Airlines may not be fans of “skiplagging,” but travelers who use it to save money on flights certainly are.
The practice involves purchasing a connecting flight, with no intention of taking a second leg of the journey. Flyers do this when they find a connecting flight — one that stops at their intended destination — that is cheaper than flying direct.
Skiplagged.com, a website that helps travelers find these flights, said its customers saved an average of $180, which totaled $54 million last year alone.
But there are risks. Skiplogging or “hidden city ticketing” is prohibited by most airlines.
Prohibited booking practice under “Purchasing tickets without intending to fly all flights to obtain lower fares”. American Airlines Conditions of Carriage. Violators may have their tickets cancelled, prevented from flying or the airline “will not refund an otherwise refundable ticket,” it said.
Aktarer Zaman, Founder of Skiplagged.com.
Source: Aktarer Jama
However, the company’s founder, Aktarer Zaman, said he doesn’t believe that skiplagging will get a flyer banned for life from the airline.
“In our 11 years of existence, I have never heard of anyone being banned for skipplagging. Anything you read online about someone being banned is just a rumour,” Zaman said.
Why long-haul flights can be cheap
Zaman explained why flights are cheaper than some connecting – and longer – direct flights. For example, flying from London to Boston with a stopover in New York is cheaper than flying directly to New York, he said.
London to New York is a more popular route so it has higher prices, he said, creating deals that Skiplagged finds.
I recommend people not to abuse it.
Aktarer Zaman
Founder of Skiplagged.com
But Zaman said his website isn’t the only way to find “hidden city” deals. Some travelers find these flights through travel agents or spend hours searching for flights on their own.
About 300,000 customers have booked flights through their website in the past year, Zaman said. This success puts it in the crosshairs of major airlines, he said.
Three lawsuits
American Airlines sued the company in August 2023, but voluntarily dropped the unfair competition claim before the lawsuit went to trial, Zaman said. In October 2024, American Airlines was ordered to pay $9.4 million for copyright infringement for SkipLagged’s unauthorized use of the American Airlines logo on its website.
Zaman called it a win for his company.
“This is a big victory for us (as it proves) that we are free to show the opportunities of skipplagging,” Zaman said. “This will probably prevent every other airline from challenging us. We have now established the foundation to move forward.”
Skiplagged has previously been sued by United Airlines and Southwest Airlines. Zaman said those lawsuits were either dismissed or settled out of court. That’s three lawsuits from nearly 800 airlines listed on the Skiplagged platform, he said.
Zaman added that during the trial, evidence showed that American Airlines did not have a no-fly list to skimp on customers.
A clear guide on skiplogging
After the American Airlines trial ended, SkipLagged apparently released Guidance Zaman’s key message to fliers – on how to skipplog safely – is: do it in moderation and switch up the carriers you fly with.
“I recommend that people don’t abuse it. Be grateful that you saved some money, but don’t try to do it constantly,” he said.
Aktarer Zaman compared skipplogging to buying a value meal at Burger King. “You need some things in it, not all of them, but it’s still cheaper than buying all the pieces individually.”
Source: Aktarer Zaman
According to company figures, more than 340 Skiplagged.com customers had to pay higher fares for direct travel in the past year.
Airlines can revoke a passenger’s frequent flyer points, so SkipLagged advises people not to associate their frequent flyer account with their booking.
On top of that, Zaman said Skiplagged.com will only book one-way tickets, to avoid customers canceling their return journey after they fail to complete their outbound flight.
Skiplagged recommends traveling with your passport for international flights, even if your intended departure is in your home country. Zaman said this has been a problem for 198 skipflagged customers in the past 12 months.
The same applies to visas. In the last 12 months, 22 Skiplagged.com customers have been tripped up by failing to produce a visa for their flight.
Finally, the website advises passengers to fly with a small bag that fits under their seat. Checked bags are sent to the final destination on a ticket, affecting 67 skipflagged customers in the past year, according to company data.
However, these types of issues affect only 0.3% of skipflagged customers, Zaman said.
Skiplagged data comes from users reporting problems to the company.
“It’s more likely that they don’t report any issues they encounter to us — people with travel issues complain at a higher rate,” a company representative told CNBC Travel. “Even if you assume that 50% of those experiencing the problem don’t report it, that drops the success rate from 99.7% to 99.4%.”
‘does this make sense’
About Zaman, he said he doesn’t “skiplag” very often. But he said the reason was his name was blacklisted by the airlines.
“I’ve done it on several occasions and it’s just a matter of whether it makes sense,” he said. “Each person has to evaluate that on their own. These days, I can’t travel as lightly as I used to, so it doesn’t make sense for me to do that going forward.”
Despite the $9.4 million damage award to American Airlines, which represents a large portion of the website’s $20 million annual revenue, Zaman remains committed to helping travelers save money, he said.
“Even though we face challenges with this loss, I’m motivated to win because I know we’re doing well here. One thing that keeps me going is hearing about the impact Skiplagged has on people’s lives — like… helping people with long-distance relationships,” Zaman said.
“It’s not just American Airlines vs. Skiplagged,” he said. “It’s American Airlines vs. skipflagged and real people.”
