Frankfurt or Munich airport?

[Winedogs]

We are planning a Med cruise in 2009 from Barcelona to Venice. Flying from Los Angeles. We are in the early research for flight booking and would appreciate any advice. Several questions...

 

Options-

Delta- LAX to Barcelona via Atlanta. Question- Would it give you more peace of mind to change planes in US and then fly direct into Barcelona?

 

Lufthansa/United- LAX to Barcelona via either Frankfurt or Munich.

Which airport is easier to navigate and what is the minimum amount of time you would allow to make connection onto Barcelona?

 

Has anyone ever flown Air Dolomiti from Venice- Munich? How was it?

 

For those who have flown a 747 transatlantic as a couple...what seats did you chose. Are flights usually full? Would dislike having a third person next to us for a long flight, so we usually go with a 2 seat configuration at the window.

 

Just asking for your experience...(i'll stop rambling on now:p)

[vivian02]

We have been through alot of European Airports in the past six years. I reeally don't mind the Frankfurt Airport at all. However if I had the choice between FRA or MUN I would have to pick Munich. This airport is not large like CDG, LHR, or FRA. It is easy to get around should you have a tight connection. You might check out what type of aircraft Air Dolomiti will be using. I understand they fly alot of smaller propell aircraft. I guess I would be concerned about luggage. I have done only one 747 flight returning from Europe and it was full. That flight was a 12 hour flight from Frankfurt to LAX. Believe me I'll take FRA any time over LAX. Tim

[dusababy]

Frankfurt or Munich? Munich in a heart beat. Actually I'm going through there Tuesday (LAX/MUN/NCE) and will return BCN/MUN/LAX - from my cruise.

MUN is also a hub for Lufthansa -- my choice over United (they are both Star Alliance)

Munich is NEW and rated according to some travel magazines as one of the best airports in the world. Easy to navigate -- beats Frankfurt which is on my list of second worst after CDG.

 

I too live in CA - Delta's planes to ATL (in my experience) are not the best - but their international flights are fine.

 

Snag a two seat if possible -- most large planes internationally have 5 down center of plane in economy. (You didn't say if you were flying business or economy.) Or first for that matter

 

Hope that helps -- but I think most air travel is a toss up in misery these days.

[FlyerTalker]

Try these thought exercises: Would you rather have a combination of a 10 and a half hour flight internationally, with another 2 hours into BCN, OR 4 and a half hours to ATL, then another 9 across the pond?

 

How comfortable are you with connections? Do you need/want the security of connecting in an "American" airport, or are you comfortable navigating airports overseas?

 

Now for an often overlooked one: Do you have a preference in FF programs? This trip will get you about 13K FF miles per person (over half of a 25K domestic award), so think about where you want those miles to go. No sense having them in an "orphan" programs where they won't get used. If you don't foresee using them in a DL program, don't fly SkyTeam. Same with LH/UA; if you won't be using them, don't fly Star.

 

As for seating....you won't find "pair" seating on 747's in coach. You will find it on A330/340 aircraft and on 767's. 777's come in both 2-5-2 and 3-3-3 configs, depending on the airline.

[odblnt]

As for seating....you won't find "pair" seating on 747's in coach. You will find it on A330/340 aircraft and on 767's. 777's come in both 2-5-2 and 3-3-3 configs, depending on the airline.

 

Yes, you can find a pair (at least in a United 747). They are all the way at the back of coach where the plane starts to narrow. Unfortunately for us, when we booked one of these pairs, the seat map on the United web site was wrong. Our row was supposed to be the first two-seater and it actually started the row behind us.

 

To make matters worse, the fuselage had started to narrow by that point and as I had the aisle seat, it was staggered a few inches into the aisle (just enough so that almost every cart and person who went by hit my elbow.

 

The seats are there, though. Of course, different airlines may have different configurations with those aft seats so it pays to check with the individual airlines.

[6rugrats]

You are right; UA does have pairs of seats in the last three rows of a 747. These would be very undesirable seats to me; you are the last one off the plane, the fuselage narrows and you are by the galley and bathrooms. No thanks!

 

To the OP - where would I sit on a 747- as close to the front as possible! Choose the aisle and window seat and hopefully, the flight won't be full and you will have the middle open, as that will be the last seat filled. No guarantees now days though. I could care less where I change planes, the US or Europe. It really doesn't matter.

 

I agree about the frequent flyer points; try and keep your flights on one airline if possible. A round-trip to Europe is a lot of miles! Don't throw them away on an airline you will never fly again.

[Loracpin2]

First we have flown Air Dolomiti from both Munich/Venice and Venice/ Munich and they were both very smooth flights. The new Venice Aiport is much more efficient, especially at baggage claim.

 

Now as far as Frankfort vs. Munich, my choice would be Munich. It's newer, smaller and easier to navigate. But to be honest, my decisions would be based on the type of equipment used to get to either cily. I avoid 747 at all times, unless I'm lucky to use Business class upgrades. The 3/5/3 configuration is much too tight. If you can take a 777, the 2/5/2 configuration is much more comfortable. Also, if you book United, you can book Economy Plus which gives you 5 more inches of leg room. This would be a great benefit from LA to Barcelona. United has a special right now. For a fee of $349, 2 people can book Economy Plus for a year. Even if you only use it for this trip, it is well worth the money for the extra comfort.

 

I guess you can tell we fly a lot. In fact, we leave for London in 3 weeks for our Baltic cruise. We chose our flight to London based on the equipment - a 777. Good luck with your decision.

[retiredslug]

Last year we flew on Lufthansa twice to Europe and experienced both Frankfurt and Munich airports. Connections were smooth even though both airports were crowded. FlyerTalker makes an excellent point in guiding you to consider FF miles and partners. Since we flew over 25,000 miles with LH, a Star Alliance partner, we were granted "premier" status for this year. That allows us to fly Premium Economy on United this summer to Europe at no additional cost to economy fare. We'll know when we return if it would be worth the extra $349 but I suspect it might. Five inches of extra legroom doesn't sound like much but if you're over six feet tall it should increase the comfort level.

 

LH is a reliable airline that provides good service and free drinks. That said, these were the two coldest flights we've ever encountered. Bundle up! And, try to avoid the tiny seats in coach.

 

Bill

[Winedogs]

thanks to all for the great information!! We don't belong to any FF programs, so it will be economy class for us. Though United's economy plus may be an option. We've never been on a 777, but flew on an Airbus 340 on SAS in 2005. I don't mind flying, I just get antsy sitting for so long. :D We would love to fly Lufthansa, but their prices are the highest right now (with putting in dates for early 2009 to get an idea of what the $ would be). It seems odd to be that when I go to United's website they offer flights "operated by Lufthansa" and vice versa on Lufthansa's website. I wonder if there is any advantage to booking one over the other when some of the flight times are the same.

[6rugrats]

Don't have time for a detailed explanation, but maybe this will help. LH and UA are part of what's called the Star Alliance. That's why you are seeing LH flights show up on UA's webpage. There aren't actually two flights leaving at the same time; sometimes the flights are really on LH metal. Some people prefer flying on LH planes versus UA.

[Winedogs]

Just to clarify, we do have membership # for United, just no miles as we haven't flown on United since 2005. Looks like economy plus books up very quickly

[6rugrats]

Just to clarify, we do have membership # for United, just no miles as we haven't flown on United since 2005. Looks like economy plus books up very quickly

 

No, if you don't have status that allows you to book seats in E+, you will not be able to see available seats in this section; they will all look full. I assure you, they probably are not!

[Winedogs]

thanks for the info. May decide to buy the $349 package to upgrade to economy plus. 5 extra inches of legroom on a TA flight may be worth it:)

[6rugrats]

Before you do this, if you decide to book on UA, sometimes as you go through the online booking process, it will offer you a buy up to E+, usually for much less then this yearly fee. Wait to purchase E+ access before you try this first.

[capegranny]

You've gotten good advice. Let me add something more re seating: As far forward as possible, but you don't want to be opposite the bathrooms or galley if you can help it - lots of action, noise, light. We typically book aisle seats - across from each other, if possible, but don't mind a few rows difference. You will NOT have an empty middle seat on a transatlantic flight these days! - so don't even bother to do the aisle and window thing. I'd choose a side rather than a middle section unless it's an aisle seat. And yes, Munich and Frankfurt are both easy to navigate - Munich easier because of size.