Flight Stops & Saving $$$$

How many is too many? I booked my flight, non stop for $390 which is roundtrip, non stop, 3 and a half hours.

Could have went with another airline, for $225 but with 2 stops and an 11 hour day before arrival.

My question- how many stops/hours do most of you put up with to save some money, and how many stops/hours is too many, regardless of money saved?

 

I never fly connecting flights...I hate having to wait or change planes

Either non-stop or I don't go..

 

Non-stop for me. I don't want to waste any time with travel. I suppose if I was put into a bind where I had to pick certain dates and there was a huge difference in prices, it would be considered.

Not to be too nosey, but did you just book your flight recently. I am headed out there about the same time, and my flight was quite a bit cheaper. I think I paid $307 r/t.

 

I booked last week. I checked it one day and it was $315 then it went up $75 in one night and has since gone up to $490. I check it everyday, I buy the Expedia insurance, if it goes down significantly I will cancel and re-book

 

Non stop only. I just gave up and booked Delta for $400 a few days ago. I just wanted it booked and done with. I have considered Spirit, but kind of chickened out . And actually since booking, my flights have gone up to $424.

 

I'll do one stop usually. I never go Sun-Thurs so i'm always traveling at peak days (Wed nite/Thur - Sun) and nonstops that don't involve red eyes or insanely early flight times are expensive as hell.

 

Or, like in our case....all direct flights had already sold out
6 months in advance of our March Madness trip.
We had to get flights with one stop.

 

Nonstop or 1 stop with no plane change.

Did a connecting flight one time. Would only do again if there was a serious discount. (like 30%)

 

I prefer non-stop, but out of Buffalo, the only non-stop option is Southwest.
If you book any other airlines, it involves 1-2 stops.
I'll take a 1 stop thru Chicago if the times and prices are good. But I won't do multi-stops and I avoid going thru the NY-NJ-Philly connections, as an hr. flight eastbound just adds another hr. when you head back west.

 

We'll drive up to five hours if it means flying for $200 less per ticket, and even then it's almost always a one-stop just because of price. I have learned to make sure the one stop is at least on the way to Vegas, and not going further east (Newark) or south (Atlanta) and stretching the flight time out even longer. Besides, I actually kind of like airports once I'm past the security gates and being able to grab a scotch and soda at the bar.

 

Only non-stop. The two times I had stops years ago, both trips had major delays. The one benefit for me is there are plenty of options in the Chicago area.

 

Yours is a good question but ultimately there is no one answer......it depends on your priorities, convenience vs savings. Flying out of Manchester, NH used to always mean changing planes at least once. The alternative was Logan in Boston. No one I know likes driving there. If I were to do it by the time you figure your time, cost to park, gas, tolls etc, there is no savings of money or time. Eliminate tolls, gas, parking etc and take a shuttle, there is no savings of money or convenience really.

I was very inconvenienced two years in a row by United and I tried new to NH.....SOUTHWEST. I liked the planes, I liked the smaller airports, and loved the employees. Layovers were generally not long and they almost always left on time and arrived early. I tried a direct flight that made 2 stops byut you didn't have to change planes. The advantage for seating was nice but getting up to stretch is not at all like walking off the plane, getting your heart pumping and exercising. I vowed to go back to changing planes. Then, they introduced a non-stop. Great prices, great convenience; It left early in the am and arrived in LV around 10am. that makes yur 1st day in LV, a real day in LV! you get your luggage, check in, unpack, nap or enjoy a meal and see what's new. The afternoon return gave me the luxury of sleeping late, having a good breakfast and the ability to pack leisurely, no need to rush to the airport etc. Flight from LV eastbound is a lost day anyway.

This was nice while it lasted. When SWA opened in Boson, the number of flights dropped from NH, and the non-stop was curtailed to higher volume time in spring, and now, I think, is gone altogether. So given a choice, I prefer non-stop, but if there is a considerable difference in price or flight schedules that are more convenient, I would do 1 stop, changing planes. Pretty much, I would consider it on a case by case basis.

Jimbo338

 

Maximum one stop for your own sanity.

Last year I don't know what I was thinking, or was just not paying attention. My flight from home from Vegas to Ottawa had two stops with three hour layovers at each stop.

Oy....

 

One stop max. SW is my only nonstop option. Too old and tall for 5 hours straight in that cramped seat with little drink service and lines for the bathroom. It takes me 2 hours longer but I take the stop. Get up and stretch and arrive a bit more relaxed.

 

Usually nonstop but our last time was a 1 stop and we kind of enjoyed being able to get up and walk around. So this time we are trying another 1 stop.

It does add two hours to the plane ride but the times are better and its a $500 savings.

 

I will only make 1 stop each way at the most. Too many things can go wrong with you start making additional stops.

 

I'm the other extreme on this. While a non-stop is nice, I also enjoy airports and have no problem doing multiple stops when the price savings warrants it.
For example, on Wednesday, I'm flying out of Milwaukee to Salt Lake City via Seattle, where I have a 4-hour layover. That's almost a mini vacation in itself, as I'll have time to leave the airport and head downtown Seattle for awhile.
All told, the direct 3 hour, 15 flight time ends up being about 10 hours.

 

Sure, non stop is best.

One one change is not really that bad. Since our primary airline is Delta, we have to pretty much always go through a hub. Not a big deal for us.

 

If it means saving decent money ($75 -100), I'll accept 1 stop, but i dont want the layover to be more than 2 hours max(hopefully less).

 

That sounds like the perfect combination to me, vegas3!

jimbo338