Changing a flight from a layover to a stopover
I have a flight booked with KLM from New York (JFK) to Cape Town (CPT) in middle-late December. This flight includes a 3-hour transfer at Schiphol Airport (AMS) in Amsterdam. Recently my schedule has changed, and as such I am able to leave New York six days earlier. I am wondering if it would be possible to move my JFK-AMS flight earlier by a few days, so that I can stay over in Amsterdam for that time (I don't need a visa for short-term tourism). Effectively this would change my transfer in Amsterdam to a stopover of a few days, and my trip to a multi-city itinerary.
I have asked the airline about this, and I am waiting on a response. However, I am wondering whether anyone else has ever done anything similar. Some potential problems I have thought of include:
- Changing a flight that close to Christmas might be expensive, if any earlier flights are available at all.
- There would have to be special arrangements to get my luggage on arrival in AMS, and then recheck it to CPT.
Any advice is appreciated.
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Can you change layover flight?
If you notice your layover is too short, consider changing your flight. Call the airline and see if there's a better connection by either taking an earlier first flight or a later second flight. Explain why you want to do this and ask about any applicable change fees.Is a stopover the same as a layover?
The main difference between a stopover and layover is length of time. Stopover rules vary by airline, but are essentially longer layovers \u2014 at least 24 hours in length. Layovers, meanwhile, are connections less than a day in length depending on if you're flying domestically or internationally.What is the difference between stopover and connecting flight?
A stopover is a connecting flight but with a longer duration between flights. Basically, it's a long layover. A stopover typically qualifies as anything that lasts longer than four hours for domestic flights and longer than 24 hours for international flights.Can a layover be extended?
Airlines have no obligation to extend layovers, and they sometimes charge hefty flight-change fees. That said, airlines may also sometimes extend your layover for 24 hours or more\u2014several days even\u2014at no additional cost.A Basic Guide to Layovers
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