Question about Munich Airport layover

[H2Otstr]

We will be traveling from Charlotte to Munich to Helsinki on 8/18/2012 on Lufthansa.

 

 

We have one hour and 15 minutes layover in Munich. Is this enough time?

 

Will we have to go through security or passport control?

 

Sharon

[CruiserBruce]

If Munich is your first stop in Europe, you will go thru Passport Control, but not Customs. I believe you will go thru security.

 

Your layover is a little tight, and you should have some concerns, but Munich is pretty user friendly.

Edited February 12, 2012 by CruiserBruce

[PennyAgain]

Some people see the word 'layover' and believe it refers to an overnight stay to catch the next plane.

 

That said, as a connection that just isn't enough time.

 

Not only will you have to do passport control, but security is extremely high in European airports and can take a lot of time.

 

If you have already bought the tickets, you will have to do the best you can with that connection. If you are just looking at the choices, please allow yourself more time between flights.

[First Time 2008]

In Munich this is fine. The airport is very efficient. Lufthansa to Lufthansa is all within terminal 2, H gates to G gates. 75 minutes is plenty. With a 75-minute connection in Munich I would go geocaching between flights. It's that efficient. Enjoy your trip.

[H2Otstr]

Some people see the word 'layover' and believe it refers to an overnight stay to catch the next plane.

 

That said, as a connection that just isn't enough time.

 

Not only will you have to do passport control, but security is extremely high in European airports and can take a lot of time.

 

If you have already bought the tickets, you will have to do the best you can with that connection. If you are just looking at the choices, please allow yourself more time between flights.

 

I should have known that; must have had a senior moment :D.

 

Anyhow, thanks for the replies.

[PennyAgain]

I should have known that; must have had a senior moment :D.

 

Anyhow, thanks for the replies.

 

No problem, I have a lot of senior moments which is why I don't book 75 minute connections after a long flight. I don't need the stress.

[ab0si]

You will go through passport control and security. While I would never book this tight a connection, there is actually a very good chance that you will make the connection. Trans-Atlantic flights can easily arrive 90 minutes early (or 8 hours late). If it arrives on time and you manage to get off fairly quickly, you should make the connection barring unfortunate circumstances (like landing just after a jumbo jet from Moscow or some such).

[First Time 2008]

Are you people that are advising against the 75 minute in MUC doing so with actual practical experience of MUC, or just generic advise about Europe connections in general? I can't believe it's based on actual misconnections at MUC with 75 minutes. That just does not happen there.

 

MUC T2 has a minimum connection time of 30 minutes. While 30 minutes is tight and any little thing can throw off the connection, 75 minutes has a extra 45 minute padding. It should absolutely work. I speak from personal experience of several connections at MUC every year.

 

Now of course if your inbound flight is late, the buffer may disappear and you miss the connection. In that case, LH will put you on the next flight to HEL, 6 hours later.

 

So what can you (OP) do? You can book the 75 minutes connection, hope it goes as planned, probably make it, and if you don't then take the 6-hour penalty. Or you can chicken that you won't make and assign yourself the 6-hour penalty in advance by booking the 7 hour connection.

[H2Otstr]

Are you people that are advising against the 75 minute in MUC doing so with actual practical experience of MUC, or just generic advise about Europe connections in general? I can't believe it's based on actual misconnections at MUC with 75 minutes. That just does not happen there.

 

MUC T2 has a minimum connection time of 30 minutes. While 30 minutes is tight and any little thing can throw off the connection, 75 minutes has a extra 45 minute padding. It should absolutely work. I speak from personal experience of several connections at MUC every year.

 

Now of course if your inbound flight is late, the buffer may disappear and you miss the connection. In that case, LH will put you on the next flight to HEL, 6 hours later.

 

So what can you (OP) do? You can book the 75 minutes connection, hope it goes as planned, probably make it, and if you don't then take the 6-hour penalty. Or you can chicken that you won't make and assign yourself the 6-hour penalty in advance by booking the 7 hour connection.

 

BTW, I am not the one who picked these flights. They were part of a river cruise package. I imagine that the flight times might be changed between now and August, anyhow. It is good to know that the connection is possible to make if the flights are on time.

 

My Delta flights to Germany for May have changed numerous times since I booked that trip.

 

Thank you all for your help.

[ab0si]

Are you people that are advising against the 75 minute in MUC doing so with actual practical experience of MUC, or just generic advise about Europe connections in general? I can't believe it's based on actual misconnections at MUC with 75 minutes. That just does not happen there.

 

 

I can't speak for "you people." This people, though, has made many connections at MUC. In fact, it is my favorite European airport for making connections. The issue is not making a 75 minute connection. The issue is the plane arriving late, deplaning late, or something unusual happening in passport control (security alert or a horde of non-Schengen zone passengers deplaning just before you).

[frugaltravel]

Are you people that are advising against the 75 minute in MUC doing so with actual practical experience of MUC, or just generic advise about Europe connections in general? I can't believe it's based on actual misconnections at MUC with 75 minutes. That just does not happen there.

 

MUC T2 has a minimum connection time of 30 minutes. While 30 minutes is tight and any little thing can throw off the connection, 75 minutes has a extra 45 minute padding. It should absolutely work. I speak from personal experience of several connections at MUC every year.

 

Now of course if your inbound flight is late, the buffer may disappear and you miss the connection. In that case, LH will put you on the next flight to HEL, 6 hours later.

 

So what can you (OP) do? You can book the 75 minutes connection, hope it goes as planned, probably make it, and if you don't then take the 6-hour penalty. Or you can chicken that you won't make and assign yourself the 6-hour penalty in advance by booking the 7 hour connection.

 

I totally agree and wonder about some advice just being thrown out there (not intending to offend anyone). MUC is a very easy airport to connect in when connecting between Star Alliance airlines. And I totally agree with you - why not plan a 75 minute connection and be "stuck" with the 7 hour connection if you miss it than plan the 7 hour connection and have been able to make the 75 minute connection but not be allowed to change to the earlier flight.

 

The issue is not making a 75 minute connection. The issue is the plane arriving late, deplaning late, or something unusual happening in passport control (security alert or a horde of non-Schengen zone passengers deplaning just before you).

 

Then with that line of reasoning, someone should plan overnight stops each time they change planes. Heck, even the 7 hour connection mentioned above would be too little if the inbound plane is 7 hours late :eek:. I had a 4 hour connection scheduled in Paris, our inbound plane was >3 hours late. I had less than 1 hour for the connection (passport control, change terminals, go through security, etc) and I made the connection. And Paris gets a bad rap as an airport to connect in :)

Edited February 13, 2012 by frugaltravel

[6rugrats]

Agree; I would take a 75 minute connection at MUC any day. A very efficient and easy airport to transit.

[FlyerTalker]

The issue is not making a 75 minute connection. The issue is the plane arriving late, deplaning late, or something unusual happening in passport control (security alert or a horde of non-Schengen zone passengers deplaning just before you).

 

Then with that line of reasoning, someone should plan overnight stops each time they change planes. Heck, even the 7 hour connection mentioned above would be too little if the inbound plane is 7 hours late :eek:.

Both of which focus on the two sides of the half-full/half-empty connection issue. One is the concern about making a connection if all factors are running normally. This would be something like a connect at MCT in Atlanta - doable but not in any way desirable. The other side is the concern over making connections if it goes pearshaped. Are there alternative flight options if yours goes bad? Can you be rerouted or are you stuck overnight.

 

The "problem" (IMHO) is that these are two issues that get blended together in discussions of connections. You're both right on each side. We get posters who want absolute safety, we get posters who want to avoid rushing through airports and it all comes down to identifying what the primary concern is.

 

Personally, if I have a tight connection but plenty of reroute options, I feel better than if it was a longer connect but no reroute possibilities. Neither will "guarantee" that I will make the connection, but then I remember what Franklin said.

 

So, perhaps we need to ask posters what their primary concern is when we're asked "Can I make an XX minute connection at XYZ?" All depends on what YOU think is "good".

 

Just some thoughts from the sideline.

[Jade13]

Munich is very easy to navigate.

 

We flew through Munich a few years ago and the only issue was that the security was too lax. We had a lot of time so left the airport to go into Munich by train. We checked our carry-ons in the airport and picked them up on their return. We have no idea how it happened, but the way we were directed back through the airport we never went through any screening, and walked right to our gate with no security check.

 

I almost wrote the airport when we returned, but decided not to do so. I am not sure what, if anything, could happen since we were back in the US but did not want to be on some airport/Lufthansa list the next time we flew through Munich for admitting we were never screened. I also never got around to posting on CC, but was curious if someone would have posted an airport map and suggested how we got around the screening area (I believe we were flying from the US through Munich to Norway).

Edited February 26, 2012 by Jade13

[tfran8]

Hello,

 

I am considering a flight that flies NYC-Munich, has an hour and 20 min layover there, and then I take another fight to Bucharest, Romania. I am very nervous about this short of a layover, although most of the flights seem to have between and hour and two hour layovers for the flight I am looking at. Can anyone tell me if this is enough or not? (The airline is United, if that matters)

[Globaliser]

(The airline is United, if that matters)

United doesn't fly from Munich to Bucharest. I expect that that flight is likely to be a Lufthansa flight, even if United may sell it under a UA code / flight number.

 

But the Minimum Connection Time should still be 0:30, as far as I can see, even if you're connecting from a United NYC-Munich flight to a Lufthansa Munich-Bucharest flight.

[waterbug123]

 

MUC T2 has a minimum connection time of 30 minutes

 

Now of course if your inbound flight is late, the buffer may disappear and you miss the connection.

 

And that could certainly happen. BUT, when there are widespread delays (such as in weather situations) long haul flights tend to get priority when normal operations resume, and the length of flight makes it a bit easier to make up significant time, more so than a short JAX-ATL flight could for example. Not saying delays can't happen, but these are some additional factors to consider when weighing that risk.

[frugaltravel]

And that could certainly happen. BUT, when there are widespread delays (such as in weather situations) long haul flights tend to get priority when normal operations resume, and the length of flight makes it a bit easier to make up significant time, more so than a short JAX-ATL flight could for example. Not saying delays can't happen, but these are some additional factors to consider when weighing that risk.

 

You do realize that you are responding to someone who posted on this thread four years ago, don't you? :D. It's easy to rush to answer and not really read posts thoroughly (been there, done that. Now I am more careful).