Tampa International Airport 'bans' pajamas. Also Crocs and fireworks
Flying high on its recent decision to “ban” Crocs from the feet of passengers, Tampa International Airport in Florida is now aiming to get rid of pajamas in its concourses and jetways as well.
In a social media post that has gathered attention worldwide , the airport posted: “We’ve seen enough. We’ve had enough. It’s time to ban pajamas at Tampa International Airport.”
— Tampa International Airport ✈️ (@FlyTPA) February 26, 2026
It goes on to say: “We know this decision could be disruptive to someone in your life. It’s time to have a difficult conversation with them.” It concludes: “Help Tampa International Airport become the world’s first Crocs-free AND pajama-free airport.”
“Crocs-free” is a reference to a post the airport made last July, when the U.S. Transportation Security Administration announced an end to its policy of making passengers remove their shoes during security screening.
Tampa airport repeated the news but added its own twist: “*unless you’re wearing Crocs … you should take those off and throw them away.”
The TSA will now let you keep your shoes on through security at TPA!!!!!*
— Tampa International Airport ✈️ (@FlyTPA) July 9, 2025
*unless you’re wearing Crocs…you should take those off and throw them away
Neither of the posts, though they were meant as jokes, was universally well-received. The pajama post had some wondering if the message came from a joke account or was perhaps an actual rule, leading to queries about how it could be enforced.
One angry user posted to X: “Going to the airport today putting on the most pajama outfit I have today JUST because of this post.” To which the Tampa account responded with a meme of Marcia from The Brady Bunch saying: “Sure, Jan.”
All these postings bear the hallmark of C.J. Johnson, Tampa airport’s head of social media.
“You have to give people a lot of sweets, so when you need to feed them a vegetable they’ll listen,” he told an audience at University of South Florida’s School of Marketing and Innovation Practice Center’s Workshop Series.
“If I got on everyday at Tampa International Airport and tweeted we have flights today, who would care? No one,” he said. “If we do funny silly stuff like this with targeted messages that grow your audience and then I say, ‘Hey guys, by the way, we are closing the airport due to a hurricane,’ then people lean in and listen,” he said.
Johnson once ran a campaign to name the six-storey-tall flamingo that looms over travellers in the main terminal. (It’s now named Phoebe.)
Not long after that he had Tampa International “give up” its name for a few hours online, branded simply as “Big Flamingo Home.”
And last Fourth of July he posted that the airport’s annual fireworks display had been cancelled, before adding: “(Actually, we don’t have an annual fireworks display because we’re literally an airport and that would be nuts.) Thanks for reading. Come see us soon.”
???? THIS JUST IN ???? TPA's annual fireworks display has been canceled AGAIN for obvious reasons.
— Tampa International Airport ✈️ (@FlyTPA) July 3, 2025
(Actually, we don't have an annual fireworks display because we're literally an airport and that would be nuts.)
Thanks for reading. Come see us soon. ???? pic.twitter.com/SjUNiFZeI5
But it turns out Tampa wasn’t even the first to address Crocs and PJs. An article in People magazine from October 2024 notes that several school boards have banned Crocs among students for safety reasons.
They included LaBelle Middle School in LaBelle, Florida, just south of Tampa, whose dress code states: “Safe footwear shall be worn at all times. No open toe shoes, bedroom slippers or shower shoes. All shoes must have a strap or back at the heel. (Proper lace up athletic shoes must be worn during P.E.) NO CROCS allowed.”
And last November, during a press conference at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy pleaded for more civility among passengers during the U.S. Thanksgiving weekend, and asked that passengers avoid dressing in “slippers and pajamas” for their flights.
Older travellers and those who have seen old movies will recall a time when people dressed up rather than down to take to the skies. Perhaps Tampa will soon suggest a return to hats and ties. Or spats.
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