How to Book a Multi-City Flight

The Short Answer

Go to Google Flights, click "Multi-city" instead of "Round trip," enter your destinations and dates, and search. It's that simple. But there are tricks that can save you hundreds of dollars, and most people miss them.

What Is a Multi-City Flight?

A multi-city flight is a single booking with multiple flight segments to different destinations. Instead of flying New York to London and back, you might fly New York to London, London to Rome, and Rome back to New York. One itinerary. One confirmation number.

This is different from booking three separate one-way tickets. With a multi-city booking, the airline prices all legs together, which usually works out cheaper. If something goes wrong with one leg, the airline is responsible for getting you to your next destination since it's all on one ticket.

Multi-City vs. Open-Jaw: What's the Difference?

An open-jaw flight is actually a type of multi-city flight. You fly into one city and out of another, with a gap in between that you fill yourself by train, car, or bus.

Example: Fly Chicago to Paris, travel overland through Europe, then fly Rome to Chicago. That's an open-jaw itinerary. The "jaw" is the gap between Paris and Rome that you handle on your own.

All open-jaw flights are multi-city flights, but not all multi-city flights are open-jaw. If you're planning a road trip or train journey between cities, open-jaw is your best friend.

How to Book on Google Flights

Google Flights is the best starting point for multi-city searches. Here's how:

• Go to google.com/flights
• Click the dropdown that says "Round trip" and select "Multi-city"
• Enter your first departure city and destination, plus the date
• Click "Add flight" to add each additional leg
• You can add up to seven segments
• Hit search and compare results

Google Flights shows you prices across multiple airlines and lets you mix carriers. It'll also highlight whether a different date would be significantly cheaper.

How to Book on Airline Websites

Every major airline offers multi-city booking directly on their website. Look for the "Multi-city" option near the search bar, right next to "Round trip" and "One way."

Booking directly with an airline makes sense when:

• You want to earn frequent flyer miles on every segment
• You're using miles or points to book
• The airline offers a stopover program (more on this below)
• You want one airline handling all your connections

Airlines like Icelandair, TAP Air Portugal, and Qatar Airways let you add free or cheap stopovers of up to seven days at their hub cities. That's essentially a free mini-vacation built into your routing.

How to Book on Third-Party Sites

Sites like Kayak, Skyscanner, and Booking.com all offer multi-city search. Kayak lets you enter up to six legs. Skyscanner's interface is clean and handles complex itineraries well.

The advantage of third-party sites is that they'll combine different airlines for different legs. You might fly Delta from New York to London, then Ryanair from London to Barcelona, then Iberia from Barcelona back to New York. A single airline wouldn't offer that combination.

The downside: if one flight is delayed and you miss the next leg, each airline only cares about their own segment. You're on your own for the rebooking.

7 Tips to Save Money on Multi-City Flights

1. Be Flexible With Dates

Even shifting one leg by a day or two can drop the total price dramatically. Mid-week flights (Tuesday through Thursday) are almost always cheaper than weekends. Use Google Flights' date grid to spot the cheapest options.

2. Search Multiple Nearby Airports

Flying into one airport and out of another in the same region can unlock better prices. Instead of London Heathrow both ways, try arriving at Gatwick and departing from Heathrow. Or search all New York area airports instead of just JFK.

3. Compare Multi-City vs. Separate One-Ways

Here's a secret most people don't know: sometimes booking separate one-way tickets is actually cheaper than a multi-city itinerary, especially for short-haul flights within a region. Always compare both options before committing.

For long-haul international flights, multi-city bookings almost always win. For domestic hops or budget airline routes, separate one-ways might be better.

4. Use Stopover Programs

Several airlines let you stop in their hub city for days or even a week at no extra cost. Icelandair's free stopover in Reykjavik is the most famous. TAP Air Portugal offers stopovers in Lisbon and Porto. Turkish Airlines has a free Istanbul stopover program with hotel included. These turn a layover into a destination.

5. Book the Longest Leg First

Start by pricing your longest or most expensive flight, then build the other legs around it. The transoceanic segment drives most of the cost, and the shorter legs are usually more flexible on dates.

6. Mix Airlines Strategically

Use a major carrier for the long-haul legs where you want comfort, reliability, and baggage included. Then use budget carriers for the shorter hops between cities where you just need to get from A to B.

7. Check Award Availability

Multi-city award bookings can be incredible deals, especially through programs that allow stopovers on award tickets. Some programs let you visit two or three cities for the same number of miles as a simple round trip.

When NOT to Book Multi-City

Multi-city bookings aren't always the best option. Skip them when:

• Budget airlines dominate your route. Ryanair, EasyJet, and similar carriers sell cheap one-ways. Booking them separately is usually cheaper.
• Your plans might change. Changing one leg of a multi-city booking can affect the pricing of all legs. Separate tickets give you more flexibility.
• You're mixing domestic and international. Sometimes a round-trip international ticket plus a separate domestic one-way costs less than a multi-city itinerary.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Not finalizing your plans first. Multi-city bookings are consecutive. If you miss or need to change one flight, it can throw off your entire itinerary. Know your dates and cities before you book.

Ignoring baggage policies. If your multi-city itinerary mixes airlines, each airline has its own baggage rules. You might get free checked bags on one leg and pay $35 on another.

Forgetting visa requirements. Hopping between countries means you might need visas for each stop. A layover in a third country could require a transit visa too. Check before you book.

Not leaving enough time between cities. Don't schedule a flight out of Rome at 7 AM the day after you arrive. Give yourself buffer days, especially when switching cities.

Step-by-Step: Booking Your First Multi-City Trip

• Step 1: List all the cities you want to visit and rough dates
• Step 2: Search on Google Flights using the multi-city option
• Step 3: Check if an open-jaw route (skipping one flight and taking a train) saves money
• Step 4: Compare the multi-city price against separate one-way tickets
• Step 5: Check stopover programs if your routing passes through an airline hub
• Step 6: Book directly with the airline if using one carrier, or through a third-party site if mixing carriers
• Step 7: Verify baggage allowances and visa requirements for each leg