Even if you're someone with your holiday packing mastered (give us tips, pls), there's always usually something you've got to sacrifice when flying on a budget. The realistic among us will leave the offending items at home 'just in case', but those who hope they'll get away with it can be subject to the shock of an excess baggage fee (which can majorly dent into your cocktail fund once you've checked in to your hotel).
But an Australian couple might have answered our prayers by coming up with a way to take a whole extra bag's worth of stuff onto a plane, with no chance of having to pay the extra cash for doing so.
Sydney-based business (and actual) partners Andrew Benke and Claire Murphy have launched a Kickstarter page for their Airport Jacket, an adaptable trench-style coat that'll let you take up to 15kg of extra luggage onto a plane. They're aiming to raise $100,000 by the end of next month to get the plan into production by May.
It has *fourteen *pockets, and is able to hold a laptop, an iPad, two pairs of shoes, a pair of jeans, three t-shirts, two pairs of shorts, underwear for three to four days, a light jumper, a dress, a liquids bag, wallet, phone and passport with ROOM TO SPARE.
For something with so much functionality, we're actually surprised by how stylish it looks. The Airport Jacket can be worn three ways: hip-length, three-quarter-length and full-length. It also comes with a free carry-on duffle bag.
When you want show off your jeans (or don't require so much pocket space), two detachable compartments zip off to give you the hip-length option. The three-quarter-length coat is for when you're sitting on your cabin-approved suitcase to squeeze an extra pair of shoes in - just add on one of the compartments and you've got yourself three extra pockets. And for when you need allllll the extra space, go full-length trench and feel the equivalent weight of almost five newborn babies (15kg) weigh you down as you queue for boarding.
With budget airline policies becoming more absurd all the time, we're really into the idea of this coat taking departure lounges by storm. It'll also get you through Arrivals much quicker - avoiding queues to pick up extra luggage - and stop any chance of that air hostess putting your bag in the hold.
It beats the alternative of wearing every item of clothing to maximise your holiday wardrobe options, anyway.
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.