Have Sex Toys: Will Travel?

by: Linda Hohnholz, eTN editor |

Believe it or not, you can even run into problems in the USA. Certainly not for travel to and from California where they are known for “good vibrations,” according to the Beach Boys. But in Alabama the puritanical mindset rears its head in the form of an Anti-Obscenity Enforcement Act passed in 1998 which makes the sale of sex toys a criminal offense. So you will likely get away with packing adult toys in your luggage, but don’t expect to buy any grown-up souvenirs there unless they are perhaps very discreetly disguised. The Anti-Obscenity Enforcement Act describes a sex toy as “any device designed or marketed as useful for the stimulation of human genital organs.”

Speaking of “tools,” American travelers can use their country’s handy dandy search tool on the US TSA website under “What Can I Bring?” Simply type in the name of your toy, like vibrator for example, and the website will explain if the item is allowed and if there are any restrictions when flying.

To Massage or Vibrate?

In India, it is okay to bring a massager in your luggage, but it all depends on how that massager is designed. Just make sure it isn’t shaped like anything resembling a private human body part. In India, a penal code even a drawing or a book with overtly sexual images and thoughts is illegal.

Sorry, but We’ll Give It Back

Although you will have any sex toys confiscated if you travel to Vietnam, they will kindly hold them for you and allow you to pick them up upon your exit from the country.

Here, you cannot bring your adult toys nor will you find them for sale anywhere. The General Department of Vietnam Customs declared in 2011 that import of sex toys was not legal. So the moral of the story here is, you may pack your sex toys, in case you intend to travel on further somewhere where they are legal, just make sure you put them in separate plastic bag and label it with your name.

Go Halal?

Once would expect that in Saudi Arabia, pornographic materials are not allowed under Islamic law. But did you know the country has halal sex shops? Just don’t expect to find actual adult toys there. What you will be able to buy though are scented candles, creams, and oils to heighten your private time while on vacation.

Even if It Isn’t a Sex Toy

Be careful that what you’re packing doesn’t resemble anything suggestive if you are traveling to a country where sex toys are not allowed. In Oman, a woman was stopped by airport security because her child’s swimming aid looked a bit too phallic to airport security.

Is It Worth Risking Imprisonment?

In Malaysia, the penal code describes that anyone who sells, distributes, or possesses “any obscene book, pamphlet, paper, drawing, painting representation or figure, or any other obscene object whatsoever … shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both.” Definitely not worth the risk. Leave your toys at home.

So even if you’re traveling to some place you believe is sexually forward thinking, like Thailand, always do your homework and check on the risk of packing those toys. In Thailand, sex toys are prohibited and are not allowed into the country. Same goes for Maldives where they are classified as pornographic materials, according to the country’s Customs Service website.

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