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In Skyscanner results, when I click on details, it shows the arrival time, then (+1), but it doesn't do this for return time. What does (+1) mean?

I thought it might mean up to an hour delay, but I would have thought +/- would have been used instead.

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It means that the flight arrives next day.

For example if the flight departs on 22:00, 20th of AUG and arrives on 05:00, 21st of AUG, then the (+1) will be shown to indicate that the arrival is next day. This usually happens in eastbound flights.

Also, the other way around is true. A (-1) can be seen in flights that arrive in the previous day! such as flights from Tokyo (TYO) to Los Angeles (LAX).

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  • So the difference is between the local date of the place of departure and the local date of the place of arrival isn't it
    – matanster
    Dec 10, 2018 at 17:17
  • @matanster regardless. If arrival is in the next day of the airport, then there will be +1. even if it was in the same timezone.
    – Nean Der Thal
    Dec 10, 2018 at 17:39
  • Perhaps to ask differently, does it mean that the arrival date according to the destination time zone is one day more than the date of departure according to the origin's time zone?
    – matanster
    Dec 10, 2018 at 18:16
  • @NeanDerThal Uhm... yes, it does?
    – Jivan Pal
    May 29, 2022 at 17:23
  • @JivanPal not sure what was I thinking.. Comment deleted
    – Nean Der Thal
    May 29, 2022 at 19:07
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Nean Der Thal's answer is correct regarding the meaning of the +1 (it means the flight lands the next day.)

More generally, the number displayed there is the difference between the date of the arrival and the date of the departure in the respective local times of those locations. This can range anything from -1 (landing the day before you took off) to +2 (landing 2 days later than you took off.) Theoretically, more than +2 is possible, but only in a really slow aircraft that can stay airborne for a very long time (such as a blimp.) +2 is the most you'll see on a normal jet airliner, though (thankfully.)

Which flights are likely to experience each situation varies dramatically by region. While Nean Der Thal is correct that +1 is most likely to happen on East-bound flights in most parts of the world, the opposite is true for trans-Pacific flights which cross the International Date Line. On trans-Pac flights, almost all West-bound flights will be at least +1 (and often +2 for overnight flights that leave before midnight local time,) while East-bound flights will almost never be +1 (and can occasionally be -1 for flights that depart in the early morning hours local time.) Also, +1 is very common on overnight North-bound or South-bound flights in any region.

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    Slow aircrafts, east-bound flights and date line niceties are not needed: “+1” refers to the whole trip so a lengthy layover or multiple flights to reach obscure destinations will do that too.
    – Relaxed
    Dec 28, 2014 at 21:46
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    @Relaxed It can be shown for the whole trip, but, at least in my experience, it's also usually shown individually for each flight. And, yes, time zone differences aren't necessary, they just make it more or less likely. I've had +1 flights that were only 30 minutes long before with no layovers; they just happened to take off a few minutes before midnight.
    – reirab
    Dec 28, 2014 at 21:54
  • I just tried with Skyscanner, Kayak, and Adioso and all of them do show “+1” when there is an overnight layover and the passenger is not in the air at midnight local time. Other sites like Kayak or ITA's matrix don't use the “+1” convention at all, even for West-bound trans-pacific flights. It does make more sense to me that way, from a travel perspective.
    – Relaxed
    Dec 28, 2014 at 23:56
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    If you want to see a +2 look up Qantas Flight 8 (DFW-SYD). Departs 22:40 arrives 6:30 (+2) for a 16h 50m flight, the longest non-stop commercial flight in the world.
    – Michael Hampton
    May 28, 2015 at 15:05
  • @MichaelHampton Cathay 883 is another example I'm familiar with from personal experience. Actual time varies quite a bit depending on wind, but it was about 15 hours when I was on it, departing LAX at 11:55 PM and landing at HKG at 6:00 AM (+2).
    – reirab
    May 29, 2015 at 13:49
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+1 means day.
eq. If it departs on July 1 at 08:00 and arrives at 20:00 +1.
Meaning, that is 20:00 July 02.

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    What does this add to the other answers?
    – JoErNanO ♦
    May 13, 2015 at 11:43
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    simplifying things
    – Ali Moh
    May 14, 2015 at 0:00

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