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Airports are a place like no other, and we'll also tell you why. They have long served as gateways to our adventures, places where a vacation or a new life begins before we've even stepped foot in our destination. But have you ever paused during your endless airport navigation, with your carry-on suitcase in tow, and realized that airports are, quite frankly, a peculiar kind of chaos?

It's where reality bends a bit and all social norms seem to crash against a bit of turbulence, giving life to hilarious airport moments. Pajamas in public? No problem. Vodka at 8 AM? Nothing weird here. A grown man sprinting like he's in the Olympic finals just to make a flight? All totally ordinary sights, which is why airports are often seen as some kind of lawless place, where "being inappropriate" is a pretty much subjective concept.

People who fly through airports on a regular basis have seen some pretty incredible things — things you might not believe if we told you about them. So why not let these crazy airport pictures speak for themselves?

The internet has graced us with so many funny airport pics, and we won't deny that we spent an unhealthy amount of time scrolling through the ones we selected for this list.

Ensure your seat backs and tray tables are in their full upright position, and prepare for takeoff. Our voyage through the funniest travel moments is about to begin! From outrageous sleeping positions to the most unusual carry-on items (we're looking at you, man with a full-size desk lamp), this is travel humor at its finest.

#1

Flying Home For The Holidays Dressed To Surprise The Family.

Two man with Christmas outfits hugging in the airport

"Before the flight, I met this stranger at the airport. Instant best friends."

ImplicationOfDanger Report

#3

During A 12 Hour Flight Delay My Boyfriend Wandered Off.

Man sitting with multiple children in a play room

"When I found him he was in the middle of a pixar movie marathon with a group of 5 year olds. He's the one for me."

janeR61 Report

#4

Son Made A Friend At An Airport. They Don’t Speak The Same Language But They Can Co-Exist Nicely

Two kids layin on the ground and watching something on a tablet

afro-harry Report

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#8

Saw This Pilot At The Airport, Yesterday

Blind pilot walking in the airport hall

CorkyBravo Report

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#9

This Man Is An Everyday Hero.

Pilot coordinating people and talking to them

"After waiting for our bags at heathrow terminal 5 for 4 hours the only person who was still there was a pilot, who helped over 300 people get there bags back. In case he sees this I just want to say thank you!"

PerryBernini Report

#11

At The Airport Tonight And After Sitting Began To Hear The Soft Sound Of Reading Aloud (With Voices!)

Man sitting on the ground next to a plugin socket talking on the phone

"This man is reading the lord of the rings to his children and it reminded me of my mom. I hope to be that kind of parent someday."

Jekyll_not_Hyde Report

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Lee Kerr
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My, now adult, son is on the autistic spectrum. It's always been hard to know what he's capable of and his reading ave at school was way behind his interests. I was still reading him bedtime stories at 15; I got right through the Lord of the rings and was on the 5th Harry Potter book when I realised the book mark had been moved. He normally used the PC in the evening but since the internet was down he'd decided to read instead. He was perfectly capable of reading to himself, it just hadn't occurred to him to do it. What he actually struggled with were books which didn't interest him and reading aloud.

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#14

At Airport, Just Handed This... Challenge Accepted... Good Luck Buddy. Standby For Results, Take Off In 40

Challenging note in person hand

pezmonkey Report

#16

At This Airport, They Have A Machine That Will Print Off Free Short Stories For You To Read While You Wait!

Man using a Story dispenser at the airport

MisallocatedRacism Report

#21

This Bathroom Mirror In Tallinn Airport Has Instructions On How To Tie A Tie

Man taking a picture of instructions on how to tie a tie

themiths35 Report

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Your Neighborhood Alien
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Now if only I could figure out how to tie a bowtie. I've even watched video tutorials, and I'm still confused!

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#22

This Airport Hired Actors To Walk Around As Star Wars Characters On May 4th

Multiple Star Wars characters in an airport

monkeyhead_man Report

#23

Props To The Troll That Put This Sticker On The Wall In A Busy Airport Terminal.

A sticker of a plug socket on a wall in an airport

"Been here for 10 minutes and have seen 5 people try it. Cruel."

ryusomad Report

#24

My Local Airport Added A New Display To Mimic The Inside Of A Plane. They Chose An Underwater Scene As The Background. How Reassuring

Stickers on walls to mimic a feel like you're on plane

SucculentGravy Report

#27

Working At The Airport, We See Many People Tag Their Bags. Someone Will Tie The Rope, Someone Tag Name, Who Will Sign. Today Came Across This

Funny picture stuck on a backpack

johnheartless Report

#28

Mom Finally Got To Meet The Fonz, He Was Nice Enough To Stop When Leaving For The Airport

Woman taking a picture with a famous person in an airport

Next_Grass Report

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#31

So My Friend Is In An Airport In Morocco And Sees These Guys Trying To Buy Seats On A Plane To Switzerland For Their Falcons

Multiple standing men and multiple Falcons in an airport

imgur.com Report

#32

My Cousin Met A Victoria's Secret Model At The Airport. Perfect Day To Be Wearing That Shirt

Little kid taking a picture with a famous model in an airport

trolollies Report

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Stardust she/her
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Just my opinion but I don’t think young kids should be wearing these kinds of shirts

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#33

This Airport Has A Recombobulation Area. First Time I Have Ever Seen This Word Used

Multiple people waiting in line to get to Recombobulation Area

theWet_Bandits Report

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Libstak
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Discombobulation is my favourite word, cos it's my natural state, I think this might now be my 2nd favourite word.

Amy Canapa
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The word was invented in Milwaukee. It means "get yourself back together".

MAL
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Welcome to Milwaukee! That's one of our greatest prides here. LOL

Lotekguy
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

TSA requires proof of combobulation before you can reach this point.

Lori
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Milwaukee!! They made up the word and it is perfection.

Thom Serveaux
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Milwaukee! We also have a fabulous used bookstore in our airport.

Qadgop the Mercotan
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Discombobulation is a serious condition, often induced by the TSA process. Thanks Milwaukee General Billy Mitchell field for providing a treatment!!

Caiman 94920
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

MKE airport, they have a great series of tik toks starring Violet, a lost purple monkey who now makes it her mission to find and return lost plushies to their missing kids.

Caiman 94920
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

MKE airport...they also have a great series of tik toks with Violet, a purple monkey who was lost there and now makes it her mission to find and return lost plushies that are missing their kids

digitalin
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I love using the word "recombobulating", and I didn't know if it was a real word or just one of those words that should exist because its opposite does.

Clarf
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is Milwaukee! It's a thing now. People have t-shirts that say this on them.

mrz80
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's like "overwhelmed". You rarely hear or read about anyone being "whelmed", tho I've often expressed being "underwhelmed", usually with a hyped up movie or restaurant that failed to live up to the buzz. :) qcexcerptt...56671e.png qcexcerpttoomuchwhelm-647f59056671e.png

Millicent MacDonald
Community Member
2 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

putting back into order; Noun. recombobulation (uncountable) The act of recombobulating; putting back into order; removing confusion. recombobulation - Wiktionary, the free dictionary Wiktionary https://en.wiktionary.org › wiki › recombobulation

A P
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It should have a huge area rug with like 3 inch deep pile for people to take their shoes off and squeeze it with their toes. Never forget the lessons of McClain's fellow traveler.

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#37

Met This Fellow At The Airport. He Explained That He's Going To Meet His Fiancé

Happy man in a full yellow outfit sitting in an airport

yishai00 Report

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#39

In The Narita Airport Of Japan, While It Says "Welcome To Japan" In English, The Japanese Text Says "Welcome Back"

Smart sign in an Japanese airport

memetaro Report

#41

Hawaiian Airport Has Restroom Sign With Hawaiian Attires

Hawaiian themed toilet sign in an airport

Havesomepeas Report

#42

This Guy Wasn’t Letting A Delayed Flight Ruin His Day.... Hooked Up A Playstation To Airport Monitors!

Man playing console games on an airport's tv

beardedbarnabas Report

#43

There's A Roulette Minigame At The Frankfurt Airport Baggage Claim

Baggage claim area looking like a Roulette

Red_on_Paper Report

#45

My Son's First College Roommate Picking Him Up From The Airport After Spending Christmas At Home

Man holding a tablet with a funny welcoming sign

Muldoon1987 Report

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#46

When Your Mate Says He'll Pick You Up From The Airport On Christmas Eve

Man standing with a tablet with a funny Christmas costume

smacktip Report

#47

Realistic Sculpture Titled “The Traveler” In Orlando International Airport

Man trying to rest with his luggage in an airport

eisenbergw Report

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#54

I Am Picking My Wife Up At The Airport After A Long Trip, And A Good Friend Said To Bring Her Some Nice Flours As A Surprise.

I Am Picking My Wife Up At The Airport After A Long Trip, And A Good Friend Said To Bring Her Some Nice Flours As A Surprise.

"I am bringing her a basket full of her favorite flours."

dc_IV Report

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mSpencer
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Probably paid more for the flour than for some cheap flowers that'll die. Very thoughtful

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#58

I Embarrassed My Friend Picking Him Up From The Airport

I Embarrassed My Friend Picking Him Up From The Airport

Swanhilda Report

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Justin
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Did she also hand out business cards? Asking for a friend...

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#59

The Croissants At Schiphol Airport Are Particularly Green Today

The Croissants At Schiphol Airport Are Particularly Green Today

Blu3moss Report

#60

The Prohibited Items List At Chandigarh Airport, India Has A Snake In It Too

The Prohibited Items List At Chandigarh Airport, India Has A Snake In It Too

Sirpeterdick Report

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#64

Picked Up My Daughter Up At The Airport After Her First Semester Away From Home And Made A Sign

Picked Up My Daughter Up At The Airport After Her First Semester Away From Home And Made A Sign

buffcleb Report

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StitchIsCuteAndFluffy
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Oh, it’s a school from X-Man! (I had to look it up).That’s such a cool sign actually. I would loved to have one that said “Welcome back from Camp Half-Blood!”

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#67

Picking Up My Daughter From The Airport

Picking Up My Daughter From The Airport

nwgiantsguy Report

#68

Social Distancing In The Austin, TX Airport The Texan Way!

Social Distancing In The Austin, TX Airport The Texan Way!

Tuesday2017 Report

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#70

Very Helpful Sign From Spirit Airlines To Their Passengers - Spotted At The Philadelphia International Airport

Very Helpful Sign From Spirit Airlines To Their Passengers - Spotted At The Philadelphia International Airport

BourbonMilkshake Report

#72

My Brother Extended His 3 Month Trip To Thailand Nearly The Same Day He Was Supposed To Be On His Way Home.

My Brother Extended His 3 Month Trip To Thailand Nearly The Same Day He Was Supposed To Be On His Way Home.

"After ditching me all summer, he finally came back. I was eagerly waiting for him at the airport."

Jmhpdx Report

#73

My Boyfriend Probably Won’t Ask Me To Pic Him Up From The Airport Again

My Boyfriend Probably Won’t Ask Me To Pic Him Up From The Airport Again

ATLbritta Report

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One direction addict
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm sorry I'm more focused on the genius idea to take what looks like a gift bag and slice it open to use as a sign with handles!!

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#74

No Crocs Allowed On Airport Escalators

No Crocs Allowed On Airport Escalators

HeyPinkiePie Report

#75

Choosing Where To Go By Half Floors Increment At Warsaw's Airport!

Choosing Where To Go By Half Floors Increment At Warsaw's Airport!

elSamourai Report

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