Heading on a trip but want to stay an extra few days in a layover? Depending on the airline and route you’re flying, in some cases a longer layover may even be offered by your airline for free or at a cheaper rate than a direct flight.
Why book a longer layover?
With some research and planning, sometimes a longer layover can work out cheaper than a direct flight. For example you may be able to get a cheaper domestic flight to a key transport hub, before then catching an international flight.
Additionally, if you’re not fortunate enough to be travelling at the pointy end of the plane a stopover can provide a chance for you to stretch your legs on longer routes such as those between Australia and Europe, or Australia and the USA.
A longer layover can also be a great opportunity to explore another country or location, before boarding a plane again to your final destination. In fact, some airlines like Icelandair encourage longer stops. In the case of Icelandair, you can add a stopover for no additional airfare for up to 7 days!
How to book a flight with a longer layover
If you have a particular airline in mind - perhaps you’re chasing points - then most airlines offer the ability to book multi-city flights directly. This gives you the flexibility to choose what locations you’d like to stop at.
Sort flights by price, from lowest to highest and you’ll often find that suggested flights with stopovers show up as some of the cheaper options.
However, if you want to stay longer in the layover or have more fine-grained control over the layover destination, the easiest way to find fares across multiple airlines is to use a tool like Google Flights.
Finding longer layovers with Google Flights
Google Flights or alternatives such as Expedia make it straightforward to compare airlines and their available layovers for the route you want to take.
To get started with Google Flights:
Open Google Flights and select “Multi-city” from the flight option drop-down
Enter your starting location, and the destination you’d like to layover in
Then, fill in the layover destination and your end destination in the second box
Click “Add flight” twice so you can then enter your return destinations if you want to have a longer layover again on the way back
Ensure the date, locations, flight class and number of people flying are correct and then click “Search”
Then, pick your flights using the Google Flights site. Once selected, you’ll be presented with more information about how to book - typically via the vendor’s own website or a third-party travel booking site
What do I need to consider when having a longer layover?
It’s important to ensure you have the appropriate visa when staying longer in a layover. Given you will now be leaving the airport, without the correct visa you won’t be allowed to leave. Also consider how long you’ll be staying in the layover destination - some visas are time-sensitive.
You’ll want to treat the layover as another destination on your holiday, so make sure you plan accordingly and have the appropriate travel insurance and medical coverage. Remember that in most cases, your home countries embassy won’t be able to help cover these costs if you run into trouble.
If you’re treating this as a layover, make sure you’re not too far away from the airport. While exploring is the idea, you’ll still want to be close enough that you don’t need to waste time commuting around. Ideal layover destinations often have airport rail or public transit connections.
Depending on how long your layover is, you might also want to consider your luggage and what you’re going to do with it. If you’re flying the same day with the same airline, then your airline may check your luggage right through. Otherwise, you’ll need to store it in a hotel room or the front-desk.