How Do I Book A Flight With A Long Layover?

Traveling by plane involves a direct flight or a connecting flight with a layover period.

While choosing flights, people tend to take those that have shorter connecting intervals so that they can spend most of the time in transit on board the plane. However, booking a flight with more connecting time, as it is referred to, can sometimes be beneficial in some aspects that others are willing to spend more time in the airports. In this article, the author will explain what a long layover means, what advantages can be achieved by having long layovers, how to find and book flights with longer layovers, as well as pro tips for making the most of long layovers and things to consider when opting for this type of flight booking.

What Constitutes As a Long Layover?

It is not accurate to say that there is a fixed measure that defines a long layover in relative to layovers of a shorter length; however, if one is to measure long layover in accordance to the desires of most flying passengers, then a long layover is one that is 5 or more hours between flights. This means that for some itineraries, layovers of 8–12 hours and sometimes even 24 hours are possible. Some other ULCCs also often use long, very long layover times too, as a cost-cutting measure. If the layover will allow the traveler to get out of the airport and spend some time in the layover city, a layover of several hours can be considered as a long layover.

Advantages That One Can Enjoy By Booking a Long Layover

In fact, for some travelers, having a longer layover is not a bad thing but rather a chance to grab. This is because long layovers create a chance to take a walk away from the airport to view some of the attractive features of the layover country. This makes what would otherwise be an ordinary wait time to engage, even if just for a while, in a new location without any extra cost. Just being in the airport and not venturing out to the town, when not in a hurry, one is able to dine, shop relax more, and do some work, amongst others. Long layovers also allow for the creation of more time cushion for those who may face some challenges, such as getting stuck in the airport for a longer time or very close connection time. This is also because travelers with mobility limitations would also require more time between flights so that they do not have to hurry through the airport facilities. There are good reasons why booking a long layover could turn out to be an interesting experience.

Looking for flights that will have long layovers

The first time of planning a long layover route is to perform flight searches that enable you to sort and contrast results by layover duration. Book Websites and most of the online travel portals, such as Expedia, Travelocity or Kayak, should have an option in their search where you can input minimum and maximum hours of layover time. It means that you can enter the search such layovers as 10+ or 12+ hours, for example. Searching for longer layover durations in the search results and checking the flight details for mentions of such a possibility is the way to find more options with longer layovers.

However, if you are interested in a particular city as a long layover and not merely the concept, you will have to look at routings between your points of departure and points of arrival that pass through your desired city. For instance, when looking for flight pairs involving your preferred layover, check the finer characteristics of the different available layover durations and pick the longest one. If ever layovers are not long enough, persist in using different search dates for better schedules.

Selecting the Flight that Takes Longer to Reach the Destination

Having identified a flight with an appropriate layover duration and having all the necessary requirements, it is time to make the booking. Be sure to thoroughly review the flight details before purchasing for important factors like the time to be spent at the connecting airport, airline procedure for flight change or refund in case a flight is delayed/canceled, baggage handling if the passengers had tickets on two different airlines, etc. If all is well, then the process is like any other travel; passenger can complete the booking at the airline or agency website. Congratulations, You have a flight with a long layover, which is always fun!

Long layovers are inevitable at times, but you can leverage them as an opportunity to explore or find a fun way to pass the time in the airport.

Here are some tips to optimize your experience when you have 5+ hours or more between flights:

If there is enough time, it may be possible to leave the airport for several hours to have a look around the city. Airport transfers and sightseeing destinations should be researched to enable a traveler to determine the best places to visit upon arrival. It is important to note that occasionally some of the airports provide free or low-cost transit passes. Do have a direction for which you want to be and also the amount of time you should spend on a particular activity.

Carry a small day bag inside the carry-on baggage with changes of clothes, toiletries, spare battery, etc in case of long waiting periods. This lets you feel your best out touring layover locations or perhaps extended mend in the airport.

Charging electronics before flights is important when one is likely to have layovers and will need a gadget to be productive or use for entertainment during the waiting period. To prevent boredom, charge your devices fully before leaving and download movies, music playlists, or work files to be used in the waiting time. They also assist in avoiding a situation where one exhausts all the power they have by using the portable chargers.

Prebook your airport club day passes in advance with free eating and drinking, plush chairs, and, on occasion, showers. This is very useful for very long connecting flights within the same terminal where you do not have to leave the airport. Check for available lounges and their charges on arrival and departure before the trip to your next destination.

What to Take Into Account When Staying for Long Hours At an Airport

While planning travel around long layovers opens exciting opportunities, keep a few things in mind:

• Extremely long layovers could become quite uninteresting unless perhaps one has organized a tightly packed schedule to keep occupied. Always take along books, games, work and any other related things.

• Exiting the airport environment introduces other risks, such as transportation risks, that would make you late for flights. Be aware of proper checkpoints to use to make the decision of whether or not to go out.

• Such a system implies no connecting flights means that passengers do not have any guaranteed protections in case of misconnections. Smart travelers buy travel insurance for these circumstances.

  When arranged properly, long waiting time at airports can, in actual sense, add value to the journey rather than being a nuisance. To get options of flights that have long layover, you are presented with wonderful opportunities for two-for-one travel sightseeing. Simply follow these tips to get the most out of airport stopovers and you may find yourself looking forward to and planning for long layovers as opposed to merely enduring them.