As overseas travel picks up, a viral post has sparked concern over the hygiene of flipping through duty-free magazines found in airplane seat pockets.
The warning came from a Taiwanese female netizen who took to social media to caution passengers against touching or reading in-flight magazines, saying “you never know how the previous passenger used it.”
“I feel like fainting.”
To back her claim, she shared a photo showing a passenger laying a duty-free magazine flat on the aircraft floor, placing their socks on top of it, and then stepping on it with both feet.
The image quickly drew strong reactions online, with many expressing shock and disgust.
I feel like fainting. I always flip through those magazines,” one user wrote, while another commented, “Thank you for the reminder. I’m never touching them again when I travel.”
Others joked grimly that they could “smell it through the screen,” while some lamented that they often browsed the magazines out of boredom during flights.
“It is actually quite common”
The post also caught the attention of a former flight attendant, who admitted that such behaviour is more common than many passengers realise.
According to her, cabin crew are often unable to stop passengers from misusing items like magazines or even safety cards.
She added that when staff attempt to intervene, some passengers respond by complaining that the airline did not provide disposable slippers, leaving crew members in a difficult position.
Not only in air travel
The discussion soon expanded beyond air travel, with some netizens pointing out that similar scenes can be spotted on other forms of public transport.
Several noted that high-speed rail and conventional trains also provide complimentary magazines in seat-back pockets, which may be handled in unhygienic ways by previous passengers.
While in-flight and onboard magazines are meant to enhance the travel experience, the viral post has led many travellers to reconsider whether they are worth picking up at all, especially for those more conscious about hygiene while on the move.
