Swiss Air Barcelona to US with layover in Zurich

[sassy12]

I'm trying to find airfare for our May 19, 2011 return from Barcelona and right now the best I can find is Expedia via Swiss Air with 1 hour 40 minute layover in Zurich.

 

Is this enough time for possible plane transfer in Zurich?

 

We've never flown Swiss Air so would like some feedback on that, too.

 

Thanks for your help.

[slidergirl]

You didn't say where you were flying TO from BCN. I'm assuming it's JFK. It would help if we all knew the exact destination.

 

My standard lookup sites all show SWISS to be the best fare, by far. I mean, $468-$512 as opposed to $1240 for British Airways. That's a big difference.

 

I haven't flown SWISS. But, it is a mainstream European airline and a member of the Star Alliance (Continental, United, USAirways, Lufthansa, Air Canada, etc.). It's not some Third World airline. If you choose it, I'm sure you'll have as good a flight as you would on any other airline.

[riffatsea]

Sassy, Are you pricing outbound and return flights separately??

Have you tried a multi city flight search where you fly into one city and then home from another? For example, you fly into Rome and home from Barcelona.

Zurich is supposed to be an easy airport to manage.

I haven't flown Swiss Air but my daughter has transited in Zurich with no probs.You can read some reviews of the airline

here:

http://www.airlinequality.com/Forum/swiss_air.htm

[Turtles06]

This winter, we flew to BCN from Washington DC, flying from Dulles to Zurich on United and then connecting to a SWISS flight from Zurich to BCN. Coming home, because of snow storms in D.C., we wound up flying SWISS from BCN to Geneva, then connecting to a SWISS flight to JFK.

 

We were in economy all the way, and I thought the SWISS service on the transatlantic flight back to NY was really excellent. Lots of food (which was quite good, we thought), FREE drinks (wine, hard liquor), chocolate (the real deal, Swiss chocolate, yum), far far better than the service on United on the flight over.

 

The SWISS flight from Zurich to BCN was entirely different. It was a cattle car. It was packed and had the feel of a bus full of noisy commuters. The flight attendants tossed us a sandwich on hard bread (and some chocolate), then spent most of the flight going up and down (and clogging) the aisle with a cart selling cartons of cigarettes! Cigarettes! With big warnings on the cartons saying "Smoking can kill you." I felt like we'd been tranported back into the 1950s. It was one of the most unpleasant flights I've ever been on. Thankfully, it wasn't that long. (There were some beautiful views of the Alps, though.)

 

The SWISS flight from BCN to Geneva was not that bad.

 

Have a great trip!

[sassy12]

Thanks for all your help. I booked air today from Barcelona to Chicago with the layover in Zurich. I called a travel agent and she said the fare was quite reasonable in her opinion. It sure beat Delta and other airlines! We chose a four hour layover in Zurich rather than one hour and 10 minutes to be on the safe side. Maybe we can actually leave the airport and see some parts of Zurich and still make it back through security for the long flight home.

 

Hindsight is better than foresight - after I booked the flight my dh said maybe we should have spent a night in Zurich!

 

Looking forward to our cruise. Now we just have to get from Indiana to Galveston.

[baggal]

This winter, we flew to BCN from Washington DC, flying from Dulles to Zurich on United and then connecting to a SWISS flight from Zurich to BCN. Coming home, because of snow storms in D.C., we wound up flying SWISS from BCN to Geneva, then connecting to a SWISS flight to JFK.

 

We were in economy all the way, and I thought the SWISS service on the transatlantic flight back to NY was really excellent. Lots of food (which was quite good, we thought), FREE drinks (wine, hard liquor), chocolate (the real deal, Swiss chocolate, yum), far far better than the service on United on the flight over.

 

The SWISS flight from Zurich to BCN was entirely different. It was a cattle car. It was packed and had the feel of a bus full of noisy commuters. The flight attendants tossed us a sandwich on hard bread (and some chocolate), then spent most of the flight going up and down (and clogging) the aisle with a cart selling cartons of cigarettes! Cigarettes! With big warnings on the cartons saying "Smoking can kill you." I felt like we'd been tranported back into the 1950s. It was one of the most unpleasant flights I've ever been on. Thankfully, it wasn't that long. (There were some beautiful views of the Alps, though.)

 

The SWISS flight from BCN to Geneva was not that bad.

 

Have a great trip!

 

Unfortunately, many Europeans still smoke, A LOT.

[D&N LUV 2 TRAVEL]

Smart move on your part changing your flight. I feel a lot better with a 4 hr stopover versus 1 hr 40 minutes. Should be 1 less thing to worry about now.

 

Thanks for all your help. I booked air today from Barcelona to Chicago with the layover in Zurich. I called a travel agent and she said the fare was quite reasonable in her opinion. It sure beat Delta and other airlines! We chose a four hour layover in Zurich rather than one hour and 10 minutes to be on the safe side. Maybe we can actually leave the airport and see some parts of Zurich and still make it back through security for the long flight home.

 

Hindsight is better than foresight - after I booked the flight my dh said maybe we should have spent a night in Zurich!

 

Looking forward to our cruise. Now we just have to get from Indiana to Galveston.

[slidergirl]

Spending that much time wandering around the airport in Zurich isn't that bad. You'll be fine. While not a huge shopping airport (like Shiopol in Amsterdam), it provides some entertainment.

 

May I ask, how much did you pay for your fare?

[Turtles06]

Spending that much time wandering around the airport in Zurich isn't that bad. You'll be fine. While not a huge shopping airport (like Shiopol in Amsterdam), it provides some entertainment.

 

 

Well, it's indeed full of shops, but extremely "high end," very expensive shops catering to the wealthy (as far as we could tell).

[sassy12]

Spending that much time wandering around the airport in Zurich isn't that bad. You'll be fine. While not a huge shopping airport (like Shiopol in Amsterdam), it provides some entertainment.

 

May I ask, how much did you pay for your fare?

 

We probably paid more than we should have but it's water over the dam now and I'm glad that part of the planning is over. I have been checking for the last few weeks and the best rate I found was on the Swiss Air site which was $505 Euro Barcelona to Chicago. We really need to go to Indianapolis which is closer to our home but for the amount saved by going to Chicago it was really worth either having someone come pick us up or take the shuttle to Purdue University. We'll still be money ahead.

[sassy12]

Well, it's indeed full of shops, but extremely "high end," very expensive shops catering to the wealthy (as far as we could tell).

 

What I was really thinking of doing was to get in a cab and have the driver take us on a short tour of Zurich and be back at the airport about 2 hours before the flight home. Guess we'll have to see how much time we do have.

[riffatsea]

That is a really GREAT price!!! Enjoy your trip!!

[Kerry's Girls]

What I was really thinking of doing was to get in a cab and have the driver take us on a short tour of Zurich and be back at the airport about 2 hours before the flight home. Guess we'll have to see how much time we do have.

 

I think the airport is out of the city. You also may be able to store your luggage and take the train into the heart of the city.

 

Best,

Mia

[CruisinGerman]

Dear friends:

 

Swiss is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lufthansa. The airline is fine. Probably better than any U.S. airline, but not as good as the Asian or Gulf airlines.

 

The only part I don't like is going two hours' East only to turn around again to go West. But if the price is right, I guess it's worth it.

 

The European laws against smoking are more restrictive than in the United States, especially as regards the labelling of cigarette packs.

 

In my humble opinion, cigarette tobacco probably would have been made illegal worldwide decades ago if it came from places like Colombia.

 

However, because most of it is actually grown in the U.S.A. and 90% of the world's tobacco companies are subsidiaries of large U.S. or multinational corporations, unfortunately cigarettes haven't gone the way of cocaine.

 

The whole issue of tobacco and smoking seems like a double standard to me.

 

Kind regards,

 

Gunther and Uta

[joanne59]

Best flight we ever had as far as food goes. Guy behind me was a very large man, and I could not recline unless I wanted to be laying in his lap. Needless to say, not much sleep for me but the price was right because we only needed one way. We chose a flight with a long layover so that we could take the train into the city. The subway/train is at the airport, across the street. Very convenient to use and a quick trip. We did have a full day, not sure I would attempt the same thing with a shorter layover. Google the airport to see what kind of stores and restaurants they have available. It is a very clean modern airport, we enjoyed our brief stay in Zurich, I know I loved the food and chocolate for sure.

 

Happy cruising....Joanne

[slidergirl]

Well, it's indeed full of shops, but extremely "high end," very expensive shops catering to the wealthy (as far as we could tell).

 

That's why I said it provides "entertainment." I didnt' say it provides shopping opportunities. ;) It's always fun to just browse the shops and laugh at some of the prices we find for things. I remember one food shop there that did have me drooling, though...

[stinesheri]

we just did a JFK to Zurich, then on to Venice, with a a 5 hour layover in Zurich, which was way too long. The JFK ground crew for Swiss were horrible, but the flight crew was great.

 

I think you should be able to make your flight, provided you arrive on time (but that goes for any flight).

 

Yes, most stores were high end, but fun to look at, but at 1 and 1/2 hours, you won't have much time. There were also chocolate shops that seemed reasonable.

 

Yes, Swiss sells DUTY FREE cigarettes on the plane, but they don't let you actually smoke them, so what's the problem? Funny enough in Zurich, there are smoking lounges (which looked pretty comfy) with giant signs that say "Smoking will kill you". Honestly, people know the risks, so who cares what they buy.

 

Enjoy your trip!

[kannna]

My favorite part of the Zurich airport is the tram between terminals with the cowbells and milkmaids that blow kisses. I don't know if you'll have enough time to get out and see anything. 4 hours seems long but it's not as long as you may think. Because you'll have to through security and everything when you return. Last time we went through there last November they changed our outgoing gate several times and they were pretty far apart. They do have day rooms you could stay in for a bit. There are some interesting places in the airport. Now what is the zurich airport website hmm lets see..... there it is ... http://www.zurich-airport.com/

[tartegnin]

Just to be clear - the airline is no longer Swissair (that went bankrupt several years ago), but SWISS. It's decent, not great, in economy longhaul, and just about the same as anyone else in shorthaul. You do get good chocolate!

 

It's probably too late to change, but 1 hour 40 is more than enough time to transfer in Zurich - it's a very efficient airport. You probably will come in at the far terminal and have to transfer by airport train, though (and as another poster commented - look out for Heidi or mountains and listen for the cows!), but that is all very quick. No need to collect and recheck luggage - it should be checked through to BCN. If you travel light on the hand luggage, you will be better off. You will need to go through some form of immigration, since Switzerland and Spain are Schengen countries.

 

With four hours, you will have time to wander around the airport - not so interesting, or, if you are intrepid an confident, you can exit to the train station which is connected to the airport, travel into central Zurich, have a 15 minute wander and take the train back.

[btorlv]

We flew Swiss Air from LAX to Venice and then Rome back to LAX 3 or 4 years ago. It was a great flight. We had about the same lay over in Zurich. It was more than enough time to change planes. I wish I could find a good price with them on our June 3 trip out of Barcelona.