TikTok has just discovered ‘skiplagging’ - the travel hack that saves you hundreds

75 per cent of travellers are influenced by social media, so you can only imagine how annoyed airlines are that 'skiplagging' has gone viral, as it's saving passengers hundreds on their holidays.

While it's by no means a new term, 'skiplagging' has blown up on TikTok recently thanks to the Passport Please podcast. The concept is simple, but requires a bit more effort than your average holiday booking.

If you're heading long-haul, it's expensive to fly direct, right? But then again, you also don't want the hassle of having layovers in other countries when you could be lounging on a beach.

Let us introduce you to skiplagging, where your holiday is the layover.

For example, if you're flying to somewhere super popular like New York, a typical ticket from London could cost upwards of £500.

However, you can fly to less popular destinations like Chicago for less, where New York is simply the layover destination - and well, get off the plane and don't get on your connecting flight.

"The layover city is usually cheaper to fly to when booked as part of a longer route", suggests podcast host, Chelsea Dickenson.

However, it of course has a couple of drawbacks you should be aware of before booking.

Those who have tried it have advised booking a 'skiplag' journey as a return flight, as if airlines notice that you haven't showed up for your connecting flight, they could cancel your flight home.

You should also be wary of taking checked baggage, because it's never ideal when you're frolicking in Times Square, and your luggage is somewhere around the John Hancock Center.

Dickenson even warned of instances where airlines had cottoned on to passengers using the hack, and blacklisted them from further bookings.

But, if you're someone who travels frequently and is looking to save a pretty penny, it could be a good one to explore.

"If airlines hate skiplagging, then they shouldn’t rip people off for the direct flight", one person wrote in the comments.

"If you've paid for the seat who cares if you're actually on the flight or not", another added.

"In Canada it is cheaper to book a ticket from Vancouver to Ireland is $650 with layover in Toronto, than just flying to Toronto which is almost $1000", another shared.

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