How much more would you pay for a nonstop flight?
![[Post New]](/jforum/templates/default/images/icon_minipost_new.gif){kind=icon}
Anonymous
|
I don't think there really is a good rule of thumb here. I'd maybe draw the line at ~$400/ticket but some wiggle room depending on where & how long the transfer is, how important being "on time" is (wedding or major event?), if I have kids with and their age, etc....
I was just looking at a late summer one way flight to Paris and was looking at $350 for a 1 stope versus about $1200 for non stop (from west coast), but the first was a budget airline, so.... I just decided I'd look again later. |
Anonymous
|
I've been looking at Caribbean destinations and so many seem to have connections that are under 1 hour. That is just way too risk for me, especially in the current environment where there seem to be more delays and cancellations.
I'm so bummed that Southwest cut back it's day flights to Aruba to only 1-2x a week. And that American cut it's Bermuda nonstops and scaled back Nassau. We've been going to Florida much more just because it is so much more convenient. |
Anonymous
Same. I’d pay that difference to avoid an overnight or long layover but if it’s just a quick switch with time to make the next flight, save the money and deal with the layover IMO. |
Anonymous
DP here, not in my experience. The only issues I have there are afternoon thunderstorms in the summer. Same with FL. |
Anonymous
As someone who flies through Charlotte constantly, I couldn't disagree more. Charlotte is one of the few airports where even if your connection is on the opposite side of the airport, you can actually make it if you simply bust a move. No trams or shuttles to wait for, you can rely on your two feet and nothing more. Familiarity obviously helps so study the map ahead of time if you need to. |
Anonymous
I also have generally good luck in Charlotte. |
Anonymous
Agree. I like to save money (I'm cheap). I'd take the non-stop if it's less than $100 difference per person, or if the layover is excessive. |
Anonymous
| I get airsick so I only do layovers if that is the only way I can get to my destination. |
Anonymous
|
When traveling with kids, I typically pay more for nonstop.
I don’t view a very short layover as necessarily a good thing. I have missed flights that way. |
Anonymous
| I love traveling. I rarely pay more for non-stop. I’d rather another vacation. |
Anonymous
| I recently faced a similar choice and picked the more expensive non-stop, because the difference in price got down to about $600 after taking into account bag and seat fees, and the budget airline was Spirit vs United. The difference in time is also about 4 hours each way. |
Anonymous
|
I have 3 kids and almost always pay for non-stop. I usually have enough miles to not pay for airfare, though.
But, if I do pay out of pocket, I would opt for the connection if there were a $1,000 difference between connecting and nonstop flights. That'd be $5K savings for my overall travel budget and I'd likely take it. If it were $500 or less, I'd just opt for the nonstop. |
Anonymous
Another Charlotte fan. Its a small and hassle free airport for a layover. For going to a small regional airport in FL, I can connect in Atl or Charlotte. A tight connection is always fine in Charlotte, and super stressful in massive Atl. A 50 minute connection in Charlotte? Fine, even with a kid in tow. |
Anonymous
|
I look for non-stop of course but it's usually much more expensive! I think some of you travel very infrequently or have very high budgets that allow for you to really decide between spending $1,200 extra on a flight vs having a connection. My budget simply does NOT allow for that.
I'm booking my flights as far out as I possibly can for as cheap as I can. The things that will make or break a flight for me are as such: how MANY connections will there be? If there's more than 1 connection, that's a no. I usually can find tickets for the same with just 1 connection. WHERE is the connection....is it in a huge airport where I need to go through customs and it's only an hour layover? No. If it's in a tiny airport that won't be problematic, sure! I also look at what's included in the flight: (I'm often flying transatlantic so for me the big questions are if I can have a carry-on + personal item, meals included, and entertainment). If I have to pay for my carry-on for EVERYONE, my food, and there's no entertainment....it better be an INCREDIBLE deal or I'm not taking it. Ex: Currently can choose between Icelandair or Playairlines.....cost is the same if you include even just 2/4 persons bringing a carry-on but really a worse deal with play because the kids won't get any food or entertainment and no one gets any drinks....soo big difference to me. I'll make sacrifices but I have limits. Another limit is, if I'm traveling in winter AND with my kids....we have to have at least a person item+ carry-on. I pack light but not THAT light. Besides those things, I'm pretty flexible! I want to travel as MUCH as I can: winter break, spring break, summer break with my family of 4 and go to incredible places with a total max budget of 12k....so choices have to be made! |
Anonymous
The other piece is....sometimes if a layover is REQUIRED for the flight deal, you can manage to get a LONG layover in a small city that is easy to navigate and have a bonus city. We did that recently and it was WONDEFUL!! Not only did we save roughly 1k AFTER all expenses in our mini stopover but it was one of our best parts of our trip! It would have cost us $1,750 more out of pocket for non-stop flights AND we wouldn't have had ANY of those experiences. We weren't originally to visit this city at ALL but now we LOVE it and are 100% going back. It was a huge bonus to me and I will never not go for these awesome layovers/stopovers....explore more! |