I’m in Chicago this week and am facing a #FFFWP (Frequent Flyer First World Problem). I need to get my hairs did. Like, desperately. If I grow any more hair on my head I’ll have to pay the in-cabin pet fee the next time I fly.
The only problem is I hate small talk, especially when the person I’m having small talk with has scissors up against my head. So I do what I can to go to either of my “regular” places in Tampa or Seattle. I mean, maybe that sounds crazy to some, but I still fly to Seattle to go to the dentist, because she’s so friendly and awesome.
Yesterday I figured I’d be brave and try to get my hairs did in Chicago. I asked a friend for a recommendation — he immediately thought of a place nearby that “wasn’t inexpensive.” That works for me. I called, and their prices for mens cuts ranged from $83 to $120. $83 to $120?!? Does it include a back rub, happy ending, and bottomless Krug?! Or are these really the “market prices” for haircuts in major cities nowadays?
But this is where the “signs you fly too much” thing comes into play. Rather than looking for other places in Chicago to get my hair cut, I immediately started checking to see if I could rebook my ticket to Europe for this coming week (booked using American miles, so there’s no fee to redeposit) to route through New York JFK, so I could visit the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse.
Janet there does a damn good job cutting hair, and it’s the only place I’ve gotten a haircut where I have access to unlimited drinkable champagne.* 😉
This is the same thought process normal people go through when trying to get their hair cut, right?
*Discretion with champagne consumption in the Clubhouse is advised… especially prior to getting a massage… especially a massage where you’re face down… I speak from experience… that is all…
Lucky,
You need to go to Asia for hair cuts and happy endings......
What was the place in Chicago your friend recommended?
Just got my hair cut (hair did?) yesterday and paid $14 plus tip. Go to a barber and not a salon and you'll discover most of the world did not go mad!
I buy never expiring $10 haircut from Great Clips during Christmas and use it all year
You should consider John Allen considering that you have to go thru NYC, LAX, SFO, YYZ.........it has most of those on your list except the soapy part of the massage..........
@jack and Aptraveler
As I'm sure y'all figured, it's just slang for getting your hair done, but it really should've been "get my hurs did"
I'm with Aaron and Kevin. Great Clips/Hair Cuttery.
And, I'm a woman.
(As for "depends on how much you care"--unless you have tricky hair (and some do), I have never been able to tell a $200 haircut from a $20 one.)
I would pay extra for champagne, though. (no bubbly at Great Clips, I'm afraid)
No, not exactly Ben. However, in your case, moving around all the time and not having a fixed domicile to call home, it's understood that you're looking for continuity of a reliable service; and if that means routing thru JFK to get it, I think that's awesomely reasonable!
@jack I was thinking the same thing!
@sice Hilarious visual!
I look hideous:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7hQLLjJC-8
Sounds like it's time to date/marry/befriend a hair stylist somewhere that has good flight connections...
what the hell is "hair did"?
Quality Barbers on East 88th in NYC does a great haircut for $30ish, if you're ever in that area.
Hair Cuttery, $14.
Are there people who would actually spend more than $20 on a mens haircut?
Ok makes more sense! Thanks! Show us a before and after pic of your haircut please!!!
There's a great salon called Art + Science- hip and $65 for a barber cut. There's one in Wicker Park, one in Lincoln Park, and one in Evanston. http://artandsciencesalon.com/?p=901
It's normal... I'm going to let my hair grow a bit long in November so I can get a trim and a shave at the EK F lounge in Dubai. :D
I would second the shop at DFW. Just build in a short layover there and get'er done :)
The Hyatt Schaumburg has a barber shop in the lobby that isn't bad but limited hours.
I lived in Chicago for 6 years and never spent more than $30 for a haircut. it just depends on what you care for
Great clips?
Go to NYC Chinatown. Lots of barbers there cut hair for $4. You can spend the rest of the money in the liquor stores across the street. That's how I do it.
Totally normal in my books.
As far as I am concerned, I fly to Bangkok twice a year for dental check-up. I am based in HKG.
There are plenty of places in NYC where a man can get a haircut for ~$20. There are plenty where you can pay $200 as well. It just depends how much you care.
This is actually kinda normal, I think. I lived in NYC for 1.5 years and never once went to the dentist or hair salon there. Those were activities I did on trips back to Texas for the exact same reasons. Too pricey, don't want a new person....yada, yada.
Come on through IAH some time and I'll take you to a cool place for 1/2 the price. Located right next to a nice Hyatt, too.... ;)
If you are in DC and need a haircut, I can recommend one near the capitol for $25.
I did the same exact thing this summer. I let my hair go all wild for too long because I knew I'd be in the LHR VS Clubhouse that month.
@corey - walked by that barbershop a few hundred times and always wondered who where those people getting haircuts in airport!
and yes, even being on the road, this past weekend I went to see my fabulous barber back home who is a 20 minute drive and was a 20 minute wait
Normal, to ME. There now, don't you feel better? ;)
FCQ has this same problem. :)
I have gotten my hair cut at the DFW airport barber shop in terminal C at least a dozen times. I'm on a first name basis with Carl there who is from St. Louis. Curious how the TSA lets them have those scissors though, isn't that a security risk?
Can you book Virgin Atlantic flights using AAdvantage miles? Or is it possible to go to the Virgin Clubhouse and pay for a haircut? I'm confused since you mentioned rerouting your flight to Europe via JFK. Unless you meant cancelling the flight to Europe that you booked thru AA miles and then making another booking using DL/VS?
@ Joey -- You can't, I'm saying I would cancel my current itinerary and book a different one instead.
Nope. Seems totally normal to me. I go back to my hometown to get my haircut. And I recently helped out my hair stylist with a free domestic flight for her mother in law and so now I have free haircuts for the next year and since my mother goes to the same place, she has free haircuts for the next year too!
For almost 5 years, I used to commute from Accra to Gatwick to get my hair cut. It was just more convenient that way. So no, not strange at all.
hahahahaha pfrrrrrt!