Hairstyles You Should Avoid Wearing On A Plane

If there's anything that can make the stress of travel even worse, it's feeling uncomfortable in your appearance. When you don't feel confident in how you look, the fatigue of a long flight and the chaos of airport check-ins can be even harder to tackle. But unfortunately, loving how you look while flying isn't as simple as rocking your everyday go-to style because not every look translates to air travel. That's especially true when it comes to your hair.

No matter how much you love a particular hairstyle in your regular life, you should still avoid it if it doesn't meet a flying-style checklist. It goes without saying that the main criteria to look out for involves comfort — there's a time and place for hairstyles that hurt your scalp and stop you from relaxing, and it isn't on a plane. But you'll also want to steer clear of hairstyles that might complicate your airport check-in by setting off metal detectors in the security line, and those that leave your tresses exposed to knotting and tangling in the dry plane air. There are still plenty of hairstyles that are A-okay for flying, but you'll want to avoid these five.

This is more of an umbrella term than a specific hairstyle, but you should really try to avoid flying with any style that's too tight. After all, frequently wearing styles that tug too tightly can lead to traction alopecia, which is a form of hair loss. While one tight style on one short flight probably won't make much difference, your risk of causing damage increases if you're a frequent flier or you're on a long-haul flight with your hair pulling for hours. But even if you don't permanently damage your hair, tight styles are uncomfortable and can lead to headaches — the last thing you want when your plan is to arrive at your vacay fresh as a daisy.

The styles to avoid are the usual suspects: anything where you can feel the strain on your scalp as soon as you fasten that elastic is a no-go. It might be a bun or ponytail. Maybe it's a cute half-up, half-down style. It can even be braids. "[Tight] braids can be damaging depending on how tight or heavy the braids are," artistic educator and hairstylist Jessica O'Brien told Byrdie. "The stress on the follicle can weaken it and sometimes cause hair loss." The golden rule is if there's any pressure or discomfort at all, that style is doing your scalp no favors, especially on a flight.

A casual bun is the favored flying hairstyle of many people, so we're sorry to have to report this. But if you've actually ever tried flying with a regular mid-bun, you'll know that it's one of the most uncomfortable styles to wear on a plane. Traveling in coach class is uncomfortable enough — absolutely nobody needs a knot of hair sticking out of the back of their head to stop them from leaning onto their headrest.

Luckily, it's pretty easy to adapt a mid-bun to a more flying-friendly style. Simply move it up into a top knot, or move it down into a low bun. Then the offending hair won't get in the way of you enjoying your headrest. Obviously, regardless of which type of bun you go for, keep it loose rather than tight. If you feel like you want to spruce up your loose low or high bun, you can add in a cute scrunchie or bow, but you'll regret any accessories that are too big for the same reason. Anything that may press against the headrest is not your friend and should be avoided on a plane.

It probably sounds blasphemous to condemn the versatile ponytail. In most situations, we're fans of this basic style, whether it's high, mid, or low, but a casual pony isn't the ally you think it is when it comes to keeping your hair protected from knots — at least not on a plane. If you opt for a low pony, your hair will be mashed between your back and the seat behind you, unless you remember to flip it over your shoulder so it sits on your chest. High power ponies also sandwich some of your hair into the headrest. These create knots and tangles, especially if your hair is on the fine or thin side. Meanwhile, mid-ponytails are guaranteed to be uncomfortable while flying, in addition to tangling your locks.

If you absolutely must do a ponytail, plait or braid it so your hair doesn't turn into a knotted mess. The same rule applies in that you never want a tight pony, especially on a long-haul flight. Opt for a high or low plaited pony, and leave it loose — but not too loose.

Note that when we say "loose" in relation to hairstyles, we don't mean "messy." We have all the time in the world for the perfect messy bun or messy tousled waves for those whose feet are on the ground, but when you're flying — and seated for longer than an hour or two — any messy style will probably end up looking unruly. The general idea with messy hair is to incorporate some body and personality while still maintaining control of your locks, not to look like Sleeping Beauty woken from 100 years of slumber.

Rather than going messy or tight with your updos, you want the sweet spot in the middle, which is loose. It shouldn't be painful or pulling at all, but it also shouldn't have half of your hair falling out of the elastic. If you're wearing your hair down, keep a brush on you to go over it once or twice throughout the flight (or before you land) to rein in any pieces that have taken on a life of their own.

Complex updos and intricate styles can give a polished feel to your travel look, but there's a catch. If they're held with a multitude of clips or pins, they're not plane-friendly. For starters, too many clips in your hair can get uncomfortable, whether they create pressure when you try to lean on your headrest or they move into the wrong place and start digging into your scalp. But the real problem with clip-heavy styles actually occurs before you even get on the plane, as they could cause trouble at airport security.

Depending on what they're made of, a bunch of clips or pins in your hair can set off the metal detector. While it probably won't take long for security to figure out that you're not trying to smuggle something in your bun, that's still a hiccup in the process. And yes, having multiple TSA officers inspecting your top knot because you decided to use a million pins to hold it is embarrassing.

Additionally, complex and intricate styles that you put lots of work and time into will probably end up limp by the end of your flight, and that's if you don't have to take them down to appease security. Instead, go for looks that may seem intricate but don't actually require a lot of work or clips and pins, like loose Dutch and French braids.