6 AM flight BCN

[barbarapga]

Have a 6 AM flight from Barcelona to Frankfurt then to USA.  Wondering what time to have car service pick up at hotel.  Is check in 2 hours or 3 hours before flight?  

Thanks for any insight!

[FlyerTalker]

Well, we don't know the airline (assuming Lufthansa).

 

We don't know where your hotel is.

 

Tough to make any kind of recommendation -- why not check direct with LH as to when their check-in desk (different than ticket desk) opens in the morning.  And then use google maps to find out what the travel time is from your hotel.  And then add in a cushion for any possible disruption.  Then book your car.  Or have the hotel arrange for a car or taxi.

 

That would be the most accurate calculation, and it would factor in YOUR desired cushion for "issues".

[Zach1213]

One thing you can do is do a Google Maps direction search from your hotel to the airport, around the day and time you plan to go...for example, how long does it take at 3:30am BCN time on a Wednesday to get there? Do that a couple weeks in a row and you can get a feeling of what the drive time will probably be similar to.

[bbtondo]

I believe the OP is asking for advice from seasoned travelers as to typically how many hours before her flight out of BCN should she arrive at the airport. Unfortunately, I've never flown out of BCN so don't have an answer for you OP.

[AF-1]

3 hours is what international airports recommend for international travel.  The OP is going from BCN to Frankfurt then the USA. So when they check in at BCN they will be processed all the way thru to the states.  3hrs is reasonable.  I took a taxi from cruise port to hotel and it was 15 min.  Google maps says its 24 min from downtown to airport. So I would think 20-25 min taxi ride

[rwdtgb]

We arrive 3 hours before our flight when flying out of BCN. We have had to wait for the counter to open once but the lines were long. We were in business class and had a few people in front of us.

[barbarapga]

MThank you all for your help.   I had contacted the hotel hoping they could recommend a car service.   That worked well in Rome  hotels. This hotel directed me to the nearest taxi stand.  At 3:30 AM!  Not when last time at Barcelona hotel I was going to wait outside for taxi.  The clerk warned against it, "You will get robbed."

A helpful friend from my roll call recommended a service.

Following Flyer Talker's advice I sent email inquiry to Lufthansa re:check in counter opening time. They said they will reply.  Giving it few more hours then will call.

I also was relieved to learn that BCN is open 24/7.

 

Thanks again! (forgive that initial M....when I try to correct on this site with the iPad....all gets erased)

Barbara Mc

[Hlitner]

As others have said, arriving at BCN 3 hours early would be the normal recommendation for an International flight.  But the OP's initial flight is to Frankfurt is technically a domestic flight since its within the EU (and between two Schengen countries).  Arriving at 3am would likely find the check-in desk closed!  If we were taking this flight we would plan on arriving at the airport around 4am.  I am sure there are others who would disagree but that is what makes life interesting.  Traffic that time of the day is very light so we would arrange for a hotel pick-up about 3:30.

 

Hank

[slidergirl]

On 9/24/2019 at 10:05 AM, AF-1 said:

3 hours is what international airports recommend for international travel.  The OP is going from BCN to Frankfurt then the USA. So when they check in at BCN they will be processed all the way thru to the states.  3hrs is reasonable.  I took a taxi from cruise port to hotel and it was 15 min.  Google maps says its 24 min from downtown to airport. So I would think 20-25 min taxi ride

No.  The flight from BCN to FRA is intra-schengen, akin to a US domestic flight.  No exit passport control.  All the exit processing will occur at FRA.  Luggage could be "through-processed" - I haven't done a Europe-Europe-USA single trip in awhile (I usually try to get nonstop).   2 hours would be enough time for an intra-shengen flight check-in.  

 

For the OP:  Does your hotel have a concierge?  The concierge should be able to book a car service for you at that early hour.   They probably said "walk to the taxi rank" because there is no doorman to call for the taxi.  Also, head over to the Spain port of call board - some may have some concrete experiences with early morning transportation,.

[travelplus]

On 9/23/2019 at 5:51 PM, barbarapga said:

Have a 6 AM flight from Barcelona to Frankfurt then to USA.  Wondering what time to have car service pick up at hotel.  Is check in 2 hours or 3 hours before flight?  

Thanks for any insight!

I would say no later than  3:30 AM. Plenty of time for an early AM flight. If you arrive by 4:00 AM that is plenty of time especially with the US connection I would not cut it closer than 2 hours before.