💧 Water bottle

A full water bottle will be stopped at the checkpoint because the liquid inside exceeds 100ml. You will be asked to drink the water, pour it out, or abandon the bottle. The bottle itself is never confiscated — only the liquid inside. Empty it before joining the queue and you will have no problem.

Empty water bottles are universally permitted in carry-on. A small number of high-security airports in the Middle East and South Asia may X-ray bottles separately and ask you to open them for inspection, but this is a process check, not a ban. No major aviation authority restricts the bottle itself.

Screeners can usually tell from the X-ray image whether liquid is present inside a bottle. If the image is ambiguous — for example with an opaque or insulated bottle — they may ask you to open it or pour it upside down to demonstrate it is empty. This takes seconds and is entirely routine.

Empty it completely before joining the security queue, even if you think you drank it all — a small amount of remaining liquid can still flag on an X-ray. Once you are through security, most airports have free water refill stations or water fountains airside. Collapsible bottles are worth considering if you want to save space before the checkpoint.