Maximize Layovers: Best Airlines with Stopover Programs

Visiting two or more cities for the price of one is an excellent way to tick more boxes on your travel bucket list without breaking the bank.

Whether you want to stay where East meets West in the historic city of Istanbul, enjoy complimentary domestic flights between Japanese cities or spend a few days in Madrid en route to your final destination, airline stopover programs make all of these options come true.

You might be surprised to know that many major domestic and international carriers offer free stopover programs, some of which will even pay for your hotel stay and domestic flights during your stopover.

Let’s check out the most popular airlines with stopover programs to see where you could explore for little to no extra cost.

What Is a Stopover?

A stopover is an extended stop en route to your final destination, during which you leave the airport. For international flights, a stopover is any stop that’s longer than 24 hours. Depending on the airline’s stopover policy, it could be anywhere from an extra day to more than a week.

For instance, if you flew from New York (JFK) to Prague (PRG) via Madrid (MAD), it would be considered a stopover if you stayed in Madrid for more than 24 hours—if you stopped there for less than 24 hours, then it’s simply an international connection or a layover.

Stopovers differ from layovers because a layover is any connection that lasts fewer than 24 hours for international flights. Typically, you’ll stay in the airport during a layover.

What Are the Benefits of Booking Stopover Flights?

Put simply, airlines that offer stopovers enable you to explore two or more cities for the price of one (or for a small surcharge), equaling more travel and minimal extra costs.

If you have the time and flexibility, adding a stopover to your outbound and inbound flights allows you to explore more of the world while not dedicating an entire trip to visiting these extra cities.

Likewise, stopovers can sometimes be used in place of open-jaw itineraries.

An open-jaw itinerary is one in which you fly into one city and depart from another. For instance, you could fly from Chicago (ORD) to Paris (CDG) and then return from Frankfurt, Germany (FRA), to Chicago. Keep in mind that you’ll need to arrange your own transport between your arrival and departure airports, such as a cheap interregional flight, train, rental car or bus.

However, if you’re able to add a free stopover to your itinerary, you could fly to Paris en route to Frankfurt, allowing you to visit Paris at no extra cost and eliminating the need for you to organise transportation to Frankfurt.

Adding a free stopover instead of booking an open-jaw itinerary also can save you hassle when it comes to rebooking or canceling your flight. While domestic U.S. airlines have largely eliminated change and cancellation fees, many international carriers still charge extra to change or cancel your flight.

Open-jaw itineraries are often booked as one-way flights to make it easier to find award availability, which can lead to double the number of fees if you need to change or cancel your flights. Booking the same open-jaw itinerary as a single itinerary with a free stopover means you’ll have to pay change or cancellation fees only once.

Therefore, if you’re planning an open-jaw itinerary, you should look for airlines with free stopovers to make your life easier.

Popular Airline Stopover Programs

Let’s now check out some of the most popular airline stopover programs.

Air Canada Aeroplan

Air Canada Aeroplan offers the ability to add one stopover on one-way itineraries and up to two stopovers on round-trip itineraries booked with points. Stopovers cost an additional 5,000 Aeroplan points, regardless of the class you fly, making them an affordable way to see an extra city.

Air Canada allows for open-jaw itineraries, too, but not between stopover cities—the open jaw must happen after you’ve reached your final destination.

The best part is that you can book stopovers with any of Air Canada’s Star Alliance partners as well as non-alliance partners like Emirates and Etihad Airways, for as long as 45 days, giving you ample time to explore an extra city or two.

Keep in mind that you can’t have your stopover take place in the same city on the outbound and inbound flight. For instance, if you flew from Boston to London with a stopover in Vienna, you couldn’t have your stopover in Vienna on the way back to Boston—but you could have it in another European city.

Additionally, stopovers can’t take place in the U.S. or Canada, and are available on award fares only.

Overall, you can leverage Air Canada’s stopover rules combined with its competitive distance- and zone-based partner award pricing to score lucrative award rates while seeing a few extra cities on your trip.

Air France-KLM Flying Blue

Air France-KLM Flying Blue offers the ability to add a free stopover to your award itinerary. You can add stopovers to any Air France, KLM or partner award flight for up to one year in duration.

However, for flights operated by Air France or KLM, stopovers will always be in Paris or Amsterdam, respectively. Likewise, according to Flying Blue’s website, “A stopover can only be booked for the entry price if the lowest booking class is available on all flights.” That means each segment on your itinerary will need to be priced at the Saver award level for you to qualify for free stopovers.

All itineraries with a free stopover need to be booked over the phone.

Alaska Airlines Atmos Rewards

Alaska Airlines Atmos Rewards allows you to add a free stopover of up to 14 days in duration per direction of travel on international award flights.

Free stopovers can be added to itineraries operated by Alaska Airlines and a maximum of one partner airline. Stopovers typically take place in the hub airport of the airline you’re flying with, but you can arrive and depart from different airports if the airline serves multiple airports within the same city.

With the help of Alaska’s lucrative distance-based partner award chart, you can add a free stopover or two to international itineraries with any Oneworld airline. Just keep in mind that free stopovers can’t be added to domestic itineraries.

All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club

All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club offers some of the most valuable Star Alliance award rates of any frequent-flyer program.

You can add one stopover to ANA-operated international award flights on either the outbound or inbound leg, except for flights departing from Japan. For partner-operated award flights booked through ANA, you can add a stopover on either the outbound or inbound leg, including on flights departing from Japan.

Because ANA utilizes a zone-based partner award chart (instead of charging you based on the distance or number of segments flown), it’s free to add a stopover, as long as it’s en route to your final destination.

Although ANA stopover rules can seem complicated, they’re pretty generous and offer some interesting routing options.

Copa Airlines

Copa Airlines offers its passengers a free stopover in the airline’s nation’s capital—Panama City—through the Panama stopover program.

You can add a free stopover in Panama city for up to seven days, either on the outbound or inbound leg of your journey. To be eligible, you’ll need to book a round-trip ticket with either cash or ConnectMiles.

Ethiopian Airlines

While not as extensive as other airlines’ stopover programs, Ethiopian Airlines offers a generous stopover policy for connecting flights in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (ADD).

For passengers with layovers of eight to 24 hours in Addis Ababa, you can qualify for a free one night stay in the Skylight Hotel—the largest hotel in the entire African continent—as well as free airport shuttles, meal vouchers and a free transit visa.

However, there’s nothing stopping you from skipping the complimentary transfer and instead getting picked up by a local guide for a whistle-stop tour of the city during your stopover (on your own dime).

To qualify for this stopover, you’ll need to be flying with Ethiopian Airlines on both legs of your journey. So if you’re planning to fly to Windhoek, Namibia, or to Johannesburg, adding a long connection in Addis Ababa is a great option.

Japan Airlines

Japan Airlines offers a generous stopover policy, covering the cost of domestic flights within Japan en route to your final destination. This means you can add multiple stopovers to your itinerary, allowing you to explore some of Japan’s major cities, such as Kyoto, Osaka, Tokyo and more.

However, keep in mind that a stopover fee of $100 applies for U.S. travelers if you spend more than 24 hours in your first stopover destination.

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer allows you to book stopovers of up to 30 days for no additional charge in miles.

You can add one stopover to round-trip Saver award tickets and two stopovers (one per direction) to roundtrip Advantage award tickets. One-way Saver award tickets aren’t eligible for free stopovers.

For Star Alliance partner award fares booked through KrisFlyer, you can add a maximum of one complimentary stopover per round trip.

Stopovers can’t be added to itineraries that take place entirely within the same country, between the U.S. and Canada or wholly within Europe.

Turkish Airlines

Turkish Airlines offers a generous stopover policy, allowing you to stay for one to three nights in Istanbul, depending on your class of ticket.

You’ll need to have booked an international round-trip flight with Turkish Airlines that connects through Istanbul on both the outbound and inbound legs, and that originates and terminates in the same country.

Passengers with an N or R fare class aren’t eligible for a free stopover.

For economy passengers traveling from the U.S., you can get up to two nights paid for in a four-star hotel in Istanbul. For business passengers traveling from the U.S., you can get up to three nights paid for in a five-star hotel or boutique hotel.

Simply enter your booking details on the Stopover in Istanbul website 72 hours or earlier before your flight departs.

Revenue Fare-Only Stopover Programs

Not all free stopover programs allow you to add stopovers to itineraries booked with points or miles. However, you can still get a ton of value and savings when booking cash fares.

Here’s an overview of airlines that offer free stopover programs on revenue fares only.

Etihad Airways

When you book a round-trip flight on Etihad Airways with a connection in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, you can get up to two nights free in a select range of hotels in Abu Dhabi.

Once you’ve booked your flight, simply head on over to the Abu Dhabi stopover website, enter your booking details and select the hotel you wish to book. You’ll then be issued a voucher to present at check-in, giving you two nights free of charge.

Iberia

You can add a free stopover in Madrid (MAD) when flying with Iberia through its Hola Madrid program.

Simply book an Iberia flight that connects through Madrid and you can stay for up to nine nights during your stopover. You can also take advantage of exclusive discounts on a range of services from shopping and dining to cultural events, making your stopover even more cost-effective.

You’ll also qualify for a free two-day public transportation card, making it easy to navigate your way around the city on the cheap.

Icelandair

Icelandair offers all its passengers a free stopover in Iceland when you connect through Keflavik (KEF) on an Icelandair flight.

You can stay for up to seven days at no additional cost, but hotel costs aren’t included. Simply select “Stopover in Iceland” when booking your ticket to add a free stopover to your itinerary.

Qatar Airways

If you’re flying with Qatar Airways and your transit in Doha, Qatar, is between 12 and 96 hours, you can qualify for discounted hotel packages through the Discover Qatar program.

Four-star hotel packages start at $14 per night while five-star hotel packages start at $24.

You can book a stopover through Doha by selecting the option at the time of booking.

TAP Air Portugal

TAP Air Portugal offers the ability to add a free stopover in Porto, Portugal, or Lisbon, Portugal, on cash tickets en route to your final destination.

You can stopover for up to 10 days and enjoy discounts at more than 150 TAP Air Portugal partners nationwide during your stay. You’ll also receive a 25% discount on any domestic flight within Portugal, encouraging you to explore the country further.

Simply begin by entering your trip details to check if your trip is eligible for a free stopover. From there, you can add a stopover on either the inbound or outbound flight and adjust its duration.

Make the Most of Stopovers: Turn Layovers Into Adventures

When planning vacations, we often search for nonstop flights to make our life easy. However, with a little bit of extra planning and know-how, you could score yourself a free stopover or two in new cities en route to your final destination without paying any extra flight costs. In some cases, the airline will even cover your hotel costs for a limited number of nights.

So, the next time you’re booking an award itinerary, consider choosing airlines that offer free stopovers, so you can travel to two cities for the price of one.