Can I just not take my connecting flight?

Skipping a connecting flight is generally not illegal, but it can have consequences. Airlines have rules that require passengers to follow the entire itinerary they've booked. If you skip a connecting flight, your remaining flights might be canceled, and you might not be eligible for a refund.



You can technically choose to skip your connecting flight—a practice known as "Skiplagging" or Hidden City Ticketing—but it comes with high-fidelity risks and penalties in 2026. Airlines strictly prohibit this in their "Contract of Carriage" because their pricing models are based on origin-destination pairs rather than the distance flown. If you skip the final leg of your journey, the airline will almost certainly cancel all remaining flights on that itinerary, including your return trip. Furthermore, if you are a frequent flyer member, the airline may freeze your account, strip you of your elite status, or even ban you from the airline entirely if they detect a pattern of this behavior. You also cannot check baggage, as it will be tagged to the final destination, not your layover city. While not "illegal" in a criminal sense, it is a high-fidelity violation of your agreement with the carrier, and they reserve the right to bill you for the "High-Fidelity" price difference between the flight you took and the one you actually booked.

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If you choose to miss your connection, let the airline know, as they will otherwise label you as a no-show and may cancel the rest of your itinerary.

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Is skiplagging illegal? No, but it's against most airlines' contracts of carriage or the rules people must follow to fly with the airline. American Airlines and Southwest Airlines both put skiplagging first on their lists of prohibited booking practices.

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It's not illegal but it does come with two problems: Most airlines will cancel your return ticket if you miss a portion of your itinerary. So if you intentionally skip your connection, you may find yourself without a flight home. Airlines can, and do, blacklist customers from booking tickets with them.

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Technically, no, skiplagging isn't illegal. You're not breaking any laws by doing it. You won't get arrested or face legal action from authorities for using this strategy. But, most airlines ban the practice in their terms and conditions, which everyone agrees to when they purchase a ticket.

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She continued: “While a one-off occurrence could go unnoticed, any travelers that are repeat offenders run the risk of being flagged in the airline's system and potentially banned from flying with the airline in the future.”

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The practice goes by a few different names, including skiplagging or hidden-city flying. Passengers disembark at their layover city, leaving an empty seat on their next flight, and save money in the process. But airlines are cracking down on the practice, claiming it breaches their rules and costs them revenue.

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Throwaway ticketing is purchasing a ticket with the intent to use only a portion of the included travel. This situation may arise when a passenger wants to travel only one way, but where the discounted round-trip excursion fare is cheaper than a one-way ticket.

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“Hidden city ticketing,” or booking a flight with the intention of getting off at the layover city rather than the final destination, is perfectly legal, but there are some factors to consider before making it a habit.

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What happens if you don't take one leg of a flight? Usually their software catches it, and the rest of your ticket is cancelled automatically denying you the usage of the remaining flights to that destination.

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Can I go outside the airport on a connecting flight? You can if you have time but you'll have to go through all the security checks when you re-enter. It's usually not worth the time and effort and you might even miss your flight if you miscalculate the time it takes to get back through security.

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Skiplagging, also referred to as “hidden-city” or “throwaway” ticketing, is the practice of booking a less-expensive flight option with a layover city without planning to fly the entire route. Instead, the stopover is the traveller's intended destination.

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Limit interaction with the airline's employees
He said passengers planning to use hidden city tickets should avoid in-person check-in and use online or mobile check-in instead. To avoid arousing suspicion when skiplagging, fly under the radar and avoid speaking to airline staff unless necessary.

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You may not want to book a connecting flight with a short layover, as it could result in you missing the event that you're traveling for altogether,” he says. But, if the stakes are low, you can go ahead and risk the shorter time frame.

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But truth be told, we're the exception to the rule. While there are many pilot and flight attendant couples, and many flight attendants married or committed to other flight attendants, and many pilots with the same connections with other pilots, several factors have made those connections less likely.

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It's highly unlikely you'd face any repercussions if you do it once, but if you make it a habit or the airline sees an egregious pattern of hidden city ticketing, there could penalties from the airline, like losing your frequent flyer points.

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That's the practice of booking a less-expensive flight option without planning to fly the entire itinerary. Instead, you bail at a connecting airport rather than continuing to your final destination. Although some travelers have been booking these types of tickets for decades, Skiplagged took the idea mainstream.

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Skiplagging, also known as hidden city ticketing, is when an air traveler buys a ticket for a flight with a layover before the final destination and departs at the layover airport. A travel website called Skiplagged.com allows people to find and book tickets for flights with hidden city ticketing.

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In its lawsuit, the airline alleges that Skiplagged deceives its customers by implying it has the authority to issue a valid airline ticket. “It cannot. Every 'ticket' issued by Skiplagged is at risk of being invalidated.”

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The fact that you didn't ask to get on the next flight to the ticketed final destination, or change your ticket to reflect what you actually flew is the proof. That said, a one-off isn't going to get you in trouble, but doing it every week will.

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What happens to your ticket if you skip a flight on an itinerary. As soon as you skip a segment on a flight itinerary, the remainder of your ticket will be invalid. At least that's how it's supposed to work across the board.

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