What you need to know about skiplagging - a semi-legal life hack that will help you save on plane tickets

How to save money on a flight to a small city? You can take an inexpensive ticket with a transfer, but do not fly to the end, but stay at the intermediate point where you needed to. It can be significantly cheaper than buying a ticket directly to this point on the map, reports Readers Digest.

Photo: IStock

This tricky life hack is called "skipping".

skipplugging - from the English skiplagging (skipping the last flight segment on flights with transfers) has become a popular way to save money on air travel in recent years.

It allows travelers to make significant savings on their flight to any destination they choose, even if it means they don't complete the journey on their ticket.

How it works

Instead of booking a direct flight to a specific location, a skipplugger will book a cheaper flight to a larger city or hub, with a stopover at the destination it really needs to get to. So, for example, instead of flying directly from Denver to Nashville, a traveler can book a ticket from Denver to New York with a layover in Nashville. And instead of completing the original itinerary, the traveler will simply stay in Nashville.

On the subject: Frontier is selling an unlimited half-flight pass for just $299

So why do these flights end up being cheaper? Given that larger airports tend to function as "hubs" for airlines, such as JFK in New York or O'Hare in Chicago, prices for these major destinations are likely to be lower. This is due to the competitive nature of the market - airlines want to offer the best prices on major destinations, so these flights are often cheaper.

However, in some cases, this can mean stopping in smaller towns to get to larger destinations, and this is where skipplugging comes in. But the process doesn't always work as smoothly as some travelers might think.

Why skipplugging is controversial

While skipplugging can be beneficial for travelers looking to save some money, there are certain dilemmas that a traveler can face. For example, a skipplugger will not be able to check in a suitcase because the luggage will fly to the final destination, not to the city of the intermediate stop.

Second, if you don't take that flight to your final destination, that means the airline will have an empty seat that could be filled. This is frustrating for the airline, especially if they have a large reserve list of customers for this flight.

Flight plans also change regularly due to bad weather and many other factors. If you're booking a flight with a stopover in one city, but your final destination changes, your entire trip won't make sense.

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Top Tip: When planning a skip-plug, make sure you don't book round-trip flights. When you miss even one leg of the round-trip route, the airline cancels the rest of the trip.

Finally, skipplugging can lead to a break in your relationship with the airline. If you are the type of traveler who likes to earn points, miles, member discounts, these types of benefits can be removed, especially if the airline has a specific skip-plugging policy.

However, this does not mean that the practice of skipplugging is illegal.

Is skipplugging legal?

In short, no. Skip-plugging is not illegal and can be a useful practice for those who want to save money on flights. While some airlines may have rules regarding skipplugging and may prevent travelers from using their services in the future, it is not illegal.

Some applications have even been invented to provide this service, such as Skiplagged. Like any other online booking service, Skiplagged shows different offers available for your desired final destination, even if you are booking a flight to another location to take advantage of a transfer.

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And while United Airlines tried to shut down the company, claiming the service was "severely prohibited" and claiming lost profits, Skiplagged won the lawsuit given that this particular booking strategy is not illegal. Skiplagged does not make a profit, but simply provides information to help travelers find the best value for money.

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