A flight attendant has issued a stark warning about new travel trend 'skiplagging', telling passengers they could face severe repercussions from airlines.
With the cost of airline travel on the rise, and budget carriers littering their fares with hidden charges, money-savvy holidaymakers are constantly looking for new ways to cut costs.
However, the moment one of these hacks goes viral, airlines are swift to clamp down on cheeky travellers looking to bend the rules and save their cash.
The latest of these trends is skiplagging.
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What is skiplagging?
Also known as hidden city ticketing, skiplagging is a travel trend which has recently gained a lot of traction on social media, skiplagging is where you purchase a ticket for a journey with a connecting flight with no intention of getting the connection.
For example, lets say you wanted to fly from London to New York but the tickets were pricey, a skiplagger would purchase a ticket from London to Miami with a connection in New York but not get on the second flight.
The practice has become so popular in the US that a website dedicated to finding the best skiplagging deals has cropped up.
Now, the trend may sound harmless or - dare I say - even helpful for travellers, however, skiplagging can actually land you in hot water with airlines.
While skiplagging isn't illegal in itself, the trend is heavily prohibited by several major airlines, with several carriers even banning repeat offenders.
Sharing the story of how one of her friends ended up being banned from American Airlines, a flight attendant who goes by @traveling.mermaidd on TikTok told the story as a cautionary tale to anyone who may be considering skiplagging.
"There are some sites that let you buy flights, let's say to New York, and there is a connection in Washington, D.C. And it's cheaper to do the connection to Washington, D.C., and then to go to New York, right," she said.
"But let's say your actual destination is Washington, D.C. If they catch you not going on that flight to New York, you're going to get banned from the airline. This is like a serious thing, 'cause they flag you."
The flight attendant's story isn't a one off either, with content creator Cassie Aran revealing to Business Insider that she very nearly got banned from an airline for the very same offence.
"The first time I tried skiplagging, everything went great. It was a success, but during my [second] trip, it all went terribly wrong," she recalled.
After purchasing a ticket through skiplagged, Cassie was called over to the check-in desk and warned that she had to fly to her final destination or face a life-time ban.
"I didn't know the consequences would be that serious," Cassie added.
Brenna Cooper