Connecting Flights in Europe

Posted by Henk Bekker Aug 24, 2008

In recent months, many travel writers have recommended that Americans book the cheapest transatlantic flight to Europe and then continue on budget airlines to their destination of choice. On occassion I have offered similar advice and although it is often a sensible option, my recent experience with an intercontinental flight and a European connection on Lufthansa led me to rethink.

Our flight from North America was delayed by two hours. Without asking, Lufthansa offered us a meal voucher, rebooked our missed connection from Frankfurt to Geneva, and checked our luggage through to Geneva. Around $15 in Mexico City Airport buys a decent Italian meal with salad, pizza, and two frozen margaritas (although admittedly the second margarita was almost certainly due to the cheaper children`s meals).

The second consideration is costs. Adding the connection from Frankfurt to Geneva added just over $50 to the cost of the Mexico - Frankfurt ticket despite Lufthansa's practical monopoly on the route. A quick check showed about the same charge if flying via Paris or Amsterdam. Although the Frankfurt to Geneva flight took less than 50 minutes, Lufthansa managed to serve me for free a cheese sandwich, muesli bar, a plastic cup of wine uncouthly filled to the brim, a glass of water, and a wine refill. I pocketed around €10 worth of German and English newspapers Lufthansa offers for free to waiting passengers in addition to the two Swiss papers offered on the plane.

If I booked my second flight on a budget airline, I probably would have missed it and a new booking at short notice on low-cost airlines can put full fares on regular airlines to shame. Furthermore, the second checked suitcase would have cost a fortune.

As before, the best advice seems to be using several reservation engines and compare before committing yourself.