TIPS
Save on Flights with Back-to-Back Ticketing
January 16, 2025
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What is the back-to-back ticketing strategy?
Back-to-back ticketing is a common way of saving on two identical roundtrips. Instead of booking the trips sequentially, you book one departing from the destination city:
Sequential tickets
| Tickets | Trip 1 | Trip 2 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $500 | A → B | B → A | ||||||
| $600 | A → B | B → A |
Total: $1,100
Back-to-back tickets
| Tickets | Trip 1 | Trip 2 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $300 | A → B | B → A | ||||||
| $500 | B → A | A → B |
Total: $800
This approach often helps you save by bypassing pricing rules that restrict access to certain lower fare classes. Short trips under seven days or those without a Saturday night typically come with higher fares.
How to find back-to-back flights
You can search for back-to-back flights using any flight search engine. Instead of searching for each roundtrip separately, follow the pattern described above: your first ticket should include the return flight for the subsequent trip, and your second ticket should be a flight from your destination back home, followed by a return to the destination city on the departure date of your second trip.
Once we support multicity search (working hard on it!), Airglitch will make sure to show you back-to-back options when pricing consecutive roundtrips. However, you can already find inspiration for back-to-back flights when a spare return deal is available for your search.
For example, this expensive flight from Frankfort to Zurich costs $743 as a regular ticket:
But we might get the same price (or cheaper) combining two spare return tickets together, in which case you will see it as an option in search results:
From there, you can adjust the dates to try make the spare journeys work for another trip. If the price is advantageous enough, you just found a way to save with back-to-back ticketing.
Why back-to-back flights can be cheaper
The main reason back-to-back tickets tend to be cheaper is due to fare rules around minimum stay requirements. Airlines charge more for short trips, and often use the presence of a Saturday night within your stay to segment fares. With back-to-back tickets, you are extending your stay on at least one of two trips, and you are more likely to have Saturday nights included in your itinerary - especially for weekday trips.
Can I get in trouble for booking a back-to-back flight?
Virtually not. Unlike layover exit or spare return tickets (which are generally fine), here you’re completing all segments of your journey. Additionally, booking tickets with different airlines makes it nearly impossible for them to track. While the practice is legal, some carriers include terms and conditions against bypassing minimum stay requirements. However, enforcement is uncommon, and you would need to do it frequently with the same airline to draw attention.
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Last update on January 16, 2025
