you 'get off' a plane trip part way?

[Cogcog]

Not in an 'open the door and parachute' way but at a stop over airport?

I am pricing up flights for a series of trips and the cheapest/quickest way is not to board my return long haul connection in Amserdam, but to catch a flight onto my next place of work.

Is it just a matter iof telling the airline on book-in so the luggage is off loaded at the connecting airport?

[Cupramax]

Not really sure what your getting at here, if you want to get off half way, you need to book the flight to where you want to get off, not your eventual destination, or am I reading what you've said totally wrong???

[sinizter]

That's not going to work if you like having your luggage in the same place as you (unless this is a full on stop over where you get out, collect your baggage and haul it around with you until you go to check in for the next one).

[mrmr96]

sinizter said:

That's not going to work if you like having your luggage in the same place as you (unless this is a full on stop over where you get out, collect your baggage and haul it around with you until you go to check in for the next one).

Some connecting flights do require you to transfer your own luggage, even if it's just a 2 hr wait for the connection (rather than over night).

I think there may be a problem with the airlines allowing this. Here's why:

Recently I found out that channel tunnel crossings vary in price depending on the number of days between the crossings. To the point where going over and returning after 2 weeks would cost more than double a day return fare. So you could in theory book a day return (not using the home bound portion) followed by another day return 14 days later (and use only the homebound portion). But for some reason they don't like you doing this. Not sure what if anything is/can be doen about it, but it's something to bear in mind.

I think the same may apply to train tickets, if you get off where you're no supposed to.

[sinizter]

mrmr96 said:

Some connecting flights do require you to transfer your own luggage, even if it's just a 2 hr wait for the connection (rather than over night).

It would work in these cases. I personally, have not had one of these in the last decade.

[willmcc]

the airlines are never happy about this, technically getting off your flight half way through is classed as a change of itinerary, this will be repriced as such which will in all likelihood be much more expensive. KLM charge much more for flights to Amsterdam since it is their home base and they are the dominant carrier.
So if you tell them they will charge you for a last minute change.
If you don't your baggage will still be offloaded since this is a hub and in all likelihood you will change aircraft, but it could take hours for you to get it back if you were not due to disembark, the airline has no incentive to help you since you are breaking your terms of contract and your bag will have to be offloaded from which ever aircraft it was due to go to, you will not be a popular chap.
This is why, as mentioned, you cannot buy two cheap returns to change into one, they will simply cancel the unused pats of each if you fail to turn up for the flight, meaning your original return is cancelled and your entire second ticket when you fail to appear for your trips.

[Cogcog]

So If I can travel with just cabin baggage that could work?

I am flying Birmingham to Dubai, then to Geneva and then Paris and back to Birmingham. The cheapest way is to fly Air France to Dubai, and then get off when it lands for the connection in Paris as there is a long delay in the connection and get a return to Geneva and a single to Birmingham with a cheapo airline.

[sinizter]

Cogcog said:

So If I can travel with just cabin baggage that could work?

I am flying Birmingham to Dubai, then to Geneva and then Paris and back to Birmingham. The cheapest way is to fly Air France to Dubai, and then get off when it lands for the connection in Paris as there is a long delay in the connection and get a return to Geneva and a single to Birmingham with a cheapo airline.

Is the stop-over in Paris one when you disembark ? There are some stopovers for upto 2 hours, when they do not disembark.

[LooneyTunes]

Cogcog said:

So If I can travel with just cabin baggage that could work?

I am flying Birmingham to Dubai, then to Geneva and then Paris and back to Birmingham. The cheapest way is to fly Air France to Dubai, and then get off when it lands for the connection in Paris as there is a long delay in the connection and get a return to Geneva and a single to Birmingham with a cheapo airline.

Won't your name be all over the tannoy system whilst they try to track down the passenger who checked in but didn't make it to the gate... can't imagine it would make you popular with them?

[Cogcog]

LooneyTunes said:

Won't your name be all over the tannoy system whilst they try to track down the passenger who checked in but didn't make it to the gate... can't imagine it would make you popular with them?

Do you have to check back in? I assume they hold you in an air side area, but I agreethat they will be expectying me to baord but I wouldn't just bugger off, I would tell them. just tried getting a return from OParis and then a return from Paris to the UK: fares make no sense as it is cheaper to buy a return than a one way.

[Super Slo Mo]

Cogcog said:

Do you have to check back in? I assume they hold you in an air side area, but I agreethat they will be expectying me to baord but I wouldn't just bugger off, I would tell them. just tried getting a return from OParis and then a return from Paris to the UK: fares make no sense as it is cheaper to buy a return than a one way.

Usually you get both boarding passes when you check in for the first leg of your flight. Generally nowadays you have to go back through security to get to the next leg of your flight, you don't get held airside, unless you're getting back on the same plane, which is unlikely as it's not a refuelling stop (unlike, say going to Oz/NZ).
Your connecting flight might be in a different terminal anyway, if it'd CDG, it's a bit of a trek between terminals (it's a short train ride).
If you tell them when you first check in, it's going to cause a bit of trouble, and you'll probably be charged. If you just walk away in Paris, there's not much they can do, although you won't be popular, as you'll hold up the onward flight. You could go to the Airline desk in Paris and tell them you won't be on the flight. I've no idea what will happen, there's one way to find out I guess.

[Cogcog]

I have spoken with Airfrance and you can break a journey for up to 24 hours without a charge and that is simply seen as a 'connection'. Over 24 hours and it is a stop over where a charge applies.

They calculated the cost of BHX-DBX-CGD-GVA-CDG-BHX on one ticket at £775 (which is about £100 more than buying separate tickets.

So yes yo can get off but if it for over 24 hours it will cost you £100 which sounds reasonable to me?

[shirt]

so you can still use the CDG-BHX flight after geneva? sounds reasonable as i'd be surprised if you can get a one way from paris for significantly less.

if you travel often, it may be worth booking via an agent. they seem to be able to do stuff [long stopovers, itinerary changes] that i don't have visibility of , more often than not for free.

[GCH]

I fly pretty much constantly. I have done this literally hundreds of times - 'missed' connections or return flights (to get around high one way prices) - all with no problems.

I ONLY ever travel with carry on though which is how i'm able to do this.. I wouldn't suggest you even attempt this with checked luggage as it will end in tears.

If you MUST have luggage checked, the best way to do this is to book the connection from different airports (for example- XXX-LHR/LGW-XXX or XXX-CDG/ORY-XXX ) as the airline wont through check bags/transfer them between airports so you will have to pick them up and then 'miss' your other flight.

Regarding being checked in and them paging you, as long as you dont have bags on it, they wont delay or hold it- they will just go without you. You dont need to tell them (as they may reprice it & charge you), just don't show up.

Make a habit of this though and they may well notice and may pursue you for difference in fare (usually via frequent flier accounts) - but this is very unlikely to happen unless you are doing this on a very regular basis.
Personally i've never had any problems whatsoever

[BigBen]

Using a 24 hour stopover to do this should be fine, but is technically against the rules of most tickets. The key phrase iirc is 'higher intermediate point' e.g. the point in which you break your journey would otherwise have cost more.

[halfpenny43]

Use the 24 hour stop over or the suggestion from GCH above.

I did this recently at Schiphol. I had a meeting in the UK which I flew to with no intention of using the return portion and then booked a return from the UK to Barcelona via Amsterdam with the intention of getting off in Amsterdam where I live. My company booked all the tickets.

Check-in lady in Barcelona refused to check my bag in only to Amsterdam as the destination on my ticket was the UK so she said she had to check it in to the destination.
When I got to Amsterdam it cost me EUR275 to get my bag back.