from Jiddo (Grandpa) - they’re always wrapped up with miles of tape for added security, or olive oil leak control!

Still with the bulging baggage: Gifts have not gone out of fashion in this global and travel light-friendly age. Arabs did not get the memo that you can find Belgian chocolates and Debenhams lining the shopping malls of Arabia. That picnic hamper from Harrods could be from Dubai’s duty free.

Duty free freaks: Cheap smokes, cartons and cartons... Arab travelers can be spotted roughly rearranging other people’s carry-ons in the overhead bins so they can cram in more duty free perfumes and whiskeys. Duty free means religious 'duties' free: Arab money doesn’t discriminate between halal and haram when it comes to tax free.

Arab man and kids plane seats looking up

Allocated seating goes out the window, and other Arab passenger anti social habits include fully reclining seats back before the plane's left the gate. Pretending not to understand when the flight attendant asks for boarding pass, handing over an invalid ticket butt from a different flight... London, Paris, it’s all about the shopping isn’t it?

Try pulling this Arab holier-than-thou stunt! When the guy in the next seat asks for some booze, ask to change seats. Ditto if your seatmate is a skimpily-dressed woman. Hey, even if they don’t really offend your moral compass, it could result in a Business Class upgrade!

Arabs will keep yapping on that mobile, racing to get through their contacts as the plane taxis before takeoff. (No time between duty free-binging and FB multi-checkins.) See them get indignant when the seatmate gives them a look. When the flight attendant swoops in to shut it down, they’ll name drop, "wasta" and cause a scene as well as a delay.

Arab parental advisory memo: Unleash the kids as soon as you board. Let them jump on their seats, run in the aisles, and kick the seatbacks in front of them. Ignore the blasting volume of their video games, and don’t break up sibling battles. Who has time to parent when the inflight movie is so good?

Another classy Arab traveler trademark: Traveling with the hired help. Wealthy Arabs will barely go five yards without their maids or nannies, so you can expect them to travel VIP-style with the full entourage. (But the nanny's on holiday too so don’t expect them to keep the kids quiet!)

Arab male passengers: Think that the flight attendant has fallen in love with you just because she looked you in the eye and smiled. She’s pretty, subservient, and tends to your every need - all the qualities you want in a wife! Sorry, Sir – you'll not be joining the Mile High Club any time soon!

Unclip that seatbelt as soon as you start to descend, so you can stand up as the plane hits the runway, grab your overhead bags and rush into the aisle. Expect a Hajj-like stampede (and you can forget Ladies First!) Arabs would score gold if cutting-in-line, and second-guessing which end of the plane was their exit, was an Olympic sport!

zaffeh Arab wedding march airport lounge

No this is not a flash mob: Arabs will break out into festive zaffehs (boisterous drum-banging wedding march) at the airport, to welcome back honeymooners and extend the nuptials. This is a culture where EVERYONE gets an invite to your marriage - even the Arrivals lounge. Forget intimate affairs as Arab kudos lies in the more the merrier.

You can take a smoker out of Arabia but you can't take the Arab out of the smoker! Smoking in the corner of the cabin and in the toilets. Still, post smoking-ban age, and after it finally got prohibited even in MEA (Middle East Airlines, notorious as a smoker’s plane paradise), you’ll find some Arab passengers chancing it with a cheeky ciggie.

Arabs never travel lightly - not just the female of the species! Arabs abroad are hardwired to shop like they live in a desert, even now that the Mideast is a mall mecca (or Mecca Mall in Amman!). 30 kilos is not going to carry your 5 year (wardrobe) plan plus that of your expectant family and friends. And check-in counter trauma is a thing.

Forget flying solo: 50 of your closest FB or family tribe drop you off at departures waving like it's a WWII train station. Spot this rowdy entourage trying to elbow past security at the point of no return, or at arrivals, breaching the nothing to declare passage to the baggage carousel! Let your loved one uber it— astaghfarallah (God forbid)!

A more obsolete one that some Arabs still practice for "Godspeed"! Throwing water at the departing car/ train/ plane, to ‘clears the path’ for travel prosperity. You're bound to appreciate the cultural tradition if a passenger on your flight suddenly splashes you, or better yet asks you to throw your cup of much needed hydration his way!

Arabs and their sunflower/ watermelon seed pecking ways: They can be seen cracking seeds, discarding the shells (nut and seed, not mortar, shells) as they go. At least on the plane they can’t chuck them out the window!

Dressed dapper! You might wonder why men are suited and booted and women fully glammed-up, when you’d be better off in slacks or trackie bottoms for that long-haul stretch. Maybe it’s for the security interview that you’ve come to expect as a traveling Arab.

Maybe Arabs aren’t alone in indulging the digital tracking compulsion of 'checking-in' virtually for their friends to 'like' (those same friends that just dropped them!). Repeat FB sharing your location every 5 mins while standing within in check-in distance to the Business Lounge has a distinct Arab flavor about it though. No comment.

Arabs (think Brits and teabags) are programmed to carry food on flights, undeterred by the stink, dairy bans or border police mistaking dried thyme for suspicious herbs. Whether it’s the nomadic desert gene, or that convenience stores don’t stock Zaatar; obligatory tanks of olive oil and white cheese accompany any self-respecting Arab traveler.

Arabs got heavy-duty baggage! Whether it’s their fanciest Louis Vuitton luggage, Samsonite set or most bashed up old school bags passed down from Jiddo (Grandpa) - they’re always wrapped up with miles of tape for added security, or olive oil leak control!

Still with the bulging baggage: Gifts have not gone out of fashion in this global and travel light-friendly age. Arabs did not get the memo that you can find Belgian chocolates and Debenhams lining the shopping malls of Arabia. That picnic hamper from Harrods could be from Dubai’s duty free.

Duty free freaks: Cheap smokes, cartons and cartons... Arab travelers can be spotted roughly rearranging other people’s carry-ons in the overhead bins so they can cram in more duty free perfumes and whiskeys. Duty free means religious 'duties' free: Arab money doesn’t discriminate between halal and haram when it comes to tax free.

Allocated seating goes out the window, and other Arab passenger anti social habits include fully reclining seats back before the plane's left the gate. Pretending not to understand when the flight attendant asks for boarding pass, handing over an invalid ticket butt from a different flight... London, Paris, it’s all about the shopping isn’t it?

Try pulling this Arab holier-than-thou stunt! When the guy in the next seat asks for some booze, ask to change seats. Ditto if your seatmate is a skimpily-dressed woman. Hey, even if they don’t really offend your moral compass, it could result in a Business Class upgrade!

Arabs will keep yapping on that mobile, racing to get through their contacts as the plane taxis before takeoff. (No time between duty free-binging and FB multi-checkins.) See them get indignant when the seatmate gives them a look. When the flight attendant swoops in to shut it down, they’ll name drop, "wasta" and cause a scene as well as a delay.

Arab parental advisory memo: Unleash the kids as soon as you board. Let them jump on their seats, run in the aisles, and kick the seatbacks in front of them. Ignore the blasting volume of their video games, and don’t break up sibling battles. Who has time to parent when the inflight movie is so good?

Another classy Arab traveler trademark: Traveling with the hired help. Wealthy Arabs will barely go five yards without their maids or nannies, so you can expect them to travel VIP-style with the full entourage. (But the nanny's on holiday too so don’t expect them to keep the kids quiet!)

Arab male passengers: Think that the flight attendant has fallen in love with you just because she looked you in the eye and smiled. She’s pretty, subservient, and tends to your every need - all the qualities you want in a wife! Sorry, Sir – you'll not be joining the Mile High Club any time soon!

Unclip that seatbelt as soon as you start to descend, so you can stand up as the plane hits the runway, grab your overhead bags and rush into the aisle. Expect a Hajj-like stampede (and you can forget Ladies First!) Arabs would score gold if cutting-in-line, and second-guessing which end of the plane was their exit, was an Olympic sport!

No this is not a flash mob: Arabs will break out into festive zaffehs (boisterous drum-banging wedding march) at the airport, to welcome back honeymooners and extend the nuptials. This is a culture where EVERYONE gets an invite to your marriage - even the Arrivals lounge. Forget intimate affairs as Arab kudos lies in the more the merrier.

You can take a smoker out of Arabia but you can't take the Arab out of the smoker! Smoking in the corner of the cabin and in the toilets. Still, post smoking-ban age, and after it finally got prohibited even in MEA (Middle East Airlines, notorious as a smoker’s plane paradise), you’ll find some Arab passengers chancing it with a cheeky ciggie.

Arab baggage: Travel habits that might deserve plane evacuations!

Arabs and their sunflower/ watermelon seed pecking ways: They can be seen cracking seeds, discarding the shells (nut and seed, not mortar, shells) as they go. At least on the plane they can’t chuck them out the window!

Dressed dapper! You might wonder why men are suited and booted and women fully glammed-up, when you’d be better off in slacks or trackie bottoms for that long-haul stretch. Maybe it’s for the security interview that you’ve come to expect as a traveling Arab.

Arabs got heavy-duty baggage! Whether it’s their fanciest Louis Vuitton luggage, Samsonite set or most bashed up old school bags passed down from Jiddo (Grandpa) - they’re always wrapped up with miles of tape for added security, or olive oil leak control!

Still with the bulging baggage: Gifts have not gone out of fashion in this global and travel light-friendly age. Arabs did not get the memo that you can find Belgian chocolates and Debenhams lining the shopping malls of Arabia. That picnic hamper from Harrods could be from Dubai’s duty free.

Try pulling this Arab holier-than-thou stunt! When the guy in the next seat asks for some booze, ask to change seats. Ditto if your seatmate is a skimpily-dressed woman. Hey, even if they don’t really offend your moral compass, it could result in a Business Class upgrade!

Another classy Arab traveler trademark: Traveling with the hired help. Wealthy Arabs will barely go five yards without their maids or nannies, so you can expect them to travel VIP-style with the full entourage. (But the nanny's on holiday too so don’t expect them to keep the kids quiet!)

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