In the context of air travel, are layovers different to stopovers?

In the context of air travel, are layovers different to stopovers? - Assorted air balloons flying above sandy mountains

In a recent question somebody asked about a layover without mentioning how long the stop would be, thus implying it might perhaps be understood whether layover generally refers to a stop not requiring an overnight stay.

In Australia where I'm from we don't really use layover but we're familiar with it from American TV and movies, in which travellers never appear to take breaks between flights to stay a few days.

In Australia we do use stopover (it can also be spelled stop over and stop-over) and very often we do take a break on our flights, because they can be very long, to stay one night or many nights in a destination other than our ultimate destination.

So is it that layover means a short break where you just hang around in the aiport and stopover means a long break where you'll spend some nights in a second place en route to your destination?

Or is it that both words mean a stop, either short or long, and the only difference is which is the more popular in each country?

As evidence that they're not the same:

As evidence that they're the same:

As evidence that the issue is not totally straightforward:

  • Neither of our tags have a tag wiki yet, suggesting they were not as easy to write as you might think. (I wanted to include how long the tags have existed but there seems to be no way to get this info even from the API)
  • 2008 forum thread "stopover/layover" on wordreference.com where some people seem to think they're the same, and others think they're different.
  • 2011 forum thread "stop over vs lay over" on wordreference.com which much the same mixed opinions as the 2008 thread.
  • "What is the difference between stopover and layover ?" on Yahoo Answers mostly say they're the same with the lowest voted answer saying "I believe layover is overnight and stopover is an hour or more."

Note 1. I know I could've asked at english.stackexchange.com but we are the specialists in the domain of travel terminology. Note 2. I'm specifically asking about how these terms relate to air travel if it's the case that the meanings are more specific in this subdomain than how they're used elsewhere.



Best Answer

Given this is a travel forum, the airline terminology is the best one.

A layover refers to a break between two flights taking you to your destination. Normally this would be short (a few hours), but the definition will vary depending on the airline and the route.

A stopover is where you actually break your your journey at a point that isn't the destination for longer than the time allowed for a layover. Stopovers almost always have additional fees associated with them - not only from the airline, but also as you may end up paying additional taxes/airport/customs fees as a result of the longer stop.

How long a layover can be varies. Some US airlines for domestic legs will define it as less than 4 hours, OR the next available flight to you destination. ie, if the next available flight to your destination isn't until 6 hours after you arrive, that would still be a valid layover - even through it is more than 4 hours. Many airlines will also allow a layover to extend overnight, again as long as that's the next available flight out.

For International flights most airlines allow up to 24 hours count as a layover, and many countries also use 24 hours as the limit (eg, if you are in Singapore for less than 24 hours then you do not pay the taxes you would for a longer stop).

Personally I've used the international 24 hour rule countless times to be able to spend a day (and sometimes even a night!) in a country without having to pay for the stopover!

Edit: IATA () has a "Glossary of Terms" on their website. It's doesn't have a definition for Layover, but the definition for Stopover is :

Equivalent to a "break of journey", means a deliberate interruption of a journey by the passenger agreed to in advance by the airline, at a point between the place of departure and the place of destination.

One important point I forgot to mention earlier is that many airlines will treat checked bags differently for a stopover v's a layover/connection. By default, your bags will be checked to either your destination or your stopover point if there is one. Some airlines will allow you to "short-check" your bags to a layover/connection point, but many will not.



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What is the difference between stopover and connecting flight?

What is the difference between a layover and connecting flight? While these terms are often used interchangeably, they are not the same thing. A layover is the time you spend at the airport between two flights. A connecting flight is the next flight in your itinerary that you're waiting at the airport to take.

What is layover in air travel?

If a journey is broken at a certain point in order to change aircraft and continues on to the destination with a different aircraft, this is referred to as a layover. On layover flights, during the aircraft changeover your baggage is transferred to the new aircraft by airport staff.

Do airlines still do stopovers?

Thanks to airlines that offer free stopovers, you can explore two cities for the price of one. Instead of having customers wait for connecting flights at the airport, airlines have begun offering free stopover options to allow you to tour a new locale for a few days before continuing on your trip.


A Basic Guide to Layovers



More answers regarding in the context of air travel, are layovers different to stopovers?

Answer 2

As a Travel Agent, layover means a short stop to change planes, typically required by the airline itinerary due to the connection schedule. A stopover is a voluntary extended stay overnight in a city to explore and spend time in the city. This is typical travel industry lingo.

Answer 3

Oddly, in my head a stopover implied the plane merely stopped (for an hour) and a layover meant staying so that you could 'lay' - as in go to bed, not...the other meaning.

However, from online definitions:

lay·o·ver

noun?/?l???v?r/? layovers, plural

A period of rest or waiting before a further stage in a journey

stop·o·ver

noun?/?stäp??v?r/? stopovers, plural

A break in a journey - the one-day stopover in Honolulu

A place where a journey is broken - an inviting stopover between Quebec City and Montreal

So those definitions certainly seem to define stopover as being the longer one.

However I do agree that over the years, the differentiation has decreased and definitions blurred.

Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Images: Mehmet Turgut Kirkgoz, Teona Swift, Maria Orlova, Sergey Platonov



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