A woman has shared a handy travel tip she got from a flight attendant for keeping your suitcase cleaner and quieter while travelling.
While holidays are fun, hauling a suitcase that’s filthy - and is embarrassingly loud as you drag it along - really isn’t. But one simple and cheap item can help stop both.
Adhesive tape on suitcase wheels
According to several travellers who have tried and tested it, putting adhesive tape on suitcase wheels can help keep wheels clean from airport grime - and reduce rolling noise. If you think about it, rolling over rough surfaces like cobbles, tiles and baggage belts creates friction, which can wear down the plastic or rubber faster.
Because of this, many opt for electrical tape or heavy-duty duct tape around the outer tread of the wheel, peeling it off when they arrive home. One viral Facebook video - gaining almost six million views - showed a woman adding yellow tape for this very reason. The caption reads: "Now I add tape to my suitcase wheels to keep dirt off, reduce noise, and help them last a little longer."
Additional benefits and tips
According to the traveller, she received the handy tip from a flight attendant. And one commenter pointed out that those are not the only benefits. One person said: "That makes them easy to spot right away on the carousel too." If you can't be bothered faffing around, just like one person admitted, you can simply carry a pack of wet wipes with you, with another writing: "We clean our wheels after every trip in our entry way before wheeling the filth through the house. I use wet wipes if I’m in a hurry. They get filthy!!!"
According to cronista.com, putting adhesive tape on suitcase wheels is mainly about adding a temporary protective layer between the wheels and the ground, so dust, grease, sand and other grime sticks to the tape rather than building up directly on the wheels.
Items banned from bringing into the UK
Meanwhile, if you are heading abroad, be sure to check what you can and cannot bring back. In a recent article, The Mirror highlighted that some travellers have been warned not to bring back certain items, even if they were purchased at a duty-free shop.
According to government rules, people who disobey risk facing a £5,000 fine or possible prosecution. In a social media post, the Animal and Plant Health Agency warned Brits returning home not to bring sandwiches, cheese, cured meats, raw meat or milk into Great Britain - even if it’s packaged or bought duty-free. It explained: "Help protect UK farmers from the devastating threat of African swine fever (ASF) and foot and mouth disease (FMD) by not bringing back meat or dairy products from the EU into Great Britain in your personal luggage. This includes items like sandwiches, cheese, cured meats, raw meats or milk into Great Britain – regardless of whether it is packed or packaged or whether it has been bought at duty free."
The government agency said it is illegal to bring in most meat and dairy products from abroad for personal use. This is to protect the UK from devastating livestock diseases circulating in Europe and beyond.
