Can you stop over in Shanghai for a few days if your ticket is Colombo–Shanghai–Moscow on one itinerary?

From messages by 2 participants in 1 source · Last activity: 54 days ago

TL;DR

Yes, usually you can stay in Shanghai for a few days, but the safest option is to change the Shanghai–Moscow segment with the airline or buy a new onward ticket from Shanghai. If you skip the original onward flight, make sure your checked baggage is not tagged all the way to Moscow.

What the community said

Before a self-arranged stopover/transfer in Shanghai, it's worth searching YouTube for airport transfer guides in advance and downloading an offline Chinese-English translator app in case of a language barrier.

offline translator (Chinese/English)

The simplest option is to skip the Shanghai–Moscow leg and buy a new ticket from Shanghai for a later date. In that case, the original onward segment is usually forfeited.

Shanghai–Moscow

Before buying a separate ticket, check whether the airline can move your Shanghai departure to a later date. Changing the date on the airline’s website can sometimes be cheaper than buying a brand-new ticket.

airline date change

If your flights are on one through-ticket, confirm baggage tagging at check-in in Colombo. Otherwise, your suitcase may be checked through to Moscow automatically, which makes a multi-day stop in Shanghai difficult.

Colombo / Moscow