How to Make the Most of A Long Layover

Love exploring new cities? New countries?

Selecting flights with long layovers means getting a mini trip between flights. And it’s usually much cheaper than flying direct!

Long layovers break up your flight!

International flights = A LOT of sitting. If half way through you can get out and explore somewhere new- well that’s two birds with one stone!

My favorite scenario: Sleep on the first flight, get out an explore during a long layover, now that you’ve worn yourself out… sleep on the second flight all the way to your final destination!

Of course, you could always do some research on Sleeping in Airports to find the best lounges so you can relax in style and avoid the crowds and bad food airport. But depending on your destination, if you have over 6 hours you might want to see if you can go explore! Here’s how to make the most of a long layover.

You won’t want to drag your luggage around during your limited time to explore, so let’s go over your options!

3 luggage options during your layover:

How to Make the Most of Any Long Layover

1. Pack a light carry on and check the rest to your final destination!

I love to just have one small backpack with me as a carry on if possible. Then I have my money, passport, camera and few necessities for my day exploring. You definitely don’t want to have the hassle of bringing big luggage with you on your layover.

2. Offer to check your bag at the gate.

If you do have two pieces of luggage for carry on and your flight is relatively full, offer to have your larger bag checked for free!

While flying to Cape Town, I had two suitcases + my backpack. (I had packed a lot of camera equipment and clothing options for my first safari!) So when I arrived at my gate and they had announced it was a full flight, I offered to check my smaller rolling suitcase which they happily did- free of charge!

3. Airport Luggage Storage

If you have to collect your luggage between flights or are unable to check a second bag, all airports offer a place to safely store your luggage for a small fee while you are out. I have personally done this during long layovers in New York! It’s fast, easy and convenient. The last thing you want to do is drag luggage around the New York subway while you’re trying to enjoy your short visit! I recommend looking it up online ahead of time so you know exactly where in the airport the luggage storage is located. That way you don’t waste any time on your layover wandering around the airport!

So you’ve landed and ditched your luggage, now what?

Time to get out and start exploring!

Here are my 5 recommendations for any layover:

1. Hustle off the plane and REALLY hurry through the airport to passport control.

Lines can be long and if you are on a massive international flight, you don’t want to get stuck in line behind all those people. A longer time in line means less time for your already very short trip! And passport control can really be a time suck if you wind up at the back of the line.

2. Figure out ahead of time how you will travel from the airport

Frequently Uber is the most convenient, safest and cheapest. However when I was in Istanbul, I landed during rush hour. And traffic there is horrible. So to avoid it, I took the metro everywhere which was SUPER cheap and incredibly easy!!

A metro card made for the quickest and most convenient way to get around Istanbul for 10 hours!

3. See if there is a free walking tour available in the city you are visiting!

If you’re in Europe you can use the Rick Steve’s Audio Guides. Read my blog post about it here! But lots of cities host free daily tours.

4. Post on Couch Surfing ahead of time what day you will be there!

Watch and be amazed. There are so many people who are willing to meet up with you, give you free tours, show you the local favorite spots and guide you through a new city! For me personally, this has been incredible. Some of my most memorable travel experiences have come from doing this and it’s totally free. Make sure you read the reviews on whoever you decide to meet up with and preferably only meet with verified users. I also message back and forth on social media before agreeing to meet up to make sure it’s a good fit!

Read: ISTANBUL- HOW I USE COUCHSURFING TO MEET LOCALS

Exploring Istanbul with a local friend I met off Couch Surfing! She guided me all over Istanbul completely for free. We shared the most incredible day and have remained close afterwards!

5. Ask the locals.

If you’re unsure what to do or didn’t plan anything ahead of time, no worries! Just show up, head towards the city center and ask your Uber driver or restaurant server for a recommendation. Local people are often happy to share what makes their city great!

I did this in Egypt and wound up exploring a part of Cairo I had no idea existed- the church where the Holy Family sought asylum during King Herod’s persecution, absolutely fascinating!