An open jaw leaves one part of the route “open”. Instead of flying back from the city where you arrived, you continue overland or by a separately arranged flight and return from somewhere else.
A simple example is:
- fly London to Tokyo;
- travel through Japan by train;
- fly Osaka to London.
You do not need a Tokyo-to-Osaka flight inside the international ticket. That gap is the open part of the jaw.
The main types of open jaw
Destination open jaw
You fly from the same home area but use different airports at the destination:
London → Tokyo and Osaka → London
This is useful for a one-way journey through a country or region.
Origin open jaw
You leave from one airport and return to another, while using the same destination:
London → New York and New York → Manchester
The open part is at home. It can make sense when both airports are genuinely convenient.
Double open jaw
Both ends differ:
London → Tokyo and Seoul → Manchester
This can fit a longer regional trip, but it creates more ground transport and ticketing details to check.
Airline programmes use the term in their own rules. Emirates, for example, defines an open jaw as an itinerary where the outbound arrival and return departure differ, or where the outbound departure and return arrival differ. British Airways gives a practical example of flying New York to London and returning Paris to New York.
Is an open jaw the same as a multi-city flight?
Not quite. Open jaw describes the shape of the journey. Multi-city is the search or booking format often used to enter it.
A multi-city booking might contain several fully flown legs with no open surface section. An open jaw might need only two flights. In practice, you will often use a multi-city search to price an open-jaw route.
See how to book multi-city flights for a comparison process that includes separate-ticket risk.
When an open jaw helps
It is worth checking when it lets you:
- travel through a region without returning to the first city;
- use a better flight from the natural end of the trip;
- avoid paying for a flight you do not need;
- save a day otherwise spent backtracking;
- combine a long-haul ticket with a useful rail or ferry journey.
The value is often time and trip shape, not just a lower airfare.
When it does not help
An open jaw can add cost or complexity when:
- the two airports are far apart without a useful journey between them;
- the return airport has much poorer long-haul service;
- a rental car carries a large one-way fee;
- the fare is split into unprotected tickets;
- visa or entry rules make the surface sector difficult.
The open section is your responsibility. Check how you will travel it before booking the flights around it.
How to search for one
- Choose the multi-city option in a flight search tool.
- Enter the outbound flight as the first leg.
- Enter the return flight from the different city as the second leg.
- Search nearby dates if the journey between the cities is flexible.
- Compare the result with a normal return plus the cost of backtracking.
Also check whether the result is issued as one ticket. The screen may look like one itinerary even when different parts require separate purchases.
What to check before booking
- The exact airport codes, especially in cities with several airports.
- How you will cover the open sector and how much time it needs.
- Whether baggage is included on both flights.
- Whether the fare is one ticket or separate tickets.
- The change rules for each direction.
- The total cost, including surface transport and any one-way rental fee.
An open jaw is useful when it follows the geography of the trip. It is not a trick fare; it is simply another way to describe and price the route.
Sources reviewed
- Emirates Skywards programme rules: open-jaw definition
- British Airways: open-jaw itinerary example
- Google Travel: Book flights
Airline definitions and fare rules can change. These sources were checked on 12 August 2026; confirm the operating carriers and fare conditions before booking.