There are a couple of similar older threads, but nothing recent enough to bump.
I’m booking a flight from Boston to Nice, France, and there are a few options, all with a layover. Some options are Paris, London, and Newark. What I’m wondering is what kind of passport control will I see in each airport? I assume there will be nothing in Newark, full immigration in Paris, and not sure what I’ll have to do in London. How much time do I need to allow for each? Right now I can book through London with a 2 hour layover, is that enough time?
I would say this is not near enough time. You will need to collect your bag (if you checked a bag) then go through immigration and then re-check the bag (again, if you are checking a bag) and then make it to the new gate, through security (and I do not think Heathrow will let you get in an expedited security line even if you have that for the US).
Also, remember, in Heathrow Airport they close checkin-35 minutes prior to departure. I missed that once by 10 minutes and then had to wait six hours for the next flight.
Always leave a lot more time than you think might be necessary. I would not think two hours would be enough in this case unless you get very lucky with all the bits working out perfectly (which almost never happens). Heathrow is huge. If your connecting plane is across the airport that alone can take a fair amount of time.
I agree with @Roderick_Femm…connect through Paris or Newark.
No you don’t have to collect and recheck your bag when connecting in Heathrow, if your itinerary is booked all in one ticket.
I recently did almost the same as the OP: SFO to Lyon, via Heathrow. The procedure was: Go through security, then go to the departure lounge. That’s it.
You go through passport control and customs in Nice.
Procedure in Paris: Go through passport control to enter Schengen, then go to your gate. Normally you don’t need to go through security. Your bags should be transferred automatically without your seeing them. You take them through customs in Nice, but there’s no passport control.
The procedure is easy but CDG is a huge airport, very confusing, so I’d allow at least 3 hours.
American, living in Europe, has flown through most major airports multiple times, including leaving the Schengen area, so passing through controls.
I agree with this. Three hours minimum. Personally I’d allow four to be safe.
I would also triple-check the itinerary to make sure I’m flying in and out of CDG on the way to Nice, so I’m not surprised when I land and realize my connecting flight is leaving from one of the other Paris airports.
My first reaction was that Heathrow was out because of Schengen. However, providing that you have a through ticket, that will not be a problem. A two-hour layover should be enough.
Gotta be careful with terminology here. Your checked luggage will transfer automatically. Your carryon luggage, which for many Americans is the only kind they travel with, will need to be dragged along by you. Which can be challenging in a big airport, and doubly so if in a hurry or less than 100% spry.
I don’t know what security or customs formalities there may be for carry-ons while transferring in CDG.
I concur. On our trip to Europe, we had our connection flight for Venice in Germany. Once we cleared Border Patrol we were good for all of the countries we visited.
Actually, the best flight now appears to have a 5 hour layover in AMS. Since that’s in the Schengen Zone, it should be only one pass through immigration, no? I’ve never been in AMS but I imagine it’s a smaller airport than LHR or CDG.
The flight home is 4 hours in Newark, shouldn’t be an issue.
We had a six hour layover in Amsterdam on a trip back from Italy. We stuffed our carry on bag in an airport locker, caught the train into the city, and walked to the Anne Frank house, where we able to catch a tour, since it was early in the morning and not busy yet. We had a quick lunch and barely caught the train back to the airport in time. We probably shouldn’t have cut it so close; I didn’t even think of what would have happened if they had closed the doors before we got to our gate.
I know I’m beating an immortal horse that will never die, but …
If you have time to leave the airport, get a hotel, have a normal night’s sleep, and at least one meal then go back to the airport, that’s a “layover”.
If you have less time than that, or never leave the airport, it’s a “stopover”.
The OP (and everyone else) is talking about a stopover, or a plane change, but they’re not talking about a layover.
Schiphol is, yes, smaller, but it’s not small. It’s number three in Europe, behind those two.
It’s also, in my opinion, nicer than CDG and a lot nicer than Heathrow.
Five hours is a lot of time, but there’s good food and shopping, and you can debate with yourself about whether you can fit one of the giant cheese wheels into your luggage.
I’ve never been to AMS, but my understanding is that it’s a pretty big airport as well, but it’s a better design than LHR and CDG so it’s an easier place to connect. But like I said I’ve never been there; I’m just going by what I’ve read on other forums.
And yes, you will go through customs/immigration there, and that’s it.
Ooh, now tell us all about how a “direct” flight is not the same as a “nonstop” flight.
I’ve been to AMS many times, and I’ve also been to LHR and CDG a lot. That is correct: AMS is by far the easiest to connect through. The procedure is the same as at CDG, but the airport is much easier to navigate.
I think it’s a good rule of thumb to change your plane as close to the final destination as possible. If something happens once you arrive, then there is the option of ground transportation.
My ex and kidlet were doing university tours of the US East Coast and we are in the Seattle area. They booked through Chicago, had issues with the connecting flight, couldn’t rebook until sometime the next day, and missed out on part of their college visits. Now, had they landed somewhere on the East Coast and had issues with the last leg, they probably could have taken the train and still kept on schedule. Granted Western Europe isn’t that big with pretty good transportation, but still I would much prefer to be stuck in Paris closer to my destination instead of the UK or Holland. YMMV.
