---
title: "The air traveler's dilemma: catch your flight or grab a drink?"
description: Air travel is difficult enough without having to choose between catching your flight and getting refreshments. Checkout-free solves this age-old dilemma.
image: https://www.getzippin.com/hubfs/Checking%20In%20Blog%20Photos/airport%20blog%20pic2.png
---
[Skip to content](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/the-air-travelers-dilemma#main-content)
[](https://www.getzippin.com/)
[](https://www.getzippin.com/)
- [Who We Serve](https://www.getzippin.com/retailers)
- [Stadiums & Arenas](https://www.getzippin.com/sports-entertainment)
- [Airport Stores](https://www.getzippin.com/airport-retail)
- [Hospitals](https://www.getzippin.com/checkout-free-hospitals)
- [College Campuses](https://www.getzippin.com/checkout-free-colleges)
- [Theme Parks](https://www.getzippin.com/checkout-free-theme-parks)
- [Workplaces](https://www.getzippin.com/checkout-free-workplaces)
- [Other Retail](https://www.getzippin.com/retailers)
- [Solutions](https://www.getzippin.com/product)
- [Zippin Walk-Up](https://www.getzippin.com/zippin-walk-up2)
- [Zippin Outdoors](https://www.getzippin.com/zippin-outdoors)
- [Zippin Micromarket Lite](https://www.getzippin.com/zippin-micromarket-lite)
- [Zippin Lane](https://www.getzippin.com/zippin-lane2)
- [Zippin Retrofits](https://www.getzippin.com/zippin-store)
- [How it Works](https://www.getzippin.com/product)
- [Platform Flexibility](https://www.getzippin.com/zippin-technology)
- [For Retailers](https://www.getzippin.com/retailers)
- [Retailers](https://www.getzippin.com/retailers)
- [Dashboard Login](https://dashboard.getzippin.com/home)
- [Technology](https://www.getzippin.com/zippin-technology)
- [Our Partners](https://www.getzippin.com/partners)
- Resources
- [Checking In Blog](https://www.getzippin.com/blog)
- [Case Studies](https://www.getzippin.com/case-studies)
- [Towson University](https://www.getzippin.com/case-studies#Towson)
- [NRG Stadium Walk-Up](https://www.getzippin.com/case-studies#NRG)
- [Tropicana Field](https://www.getzippin.com/case-studies#Rays)
- [Fort Worth Magazine - DFW](https://www.getzippin.com/case-studies#DFW)
- [Allegiant Stadium](https://www.getzippin.com/case-studies#Allegiant)
- [White papers](https://www.getzippin.com/whitepapers)
- [Checkout-Free Reshaping Retail](https://www.getzippin.com/zippin-reshaping-retail-wp)
- [The Frictionless Economy](https://www.getzippin.com/zippin-frictionless-economy)
#### White papers
- [Checkout-Free Reshaping Retail](https://www.getzippin.com/zippin-reshaping-retail-wp)
- [The Frictionless Economy](https://www.getzippin.com/zippin-frictionless-economy)
#### Case Studies
- [Towson University](https://www.getzippin.com/case-studies#Towson)
- [NRG Stadium Walk-Up](https://www.getzippin.com/case-studies#NRG)
- [Tropicana Field](https://www.getzippin.com/case-studies#Rays)
- [Allegiant Stadium](https://www.getzippin.com/case-studies#Allegiant)
- [Fort Worth Magazine (DFW)](https://www.getzippin.com/case-studies#DFW)
#### What's New
- [Zippin in the news](https://www.getzippin.com/in-the-news)
- [Media resources](https://www.getzippin.com/media-resources)
#### Blog
- [Checking In Blog](https://www.getzippin.com/blog)
- [For Shoppers](https://www.getzippin.com/shoppers)
- [Receipts](https://shop.getzippin.com/)
- [FAQs](https://www.getzippin.com/shoppers#faqs)
- [News](https://www.getzippin.com/in-the-news)
- [Zippin in the news](https://www.getzippin.com/in-the-news)
- [Media library](https://www.getzippin.com/media-resources)
- [Receipts](https://shop.getzippin.com/)
- [Let's Talk](https://www.getzippin.com/#theform)
[Receipts](https://shop.getzippin.com/) [Let's Talk](https://www.getzippin.com/#theform)
# The air traveler's dilemma: catch your flight or grab a drink?
[Bonnie Milam](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/author/bonnie-milam) May 4, 2023, 7:53:36 AM
### Contents
[Nov 26, 2024, 7:00:00 AM Thanksgiving Air Travel Soars to Record Highs—But the Hassles Don’t Have To](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/thanksgiving-air-travel-2024) [Aug 8, 2023, 6:30:00 AM Too Little Time or Too Few Hands? The Hassles of Traditional Airport Shopping](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/airport-shopping) [Jul 10, 2024, 9:00:00 AM Zippin: Your Time-Saving Travel Companion at Airports Worldwide](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/zippin-airports-expansion)
- [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share)
We’ve all been there - hungry and thirsty at an airport just minutes before the flight boards. Do you rush to buy a snack and drink, risking missing the flight? Or get on the plane hoping the snacks don’t run out before they get to your row? It’s a risk/benefit analysis all frequent travelers must contemplate:
## **How hungry are you?**
If you’re really hungry or thirsty, you’ll probably take your chances trying to buy something before the flight. With traditional stores, you're likely to face long lines - especially during rush hour. So, there’s a good chance you’ll miss your flight by waiting or be forced to run out of the store with nothing to avoid missing your flight.
### **How short is the flight?**
Perhaps you're hungry but expecting a quick flight so you board the plane without grabbing a snack. No problem as long as everything goes to plan. But backed-up runways or unexpected issues can delay takeoff by hours and turbulence can cancel in-flight service altogether, so there’s no guarantee you’ll get to eat or drink during your flight.
### **Making matters worse:**
As summer travel season approaches, two trends are making these options even less appealing:
- [This year’s summer’s travel demand is already breaking records](https://abc7chicago.com/summer-2023-travel-vacation-expedia/13128375/), so travelers can expect airports (and airport shops) to be more crowded than ever
- The FAA is expecting a [45% increase in flight delays](https://www.businessinsider.com/faa-summer-delays-due-to-atc-staffing-shortage-2023-3)this summer at some airports, so travelers will spend more time waiting than flying
### **Checkout-free eliminates this dilemma **
With checkout-free shopping, you can grab what you want without risking missing your flight. There’s no checkout line, so you can be in and out in about a minute, no matter how crowded the store. It’s great for family shopping, too. Tap a credit card to enter as a family, let everyone take what they want, and zip out. There are no lines, no scanning, and no stopping. Plus with Zippin, there’s no sign-up or app required to shop the store, just smooth sailing through the store and onto the plane. [See how Zippin is helping airport retailers](https://www.getzippin.com/fort-worth-magazine-case-study) better serve customers and grow their business with checkout-free technology.
[checkout-free retail](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/tag/checkout-free-retail) [airports](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/tag/airports) [retail tech](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/tag/retail-tech) [travel](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/tag/travel)
[Nov 26, 2024, 7:00:00 AM Thanksgiving Air Travel Soars to Record Highs—But the Hassles Don’t Have To](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/thanksgiving-air-travel-2024) [Aug 8, 2023, 6:30:00 AM Too Little Time or Too Few Hands? The Hassles of Traditional Airport Shopping](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/airport-shopping) [Jul 10, 2024, 9:00:00 AM Zippin: Your Time-Saving Travel Companion at Airports Worldwide](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/zippin-airports-expansion)
[Previous Buy Me Some Peanuts and Cracker Jacks - Checkout-Free!](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/checkout-free-peanuts-and-crackerjacks)
[Next How we're still being tricked into waiting in line](https://www.getzippin.com/blog/being-tricked-into-waiting-in-line)
 
Learn how Zippin can help build engaging shopping experiences for your customers, while maximizing your profits. Complete this form to hear directly from a member of our sales team.
## Sign up for our blog
We'll send you our latest posts as soon as they are published.
#### Company
- [About us](https://www.getzippin.com/about)
- [Careers](https://www.getzippin.com/careers)
- [In the news](https://www.getzippin.com/in-the-news)
- [Media](https://www.getzippin.com/media-resources)
#### Resources
- [Blog](https://www.getzippin.com/blog)
- [Case studies](https://www.getzippin.com/case-studies)
- [Checkout-free changing retail](https://www.getzippin.com/zippin-reshaping-retail-wp)
- [Frictionless economy](https://www.getzippin.com/zippin-frictionless-economy)
- [Retailer dashboard](https://dashboard.getzippin.com/home)
#### Stay in touch
[EULA](https://www.getzippin.com/terms-of-use) [Privacy Policy](https://www.getzippin.com/privacy) [Retailer Terms](https://www.getzippin.com/en/retailer-terms)
Copyright © 2026 Zippin.
```json
{
"@context" : "https://schema.org",
"@type" : "BlogPosting",
"dateModified" : "2024-10-01",
"datePublished" : "2024-10-01",
"headline" : "The air traveler's dilemma: catch your flight or grab a drink?",
"image" : [ "https://4803346.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/4803346/Checking%20In%20Blog%20Photos/airport%20blog%20pic2.png" ],
"mainEntityOfPage" : {
"@id" : "https://www.getzippin.com/blog/the-air-travelers-dilemma",
"@type" : "WebPage"
}
}
```