How Layfare works

1. We find the cities on your way

We start from your direct route and look at >80 well-connected cities. A city qualifies if flying through it adds only a little distance (roughly 20–30% on long trips, more on short ones, with extra allowance for cities with airline stopover programs).

2. We price two flights and compare them with one

For each city we look up the cheapest recent fare for your home → city flight and city → destination flight, timed so you get the number of nights you asked for and still arrive when you need to. We compare that with the cheapest direct trip on the same dates, then add the hotel.

Stopover cost = (flight 1 + flight 2) − direct flight + hotel nights. A negative number means the stopover saves you money even after paying for the hotel.

Where prices come from

• Flights: the cheapest fares that travellers found recently on Aviasales, usually within the past 2–7 days. They are a strong guide, not a quote: always check the price on the booking page.
• Hotels: our typical nightly rate for a well-reviewed, central 3–4★ hotel in each city, adjusted for budget or upscale. Real prices vary by season and events.
• Airline programs: reviewed by hand. Terms change often, so we link to each airline's own page.

Separate tickets

Our prices assume two separate one-way tickets. If the first flight is late, the second airline doesn't have to rebook you, but with a night or more in between the risk is small. Airline stopover programs let you book the whole trip as one ticket instead.

Work trips

With "Work trip" on, we show what your company would pay to fly you direct and what the stopover adds for you. Many companies accept this if they pay no more than the direct fare, but policies differ, and some require booking through a corporate travel tool. Check yours first.

How we make money

Some links to flights, hotels, activities and eSIMs are affiliate links. If you book, the travel company pays us a commission; your price is the same. We rank results only by what the stopover costs you. We never take payment to rank a city or airline higher.