Segment Run Advice Please
 

Hi Guys,
I need to book 18 segments out of DTW the week of 12/25 to hit EP on AA. 3 round trips with 2 connections each way should do it. Trying to find the cheapest way to do this is tricky. Any way to trick Google into showing only flights with 2+ stops? Recommendations on other software / sites to use?

The week of the 25th will be expensive. Can you travel this week? Where do you live?

your mileage run
 

I'm far from an expert, but it seems to me like given that it's still 18 takeoffs and landings any way you slice it, if you are flexible about segments per ticket and focus instead on segments per dollar and segments per day, you might accomplish your goal more easily/cheaply. Many of the 3-segment routings are more than 50% more expensive than their 2-segment counterparts, which means you're paying a premium over the additional 1 segment they yield you. However, I did find a couple which I'm including. Basically I picked a destination based on cheapness (Charlotte is frequently the best) and then skipped it if it had only nonstops showing. Then I picked the most economical 1-stop flight, or picking a 2-stop version if one was available and if it was "worth it."

I'm assuming American Eagle flights count same as any - you'll want to double-check.

4 segments - https://goo.gl/flights/7w5U $262 DTW-DCA-BNA-CLT-DTW 12/24 same day turnaround
5 segments - https://goo.gl/flights/B27D $187 DTW-PHL-SBY-**CLT-ORD-DTW 12/25 same day turnaround, **note SBY-CLT is a Dash 8 prop plane.
(i skipped 12/26 because prices were too nuts - take a break)
5 segments - https://goo.gl/flights/tWSW $358 DTW-DCA-CLT-BNA-ORD-DTW 12/27 same day turnaround
5 segments - https://goo.gl/flights/is2f $345 DTW-DCA-CLT-ATL-ORD-DTW 12/28 same day turnaround

Well, I've got you 19 segments there and still home in plenty of time to recuperate and prep for new years - and only $1152 spent, plus you may come to be on a first name basis with the morning shift crew at the Starbucks at National. So if you want you can skip the Dash-8 segment if you don't like prop planes. Or keep it and you can shorten one of your later flights by a segment. I just kinda had to leave it in there for how good a deal that ticket was per segment.

thanks daniel949 !
So I got everything planned out thanks to you. Sometimes AA will reject the google flights I pick, im not sure why. Also I noticed in Economy fare I get 1/2 the segments that I would get in standard. The SBY trip was showing 2.5 EQS. . Managed to get 18 segments in for around 1100 dollars. hopefully I don't miss any connections!