Frankfurt Airport - connecting from the US to Barcelona question

[fortinweb]

We are arriving in Frankfurt on a Lufthansa A380 double decker flight from the US, with a 2-1/2 hour connection through to Barcelona. Would anyone explain to me what the process is through customs/immigration, including what to do with checked baggage, which we are hoping we can check all the way through? I am responsible for herding four adults (:D), two of whom are elderly and will be completely depending on me to guide them through, so it would be very helpful to know ahead of time what I am in for.

 

Thanks!!!

[CruiserBruce]

A little searching on the boards will find lots of info. Summary:

 

You will go thru Passport Check and a security recheck in FRA. You will not see your luggage- it should have been checked thru to BCN.

 

At BCN, you will claim your bags, then exit, unless you have any customs issues to declare, which is unlikely. Customs in Europe is incredibly easy.

 

Coming back, you will go thru customs and immigration at your first touch of US soil, no matter if it is your final destination. You will claim your bags, then recheck, if you have a connecting flight. Re-checking is usually done immediately after the Customs area, where airline personnel will be to help you do this fairly easily.

 

By the way, this is the procedure for all aircraft coming from the US, not just the A380, which is a pretty neat plane.

[fortinweb]

A little searching on the boards will find lots of info. Summary:

 

You will go thru Passport Check and a security recheck in FRA. You will not see your luggage- it should have been checked thru to BCN.

 

At BCN, you will claim your bags, then exit, unless you have any customs issues to declare, which is unlikely. Customs in Europe is incredibly easy.

 

Coming back, you will go thru customs and immigration at your first touch of US soil, no matter if it is your final destination. You will claim your bags, then recheck, if you have a connecting flight. Re-checking is usually done immediately after the Customs area, where airline personnel will be to help you do this fairly easily.

 

By the way, this is the procedure for all aircraft coming from the US, not just the A380, which is a pretty neat plane.

 

Thank you. I did do a search on this forum, but didn't see any thread that specifically dealt with my question. I did see many threads that had a reference, but I was having difficulty scanning all of them to find the info.

 

I mentioned the A380 only because of the large number of people this plane carries - 526 to be exact if the plane is full, which ours looks like it will be. I'm curious how well they handle so many people arriving at the same time.

[CruiserBruce]

Thank you. I did do a search on this forum, but didn't see any thread that specifically dealt with my question. I did see many threads that had a reference, but I was having difficulty scanning all of them to find the info.

 

I mentioned the A380 only because of the large number of people this plane carries - 526 to be exact if the plane is full, which ours looks like it will be. I'm curious how well they handle so many people arriving at the same time.[/quote

 

Quite familiar with the A380. It is a well designed airplane.

 

FRA has customized a couple of gates to have three gangways for the A380. So have a few other airports, like SFO. We flew SFO-FRA in May and June. The biggest trick was bag claim in SFO was on two different carousels, but no display explained that. We thought our bags were lost, and waited over 30 minutes before discovering the second carousel.

 

Overall things go pretty smoothly.

[Alex71]

Immigration in Frankfurt is quick and painless. Usually, you just have to show your passport, no questions asked.

 

As planes from non-Schengen counties are coming in all the time, they are used to handling a large volume of passengers. The wait should not be longer than five or ten minutes.

 

The minimum connection time in Frankfurt is 45 minutes, so you'll have more than enought time. Here's some info from the airport for connecting passengers: http://www.frankfurt-airport.com/content/frankfurt_airport/en/transfer.html

 

Since you're entering the Schengen area in Frankfurt, you won't have to show your passport in Barcelona again, but since your luggage will be checked through, you clear customs there.

[Globaliser]

I mentioned the A380 only because of the large number of people this plane carries - 526 to be exact if the plane is full, which ours looks like it will be. I'm curious how well they handle so many people arriving at the same time.

At Frankfurt, it's probably barely noticeable or noticed amongst the many thousands of people arriving every hour, many of them in batches of 350 or so in 747s and similarly-sized aircraft.

[kaisatsu]

Be sure to check the signs for your connecting flight as soon as you deplane in Frankfurt. There are two terminals, and European flights depart from both, so you might have to switch terminals. Once you know which terminal and/or gate you're headed to, follow the signs. I find that there are a few places at FRA where it can be a bit tricky, so keep an eye out.

 

I transfer through Frankfurt a lot, and I once had the wrong information for my onward flight, so I waited in line for the wrong passport control point only to be turned away and sent a different direction.

 

As previously mentioned, it's a huge airport, so security lines are rarely long (and their security screeners are quite efficient). The only time I've had any noticeable delays are flying out of Frankfurt on a flight to the US. They seem to funnel US flights through one particular passport control point, and sometimes that line can get long (I've spent over 30 minutes in it before). Coming into Frankfurt, however, I've never had any issues.

 

Regarding the A380, if you're in a window seat, the bulkhead curves farther from the seat than on most other planes. I tend to sleep leaning against the wall, and that doesn't work so well unless you have an extra pillow or two to fill the gap. Otherwise, I didn't find it to look much different from any other large-body aircraft on the inside, because you can't see beyond your section of the cabin. To get a feel for the true size, plan to take a stroll from one end to the other.