Travellers notice a 'hidden' plane bathroom feature that could help combat germs

Using an airplane bathroom is never going to be a pleasant experience.But travellers have picked up on a 'hidden' feature found inside most on-board lavatories which could make things just that little bit better.A foot pedal for the rubbish bin.Watch the video above.READ MORE: Regional NSW comes out on top of Aussies' favourite places to take a holidayJoe McNamara shared a video to Instagram of the moment he noticed the feature while in the plane's bathroom."I was sitting there on my flight back from Thailand and I saw this little foot lever," he captioned the video."I was thinking what was that for and sure enough it's for the bin I never knew about it. What the hell!!"He demonstrates how when he pushes down on the pedal beneath the sink with his foot, the bin's hinged door swings open."No more touching that skanky bin," he wrote.READ MORE: Locations you can visit from your favourite TV shows or moviesHow to avoid germs on a planeThere are a few other tips and tricks you can follow to keep yourself clean and germ-free while using plane bathrooms.The top comment on the foot pedal video was objecting to the fact that McNamara seemed to be in the bathroom in just his socks. "Umm where are your shoes?!," read the comment which racked up over 10,000 likes.Keeping your shoes on while going to the bathroom is an absolute must when flying.A former flight attendant revealed to Sanctuary Bathrooms that "due to the high chance of unbalance and people missing the toilet bowl, there could be urine on the floor.""Imagine if you carried this from your sock, into your shoe and back into your home – that would be incredibly unhygienic."The same flight attendant revealed two more essential tips for staying clean and hygienic in the bathroom.Number one: always carry hand sanitiser. Most flight crew carry a pocket-sized bottle at all times and encourage passengers to do the same.Secondly, avoid touching the toilet seat wherever possible. Hover over the seat if you can, or use toilet paper to avoid direct contact. If you can time your bathroom breaks, aim to hit the toilet right after takeoff. The toilets are cleaned between flights, so it'll be at its most hygienic early in your flight.READ MORE: Holiday rentals that are still available for the winter school holidaysThe pedal isn't the only thing travellers have recently discovered in the world of plane bathrooms.A video went viral recently showing a Lufthansa airplane that had its passenger bathrooms in the cargo hold, accessible by stairs going down from the cabin.Commenters on TikTok were quick to point out the benefit of these lower-level lavatories. "Yes....I don't want to smell the bathroom anywhere near my seat!!," one person wrote.