Would you ever try to find love in an airport? According to a 2018 study from the British bank HSBC, 1 in 50 people have. At the moment, there's no hyper-localized option for Tindering at Gate C26, but there is App in the Air, a frequent-flier app that lets you, among other things, look for a mate in the airport.

Wait, So How Should I Do It?

If you're looking to start a conversation while you're killing time, might I suggest the following?

  • Hang out in the area by the communal charger and strike up conversation with a hottie (he's probably bored since his phone is charging).
  • Find a cute way to ask for a napkin while you suck the honey chipotle off your chicken crisper appetizer. Ideally you are sitting in the al fresco section of the Chili's Express in this situation for easy flirting.
  • Place a stuffed animal in your carry-on but make sure it's partially falling out. You can make conversation with anyone who stops to alert you about your half-open bag. People naturally gravitate towards dogs, according to a coworker of mine who claims she would actually do this.
  • Eat chocolate covered strawberries in front of a hot guy until he literally drags you into the door-less airport bathroom à la Serena Van der Woodsen and Dan Humphrey.
Real Stories from People Who Really Did It

Marius, 35, met his wife in the security line at LAX, a little over ten years ago. They were next to each other in the security line when they learned that their flight was delayed. Marius struck up a conversation. "We ended up getting coffee together during the delay, then I saved her a seat next to me on the airplane." Eventually, she moved from LA to San Francisco, they dated, got married, and have had two kids since that fateful day in the TSA line.

Nicole, 33, was seated next to her future fiancé on a flight; they hit it off immediately. "It was love at first sight." she says. "We even shared earbuds during takeoff while listening to the Sam Smith album. He claims he wanted to hold my hand the entire flight. After chatting up a storm during the flight, he asked me to go for a drink at the airport bar." Nicole says it was probably the first time she had ever wanted to hang around at the airport *after* landing, instead of getting out of there as soon as humanly possible. They're currently engaged and expecting their first child.

Sometimes, however, the spark doesn't catch until you're disembarking. Gabby Slome, founder of dog food company Ollie, met her husband in the customs line in Montreal. Slome was being grilled by a Canadian customs agent about the threat of tracking in American soil or horse muck (Slome is also a professional equestrian), which led to her first conversation with her now-husband. He was in line behind her.

Who knew airports were so poppin' for love? If this doesn't inspire you to make conversation at Hudson News the next time you're delayed, I don't know what will.

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Headshot of Carina Hsieh
Carina Hsieh
Sex & Relationships Editor

Carina Hsieh lives in NYC with her French Bulldog Bao Bao — follow her on Instagram and Twitter • Candace Bushnell once called her the Samantha Jones of Tinder • She enjoys hanging out in the candle aisle of TJ Maxx and getting lost in Amazon spirals.