Stopover
What is Stopover?
A stopover is a deliberate and extended break in a journey at an intermediate point — distinct from a layover, which is simply transit required to catch a connecting flight. While a layover is incidental, a stopover is intentional: you choose to leave the airport, spend time in the intermediate city, and continue your journey later — often days later.
Many airlines permit or actively promote stopovers on long-haul tickets at no additional fare cost, treating the intermediate city as a featured destination. Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways, and Turkish Airlines have built marketing around making their hub cities desirable stopover destinations. Aviation rules typically define a stopover as a pause of more than 24 hours on an international journey.
Example of Stopover
On her way from London to Bangkok, Priya deliberately booked a routing through Singapore with a 48-hour stopover. Singapore Airlines allowed it at no extra cost. She checked into a hotel in Chinatown, spent one day eating through hawker centres and one exploring Gardens by the Bay, then continued to Bangkok refreshed rather than exhausted. The "stopover" added two days to her trip for roughly the price of two hotel nights.