I intentionally booked a longer layover in Dubai and it totally changed the trip

This is the sweet spot of layover planning: using the hub as part of the trip rather than treating it like dead time you just have to endure.

The best intentional layovers usually happen in airports where 24-hour services gives you room to breathe instead of forcing constant clock-watching.

I started doing this more once I accepted that an extra few hours can improve the whole trip if the airport and city are a good fit.

The key is respecting terminal transfer confusion enough to keep the plan disciplined instead of trying to squeeze in one more thing.