Can I fly via a third city on a second ticket?
I want to fly from A to B and have found a connection that is considerably cheaper (or otherwise more convenient) if I first fly from A to C and then from C to B on separate bookings (i.e. purchasing a ticket A to C and then another, different ticket C to B).
Can I do this? What do I need to be aware of?
Best Answer
I do this all the time and I always book the C-B flight connecting to the next A-C flight. I am rarely time constrained and spending a day in a hotel is not a big issue for me (I work remotely anyways). Yes, this means the cost of the hotel needs to be factored in. However, as mentioned in the original post, you might be doing this for other reasons than finding the cheapest possible flight and I often do. Although my examples are also for cost reasons but nowhere near the cheapest economy tickets.
I was flying from Vancouver to Wellington so I took Westjet to Honolulu, slept there, then used Jetstar to Wellington via Sydney. As I really hate economy seats for longer flights, on Westjet, I had an extra legroom seat (doable for six hours) and on Jetstar to Sydney I was flying business class (only thing I would do for such a long flight). Buying a single business class ticket from Vancouver to Wellington was about three times as much as what I spent on this. Not to mention that flying from the west coast to Australia/New Zealand is 15-ish hours and I can't imagine doing such a long flight: I'm OK w/ 10 and get antsy on 12 hours even in business. 6, sleep, 10.5 is much better for me.
Another example. Delta had a crazy business seat sale for Seattle-Frankfurt and my destination was Budapest so I took the bus from Vancouver to SeaTac then slept there, took Delta to Frankfurt, slept there (see a pattern?) and then took Lufthansa to Budapest the next day.
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Can I take a flight from one location and return in another?
Yes. If you depart from one airport but return to another, or fly to one airport and return from another, this is called an open-jaw flight.Can I connect two separate flights?
There are two different types of connecting flights. There are those that are included as one route on your ticket and scheduled by the airline or OTA, and then there those which you plan yourself and book separately, known as self-connecting flights.Are stopovers allowed?
Depending on the airline, free stopovers are not always available. All three of the major U.S. airlines\u2014American, United and Delta\u2014used to allow free stopovers on award tickets, but that's not the case anymore. Currently, only United allows them, and only on international routes.What is multi-city ticket?
A multi-city flight is an advanced airline ticket which allows you to travel across the world using multiple stops: greatly increasing the value of your trip by booking extra legs with stopovers in several different cities!Which is the best ticket to book? One-way, round trip and multi tickets explained - FAQ Fridays
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