Long Layover Planner — Can I Leave the Airport?
Your layover → can you leave the airport, the free tours that fit, and whether you need a visa to step out.
Yes — a free tour fits your layover10 h in Istanbul, landing 7 am: Touristanbul: Half day tour, 8:30 am – 3 pm.
You land at 7 am and fly on at 5 pm.
US passport: No visa needed to step out
Leaving the airport means entering Turkey.
Ordinary passport holders are exempted from visa up to 90 days in any 180-day period.
— the State Department
TouristanbulTurkish AirlinesFree tour
- Half day tour 8:30 am – 3 pm
Turkish Airlines passengers connecting from one international flight to another, both flights on one booking.
Register at the Touristanbul desk on the Arrivals level at least 30 minutes before the tour; getting there takes about 45 minutes after landing, passport control included. Leave at least 1 hour 25 minutes between the tour’s end and your flight. The Sightseeing Tour is panoramic: you stay on the vehicle.
Why not the others (3)
- Sightseeing Tour: you land too late for it.
- Evening tour: your flight leaves too soon after it.
- Bosphorus tour: your flight leaves too soon after it.
Stopover in IstanbulTurkish AirlinesFree hotel
For a layover of at least 20 h.
A round trip on Turkish Airlines’ own flights, international to international through Istanbul Airport.
A free hotel with breakfast: 1 night in Economy, 2 in Business (2 and 3 when the round trip starts in the US). Apply at least 72 hours before the flight; it can’t be combined with Touristanbul in the same wait.
Stopover in Istanbul on Turkish Airlines’ site ↗Each tour and hotel read on its provider’s own page on 10 October 2026; the entry rules are the State Department’s, checked 25 September 2026. Seats on the free tours are limited: book ahead where you can.
You can leave the airport on a layover when you have time to get out, see something and come back through security — and your passport lets you enter the country. The airports that run free city tours set that time themselves: at least 5.5 hours at Singapore Changi, 6 at Istanbul, 7 at Taipei Taoyuan. Type your airport, when you land and how long you have: the planner shows the free tours whose times fit, the free hotels, and whether a US passport may step out.
How to use it
Type the airport where you change planes — a city, an airport name or its code — or tap one of the hubs under it. Then the time you land (the local time there), the hours until your next flight, your passport and the date. The answer updates at once: whether leaving is worth it, each free tour with the times that fit your flights and the ones that don’t (and why), any free hotel your layover qualifies for, and what entering the country takes for a US passport, in the State Department’s own words. The link under the answer keeps your layover, so you can send it to whoever you travel with.
Free layover tours, side by side
Each program as its provider describes it, checked on 10 October 2026. The times are the tour’s own, local time; each provider has its own rule for how early you must land and how late your flight must leave.
| Program | Airport | Cost | Layover | Tours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Touristanbul | Istanbul (IST) | Free | 6 h to 24 h | 8 am – 11:30 am, 8:30 am – 3 pm, 4 pm – 9:30 pm, 6:30 pm – 11 pm |
| Free Singapore Tour | Singapore (SIN) | Free | 5 h 30 min to 24 h | 10 am – 12:30 pm, 12 pm – 2:30 pm, 1 pm – 3:30 pm, 3 pm – 5:30 pm, 4 pm – 6:30 pm, 6 pm – 8:30 pm, 7 pm – 9:30 pm |
| Free Half-Day Tour | Taipei (TPE) | Free | 7 h to 24 h | 8:30 am – 12:30 pm, 2 pm – 6 pm |
| Discover Qatar transit tours | Doha (DOH) | Paid | 6 h or more | Discover Doha (QAR 115), Discover Doha at Night (QAR 115), Discover Doha Your Way (QAR 140), The Desert and Inland Sea (QAR 227) |
The rules to fit a flight into a tour: Turkish Airlines says reaching the Touristanbul desk takes about 45 minutes after landing, passport control included, that you register 30 minutes before the tour, and that you need 1 hour 25 minutes between its end and your flight. Changi lists for each tour a time to report at the booth and a time your flight must leave after. Taiwan’s morning tour needs a flight that lands before 7 am and leaves after 3 pm; the afternoon tour, before 1 pm and after 8:30 pm. Two free hotels round it out: Turkish Airlines’ Stopover in Istanbul for a layover of 20 hours to 7 days, and Emirates’ Dubai Connect for a connection of 6 to 26 hours.
Worked examples
Istanbul, landing at 7 am, 10 hours. Yes — a free tour fits your layover: Touristanbul’s Half day tour, 8:30 am to 3 pm — you reach the desk by about 7:45 and fly on at 5 pm, more than 1 hour 25 minutes after the tour. The Sightseeing Tour at 8 am is too early.
Singapore, landing at 7 am, 8 hours. Yes — a free tour fits your layover: the Heritage and Culture Tour, 10 am to 12:30 pm — report at the booth by 8:30 am and your 3 pm flight is after the 2:30 pm Changi asks for.
Taipei, landing at 6 am, 15 hours. Yes — 2 free tours fit your layover: the morning tour to Tamsui and the afternoon tour of Taipei both fit — but Taiwan allows one tour per layover, so pick one.
Doha, 7 hours. Yes, you have time to leave the airport. No free tour runs at Hamad; Discover Qatar’s city tours start at QAR 115 (about USD 32) a person, and a US passport gets a visa on arrival.
Beijing, 9 hours. Stay in the airport: the State Department says a US passport needs a visa before arriving in China, so the time is not the problem.
Common mistakes
- Two tickets. Touristanbul wants both flights on one booking; Changi wants your checked bags through-checked to the end. On separate tickets you also collect bags and check in again.
- Forgetting the way back. You return through security and passport control: Turkish Airlines asks for 1 hour 25 minutes between the end of a tour and your flight.
- Walking in without a seat. Changi’s and Taiwan’s tours hold seats for online bookings; Taiwan’s tour has 18 seats and books 5 to 90 days ahead.
- Assuming “transit” means no entry rules. Stepping out of the airport is entering the country: the UK wants an Electronic Travel Authorization even from a US passport, and China a visa before arrival.
Plan the hours
Pick what to see with our guides: unusual things to do in Istanbul, the most iconic things to do in Singapore, fun things to do in Doha and an honest guide to Dubai. The Layover Time Checker tells you whether a short connection is long enough, the Free Stopover Finder turns a longer one into a few free days, and the visa checker has every country’s entry rule for a US passport.
FAQ
Can I leave the airport during a layover?
Yes, if your passport lets you enter the country and you have the time. The airports that run free city tours ask for at least 5.5 hours (Singapore Changi), 6 (Istanbul) or 7 (Taipei Taoyuan), which covers getting out, the tour and coming back through security. Under about 5 hours, stay in the airport.
What is Touristanbul?
Turkish Airlines’ free city tour for passengers connecting through Istanbul Airport between two international flights with a layover of 6 to 24 hours, both flights on one booking. Its tours run at 8 am, 8:30 am, 4 pm and (1 April to 31 October) 6:30 pm, and you register on the Arrivals level at least 30 minutes before.
Do I need a transit visa to leave the airport?
Leaving the airport means entering the country, so you need whatever a visitor needs. With a US passport: nothing in Turkey, Singapore or Taiwan; a visa on arrival in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates; an Electronic Travel Authorization in the UK; a visa before arrival in China. Staying airside, you usually need none.
Is the Free Singapore Tour still running?
Yes: Changi Airport runs 2.5-hour guided tours daily for transit passengers with 5.5 to 24 hours before their connecting flight. You report at the booth by the time in Changi’s table and your flight must leave after the time it lists — for the 10 am Heritage and Culture Tour, report by 8:30 am and fly after 2:30 pm.
What can you do on a layover in Doha?
With 6 hours or more, Discover Qatar — Qatar Airways’ own tour company — sells 3-hour transit city tours from QAR 115 a person and a desert tour for 8 hours or more. A US passport gets a visa on arrival.
Can you leave the airport on a layover in Dubai?
A US passport gets a free visa on arrival in the United Arab Emirates, so yes, time allowing. Emirates passengers whose best connection is 6 to 26 hours can book Dubai Connect: a free hotel, transfers, meals and the visa.
Does Turkish Airlines give a hotel on a long layover?
Yes, on a layover of 20 hours to 7 days through Istanbul on a round trip all on Turkish Airlines: 1 free night in Economy and 2 in Business, or 2 and 3 when the round trip starts in the US. Apply at least 72 hours before the flight.