Aviator Travel Jeans Review
Can Aviator succeed in making a jean that's better for travel than your average pair of jeans?
Aviator Travel Jeans Review Introduction
Aviator is a company with a smart focus. The goal is to help you travel lighter so you can focus more on you know, the travel rather than the packing. Right now, they target on merino tops (which I've reviewed: Air Dry T review, Air Dry Hoodie review), travel shorts, and of course, the travel jeans we're looking at here. Now, they call these "The Best Travel Jeans In The World" which is a helluva claim. But I was definitely excited to test that out. One good thing to note about Aviator is they are one of the few brands we cover that offers items for both men and women. Great to see.
Travel jeans might be something that people aren't really aware of. Why do you need them? Well for one, a good pair is typically lighter and more comfortable than your run of the mill pair of jeans. Also usually made of better material as it relates to travel (stretchier, better drying when wet, etc.). They are lighter in your pack, or on your body. The great ones, add even more to that - they add features. But we'll get into that later.
This is my review of the Aviator Travel Jeans. For full disclosure, Aviator was kind enough to send me a pair to review, but this is not a sponsored article in any way, and other than me reaching out - they played no part in this review. The opinions are my own.
This page does include affiliate links. When used to make a purchase, we make a small commission which helps keep this site running, but this in no way affects the results of our reviews and is at no cost to you.
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Aviator Travel Jeans Overview
So as we've already noted, these are focused on travel utility. They want to be more comfortable than regular jeans, a little lighter, and more useful. Aviator has added quite a few things to help do that.
The material here is not your usual denim. It's made from a mix of cotton, polyester, rayon, and spandex for that stretch. You'll notice the different feel right away when you put these on. The combination makes these wicked soft to wear. Comfort was great on these.
There are some additional features which I'll highlight in the next section, too, that makes these a bit more interesting.
Further, Aviator offers their travel jeans in a wide range of colors to suit your style. That's always good to see. Mine were the indigo versions. There's even a camo version if that's your bag.
Priced at $165 USD as of March 2024, and occasionally you do see discounts. For premium jeans, that's not expensive. Another thing to note is that Aviator takes advantage of pre-orders a lot, so plan that out in terms of time to receive if you're choosing one of those.
Aviator travel jeans are made in the U S of A.
Aviator Travel Jeans Additional Features
You might be asking, so far there doesn't seem to be anything about these jeans that makes them better for travel. So what gives? Don't worry I've got you covered. There's honestly some great additional features to highlight here.
Aviator's travel jeans come loaded with some very clever pockets to help you while you're out and about or on the move. In the case of the back pockets, they DO added a little bit of fabric heft. But, nothing crazy. The jeans have your usual two front and two back pockets. But what else are they hiding?
Phone pocket - They've taken the traditional mostly-useless fifth pocket on jeans and increased the length on it, making it perfect for your phone. I've highlighted it here and that's a Pixel 4a for reference. I like the location of this on the front. Bluffworks uses the back which is also helpful, but in this location you're never going to conflict with seating comfort.
Hidden front left pocket with zipper - The front left pocket has a zippered pocket inside of it. This is a fantastic pocket for when you really don't want to carry a wallet, and just want some cash and an ATM card or credit card. Or, it's a great spot for your hotel keycard or AirBnB keys so you don't lose them. There's no shot of a pick pocket getting into this.
Hidden back pockets with zippers - Both traditional back pockets also come with a hidden zippered pocket. Another great bit for travel because it means pick pockets have no chance here either. These pockets are great for hiding your passport while on the go, or, even putting you wallet in if you want a little more piece of mind. I'd have been OK with just one of these, but it allows you to use them if you're a left back pocket guy or gal, or a right back pocket guy or gal. I used the right.
Aviator Travel Jeans Fit
So how do these things fit? Like most premium jeans and pants, they come in one length - 34 inches. But again, that's pretty usual. Most brands assume your are going to get them altered. Now one good thing to note, is that Aviator will alter them for free for you before they ship. I think that's pretty great. Of course there's a risk there if they don't fit like you anticipated - but if you know your measurements it's a good service to offer. The jeans come in regular and slim fit. I like what I call an "american skinny" fit in my jeans. Basically, a GAP skinny. Not a super skinny or some of the European skinny types. I chose the slim. I'm also short - so I typically need to take quite a bit off which means I need to pay attention to the shape of the leg. For my hemming, I also made sure to alter the leg as well to maintain that taper and used a pair of pants I already liked to mirror the shape. You may not have to do all that, but so is the life of a short dude. I find it worth it vs. just letting the alterations mess up the look of the pants.
In my opinion, they look great. It's rare that any pair of jeans or pants that aren't bespoke are going to actually fit you "perfectly". But I was very happy with these. Basically, they are stretchy, super comfortable travel jeans that don't look like travel clothes. And really that's the whole point. I feel they look great with oxfords or sneakers or even something like Toms and a linen shirt (which are also great to pack for travel, super light).
The Good
The fit and the comfort. These fit like a real pair of jeans and with the colors they offer, there's no way to tell that they aren't traditional denim without touching them. Really. Most technical fabrics and travel pants are kind of like Monet's. Good from far, but start giving up their secrets the closer you get. These just look like, well, jeans. They don't FEEL like normal denim though. And when you're spending hours driving in a car like I did, or spending time on flights and airports (which I've not gotten to do as of Sep 2020 for obvious reasons) these are going to be nice. Makes you start to understand why women love the feel of stretchy fabrics (and why companies are starting to make guys items more like that). It's a game changer for comfort. And since these are suitable to dinners out at nice restaurants as well, major score. I won't tell the Hosts and Hostesses if you don't.
Have to call out the pockets as well. Like the Bluffworks pants I recently tried (not jeans), they have a good implementation here loaded with utility. The phone pocket works great, and the zippers provide really good security for you while traveling. I actually liked the front left hidden pocket better on these, than the one on the Bluffworks. The back zippered pockets are great for hiding wallets and passports and honestly, means you don't need pack those goofy hidden money belts or whatever. One less "thing" to pack! To be fair I've never used one. But I mean - they sell a lot of them so people ARE using them...somewhere...
The price is really fair as well on these at only $125.00 retail price.
The Bad
Wasn't a lot to not like here, but I think I'd ask that they either offer multiple lengths, or start with a 32. Had to take off a LOT of fabric on these, which means you need to alter the entire leg as well.
The secret pockets are a bit thick, and some of you might not like that. It makes the upper level of the jeans a bit heftier. I will note however this never affected my wear or how they felt while moving, or anything like that. It's more a hand feel which ultimately maybe means it's not that big of a deal.
The Performance of the Aviator Travel Jeans
These jeans are not made of any special performance fabric - so it's not something we should be expecting water resistance or odor resistance or anything like that. You'll need to look at your Outliers or Western Rises for those angles.
That being said, these do have a nice trick up their sleeve. They offer an "anti-bagging out" fabric. The stretch is a bounce back kind. So when you wear them for a few days, they shouldn't get baggy on you. This is consistent with my experience in wearing them on two trips. They've not stretched out on me like other pants or jeans would have. This is good because normally you'd need to wash pants to fix that, and this means you can get more wears out of them.
Improvement Requests for the Aviator Travel Jeans
Nothing additional to add here beyond what I already noted in the "Bad" section.
Final Thoughts On My Aviator Travel Jeans Review
I was very happy with these jeans in my testing. They worked out well on a couple of weekend trips that I've taken. I'll be taking them with me again on an upcoming trip to the North Fork area of Long Island as we'll be going to a fancier restaurant, and I want to be able to properly dress up. The best part of these jeans is that I can do that when needed, but I can also wear them during the day with sneakers and be extremely comfortable in both situations.
I want to highlight that piece. I know jeans are comfortable, that's mostly the whole point. But these are more so. Trust me. If you find your fit or alter these exactly as you like them, they are more comfortable than denim due to the stretch and softness. And that's all you want when you are traveling. You don't want one more thing to worry about. It's already somewhat stressful. Things happen you can't predict. Why not make it one less thing? Comfort doesn't have to me a variable for you. These have you covered.
Further, having a pair of jeans that can do double duty as casual and night out, while being supremely comfortable, means you don't need to pack two items. Pants are typically one of the heaviest pieces in your luggage, so packing less of those is a huge win for weight and also space. That means you might end up with a smaller bag!
Now to address the product name here. Are they the best travel jeans in the world? I can't answer that, haha, but I appreciate their moxie with that title. As of now, I've tried more travel pants than jeans, so I don't want to venture a guess at that. But, I've certainly seen quite a few brands offer what they call travel jeans - that are nothing like this kind of utility. They are all just softer cotton, typically. So I'd say these are better than most, and certainly top tier. I would absolutely say these have the potential to be the measuring stick for sure.
So with all that, I can definitely recommend these to you if you're in the market for travel jeans. I currently use them in my First Line travel kit (that's the best/highest for you non hockey folks) and see no reason to remove them, especially with the cooler weather coming in (I also use the Bluffworks Ascender 5 Pockets which I reviewed recently). I think they are great.
They sell directly from their website, so consider using our link if you decide to make a purchase decision. Thanks for reading!
Wander more and wander smarter, everyone.
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