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How to book a long layover during a flight to have more fun out of your travel.

While traveling internationally, a layover is almost inevitable. The main reason is that the distance between these international routes is very long. Most of the aircrafts currently cant fly straight nonstop for such long distances. Therefore there is the need for a stop along the way for refueling and other purposes. Short layovers of about 8 hours and bellow can be hectic for the traveler. However if you can be able to get yourself a long layover of more than 10 hours you can actually use that chance to tour the world in the same one travel.

Also read What are the best flights booking websites.

Think of it, if right now you head over to matini flights search and search for flights from Dubai to New Yolk you will find almost every flight has at least one stop along the way.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”307″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]As shown on the screenshot for matini flights search results for Dubai-New Yolk shown above there are 3 stops from Dubai to New York. Now think of it if you could manage to get a longer stay at one of those stops that you are interested in. You can tour the place on your way to your destination in New York. lets say you decide to take a long layover at Cairo Egypt. We all know that Egypt is one of the worlds largest tourist destination. You get to tour Egypt without necessarily having to book flight tickets to Egypt. That’s killing two birds with one stone.

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What’s the need for a long layover?

A long layover has so many advantages rather than disadvantages for you. Many people just assume that a long layover is a waste of their time that they could have otherwise arrived at their destination quicker. Well its not all about time. Whether you like it or not for a long international flight there will always be layovers. Hence time wastage if you are one of those people who are time conscious about reaching their destinations. I believe there is more to a journey than just the final destination. There is a lot to be seen and enjoyed on the way to the final destination.

Also read How to save money booking flights tickets online.

Another major importance of a long layover is relaxation. Traveling whether is on road, sea or even flight can be tiresome. If you have been flying for the last 10 hours you definitely will be tired of sitting in that small airplane sit. Your legs feel the need for a stretch and at least a walk. Also the mind state is not that good for being in one place for so many hours. Many smart travelers prefer these long layovers to relax, get some fresh air and maybe a cup of cappuccino.

Also related 2020 list of world’s best airlines to fly with.

More Worse is for people who cant sleep in a moving vehicle or airplane like me. Its one of the worst human traits to have. Believe me staying awake for a whole night fixed up in one small place with nothing to do is not fun. For the fist hours of the journey you can watch some YouTube videos online, some movies but as time goes on and everyone around you is asleep the movies are not fun anymore. Your biggest wish at such moment is to catch some sleep. The only way for me to sleep on a long journey like that is to have long layovers. If you have same problems like me be wise and dont get trapped again.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]

Most important reason for long layovers.

I cant exhaust the importance of long layovers without mentioning the most important which is the touring advantage. I would call it free tour. You never actually paid to directly be there at that city to tour around, you were on a journey to another place. A chance to taste the local foods, meet new people, interact with new culture are only a few of the things you can do with such opportunities.

More importantly is the amount of money you can save when you book flights with long layover in between. As you know every traveler is with the intention to reach their destination fast. This makes immediate flights just after landing more expensive than flights leaving later to the same destination. Moreover booking one long connecting flight with the same airline is for sure more expensive than just booking different separate flights to the same destination. Don’t book flights like an armature, be smarter to save your money when booking flight tickets.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]

Perfect example of why you should book different connecting flights yourself than just taking the travel agency recommended connecting flight.

Just to prove to you what i have just said above, i will give you this perfect example. I searched on matini flights for flights from Nairobi Kenya to New York City and the matini flights results recommended this route for me. Nairobi-London-Boston-New York which costs $2926. This is shown on the matini flights screenshot bellow.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”311″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]On the other hand, You could have chosen to book individual separate flights yourself that will connect you to the same destination. We did exactly that for the same routes. So first we book a flight from Nairobi Kenya to London that costs $521 as shown on the screenshot bellow.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”312″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]Next we book another separate flight from London to Boston on matini flights that costs $315. This is shown on the screenshot bellow[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”313″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]Finally we book another flight on matini flights from Boston to New York city. This costs $121 as shown on the screenshot bellow[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”314″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]If we add the total cost for the three flight tickets, $521 (from Nairobi to London) plus $315 (from London to Boston) plus $121 (from Boston to New York city) we get $957.

That means you spend $915 for separate connecting flights from Nairobi to New York city. Remember we saw the recommended price for the same route is $2926. This means that if you book on your own separate connecting flights rather than taking the booking agency recommended flight, you will save $1969. That is more than what it will cost you for the entire round trip. Don’t waste money anymore, be smart and book flights on your own.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]

Routes to take a long layover and book separate flight tickets.

These routes are some of the most common long hail flight routes that we would recommend you to take a long layover. Also we recommend you to book the tickets separately connecting to your final destination.

Between North America and Africa. A long layover in Europe would be great for you to tour some of the most beautiful places in Europe.

Between North America and Europe or the UK. A layover in Iceland or Barcelona or Amsterdam would be amazing experience for you.

For a flight from Australia to East coast USA. A long layover at Los Angeles or San Francisco would be great.

What is an airline imposed long layover?

These kind of layovers are there as part of the flight itinerary. When you are booking such a flight you will see on the flight itinerary that there is a long layover along the way. This happens when the airline itself wants to have a long stop at that airport. These are sometimes the best long layovers to have. Because there is less stress when flying with the same airline throughout the whole journey. However this might not be the best layover to have when it comes to ticket costs. We explained the reason above.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]

What airlines offer free stopovers?

As an incentive to increase airlines ticket sales as well as attract touring-oriented travelers, some airlines offer long layovers at certain destinations. In most cases the airlines offer these stopovers at these destinations to encourage tourism at those places. Bellow are a few airlines that offer such stopovers.

Qatar airways offers a Doha stopover of up to two days. According to me this is one of the best stopovers. Because the airline in most cases will provide you with room even for up to those two nights. What an opportunity to make use of.Remember to check the Qatar government website in advance to see whether you qualify for a visa-free entry. very important because you don’t want to be on the wrong side of the law.

TAP Air Portugal will give you almost up to five nights long layover in Portugal at Lisbon or Porto.

Finn air will give you a long layover of up to five days in Finland at Helsinki when you fly round-trip with their airline.

If you are flying between North America and Europe or the UK, Iceland air will give you a long layover of up to a full week.

How to create and get a long layover between flights.

There are two main ways you can get a long layover when traveling. One is the airline imposed long layover like the one we explained above on this article. This has its advantages of traveling with the same airline also through. Similarly it has the disadvantages of paying more for the tickets for booking with the same airline. Another disadvantage of this is that you will not have the location freedom. Freedom of choosing the actual place that you want to have the layover. Because this is determined by the airline’s route.

Also read How to book the cheapest flights to anywhere.

The second way to create a long layover between flights and the one that i recommend is booking on your own separate flights that lead to your destination. Here you have the advantage of choosing the city that you want to have the layover. You also have the advantage of being able to save a lot of money when booking the flight tickets. I will take you through the process of creating a long layover when booking flights.

First you need to know where you want your layover to be. Remember it is important that the layover be along the way to your destination. I mean your desired layover should be along or close to your flight route. Otherwise it will increase your flight cost. Take for example the example we gave above for a flight from Nairobi to New York City. If you want a layover in Australia it will be a bad choice. This is because Australia is not anywhere close to your flight route to USA from Nairobi. Choosing Australia layover will only increase your flight cost, lengthen your flight and make it more difficult for you.

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Next you need to head over to the flights booking website and book your flights one by one from city to city for the cities that connects to your destination. If you don’t know which cities connect to your destination you can just check the itinerary of any of the flights recommended by the flights booking website. An example for a flight from Melbourne Australia to New York city is shown on the matini flights screenshot bellow.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”320″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text]From the screenshot above you can see the connecting cities for a flight from Melbourne to New York city. As you can see the cities are Honolulu and Chicago. So you will book flights from Melbourne to Honolulu. Another one from Honolulu to Chicago and lastly Chicago to New York city. Always remember to check these cities on the connecting flights routes from the cheapest route available to save your money.

So to make your long layover all you need to do is to make sure that there is a long time gap between flights. Have long time gap from the arrival time at your layover destination and the departure time. If you want to stay for a day then book flights that are 24 hours apart. That is 24 hours from the time you arrive and the time you leave.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]More articles to read:

How to book flights online. A step by step guide.

World’s cheapest airlines to fly with. Low cost airline.

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