SE USA to Venice air connections

I have been looking at EZAir with Princess (Pacific Princess in November sailing from Venice to FLL). From where we live, one would not be able to easily fly to Venice with one stop. Most are two stops. I can accept that (for now). I have never flown to Europe, always cruised.

How much time is practical to allow between connections? Are certain airports in Europe better at getting things done than others?

Jim

I have been looking at EZAir with Princess (Pacific Princess in November sailing from Venice to FLL). From where we live, one would not be able to easily fly to Venice with one stop. Most are two stops. I can accept that (for now). I have never flown to Europe, always cruised.

 

How much time is practical to allow between connections? Are certain airports in Europe better at getting things done than others?

 

Jim

I believe the thee US international airlines (United, Delta, American) all fly to Venice on a seasonal basis. As well as Air Canada. You should be able to find one-stop on this side of the Atlantic. Bags are automatically transferred going. Coming back I believe they are only automatically transferred if you are connecting in Europe or Canada.

Smaller hubs are usually easier, .eg., Zurich. The big international hubs are also quite reasonable such as Frankfurt or Amsterdam. London is fine if your staying in the same terminal, it can more involved if you need to change terminals but still quite reasonable.

As for length of time it is going to be all over the map you need a narrower criteria.

I saw 1 hour 50 minutes in Frankfort. Is that reasonable?

Jim

If you have enough vacation time, a nice alternative is to fly a 1-stop into a major European city, take a few days to explore and get over jet lag, and then take a train to Venice.

We’ve done this several times when we couldn’t get a 1-stop to a cruise port. It allows you to explore a city that cruises don’t visit, start your cruise rested, and it almost feels like another vacation.

The key word is "StopOver".

Many airlines will allow you to do a 48 or 72 hour "StopOver" in a connecting city without any additional charges.

My wife and I sailed out of Venice in 2016. We flew British Airways to London. Spent 2 days in London, then flew on to Venice. In London, we were able to store luggage we didn't want to lug around at the airport.

Good thoughts! Thanks.

Jim

I saw 1 hour 50 minutes in Frankfort. Is that reasonable?

 

 

Jim

Yes most days it is.

Odd chance that you will be delayed coming from the states due to weather or something else. If that happens just go over to a Lufthansa transfer desk or agent and they will move you onto the text available flight.

Frankfort is a very large airport (by any standard), however it is one of the most efficient and effective at doing transfers such as these.

From where we live, one would not be able to easily fly to Venice with one stop.

For searching purposes, you might want to remember that you're thinking about connecting in Frankfurt. You won't find many useful connections at Frankfort airport.