Getting to Basel

The cruise line has offered us a flight from the US with a 90 minute layover in Paris (CDG) for our connection to Basel. Any experience in CDG if 90 minutes is enough?

You can't afford to have your landing delayed. I'd opt for a longer layover.

Agree. If you know CDG well and are familiar with the process of connecting there (you will almost certainly change terminals, which will often involve a bus or train ride), I'd try for a minimum of 2h. And yes, your plane needs to be on time if your layover is much less than that.

I assume you're flying SkyTeam - Delta and/or AF. You arrive in Terminal 2E, which has three subterminals, K, L, and M. You will have to exit through passport control, then go to your terminal (most commonly 2F, but sometimes 2G) to get your Basel flight. This usually involves another trip through security, though it's been a while since we did this. Our last few trips through CDG were either direct arrivals, or non-Schengen connections. You definitely have to go through security again for non-Schengen connections, even when you're staying in the same terminal.

So this can all take time. The lines for passport control can be long. There is a (usually) shorter line for elite status or business class, and they have a tight connections line that moves quicker. Security has been pretty quick our last few visits there but that's never a guarantee. And there can be lines for the buses (navettes) that shuttle you between terminals.

Thanks, our last trip through CDG was in 2012 and I remember the hike between terminals.

We're going to Basel for an April 19 embarkation on Tauck. Going in a couple days early. Our TA routed us through Amsterdam on Delta purposely to avoid CDG.

Our other option seems to be Frankfurt

Our other option seems to be Frankfurt

Will you have a 90 minute layover in Frankfurt? I would not take that as Frankfurt is huge. I do not know Charles de Gaule so cannot compare. Amsterdam sounds a good alternative to avoid Paris.

I wonder if there is another way, not necessarily Heathrow, though. That could be worse than Paris. An airport like Düsseldorf or Luxembourg perhaps. Might such places be suitable, meaning: offer transatlantic flights?

I would look and shop around perhaps. There are many international airports for flights within Europe but not being familiar with transatlantic flights I cannot give you a specific suggestion.

notamermaid

Basel is a strange airport, because it is actually Basel Mulhouse.Freiburg airport. That means that it is partially Schengen (Mulhouse is in France and Freiburg in Germany, both Schengen, and Basel is in Switzerland - not Schengen). You exit different doors into different countries. I don't know whether that makes any difference to connections or not.

I guess the big question is, since Basel requires a connection wherever you are coming from, whether flying into Zurich (non-stop from North America) and taking a train to Basel might be a better solution, and probably as fast. You have to be prepared to deal with your luggage however, and the train fare probably wouldn't be covered by the cruise line.

IME 90 min is the absolute bare minimum.

Be prepared to run.

Ira

Basel is a strange airport, because it is actually Basel Mulhouse.Freiburg airport. That means that it is partially Schengen (Mulhouse is in France and Freiburg in Germany, both Schengen, and Basel is in Switzerland - not Schengen). You exit different doors into different countries. I don't know whether that makes any difference to connections or not.

 

I guess the big question is, since Basel requires a connection wherever you are coming from, whether flying into Zurich (non-stop from North America) and taking a train to Basel might be a better solution, and probably as fast. You have to be prepared to deal with your luggage however, and the train fare probably wouldn't be covered by the cruise line.

Yes, that is a weird thing indeed about Basel airport. I've never flown into there, but it's a strange concept to me. When our cruise left out of Basel, we flew to Zurich the day before, rented a car, and drove to Basel the next day so we could tour some Roman ruins along the way, which we otherwise couldn't have reached.

Excellent point about the airplane to train connection. We have done that more frequently in the past 3-4 years, as we've become more facile with the process. I might not suggest it for a first-time visitor, even though in reality, it's quite easy. Zurich has a big train station right in the airport that has lots of connections, and it's a quick direct train to Basel.

Frankfurt is another airport with a lot of train connections, though Frankfurt to Basel is a bit longer than Zurich - Basel; almost 3h, though they too have direct trains. We've flown to Frankfurt a bunch to catch trains, and we just took the train from Geneva to Zurich to get a direct flight home last December rather than fly out of Geneva with a connection.

As a further comment on the original question. Our last few connections in CDG have been just as smooth as could be, with the longest gate to gate time of about 30 minutes. I know you can't count on this every time, and I still try to book a minimum 2h layover, and I wouldn't recommend much less. But perhaps their operations are getting a bit smoother, and more efficient?

IME 90 min is the absolute bare minimum.

Be prepared to run.

Ira

Basel is a strange airport, because it is actually Basel Mulhouse.Freiburg airport. That means that it is partially Schengen (Mulhouse is in France and Freiburg in Germany, both Schengen, and Basel is in Switzerland - not Schengen). You exit different doors into different countries. I don't know whether that makes any difference to connections or not.

 

I guess the big question is, since Basel requires a connection wherever you are coming from, whether flying into Zurich (non-stop from North America) and taking a train to Basel might be a better solution, and probably as fast. You have to be prepared to deal with your luggage however, and the train fare probably wouldn't be covered by the cruise line.

This is incorrect. Switzerland is a Schengen country which means that there is no passport control when arriving from another Schengen country such as France or Germany. It is not a member of the EU, so there are customs, but these are a mere formality.

On the question of connections, I would be uncomfortable with 90 minutes at Charles de Gaulle but I think that Frankfurt would be manageable, and I have done this on a number of occasions, as Frankfurt is a very convenient European hub for me. The main delay at Frankfurt will be passport control which sometimes can get jammed up, and it does make a positive difference if your two carriers are part of the same airline alliance. However, my latest flight into Frankfurt was last September and I recall that after arriving on an overseas flight at 0820, I was through passport control, had collected my bags and was in the airport train station by 0900.

This is incorrect. Switzerland is a Schengen country which means that there is no passport control when arriving from another Schengen country such as France or Germany. It is not a member of the EU, so there are customs, but these are a mere formality.

I stand corrected.

Been convinced. Took the longer layover in Frankfurt.

Sounds smart. If you somehow miss your connection, you can always catch the train right from the airport as a plan b.

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Sounds smart. If you somehow miss your connection, you can always catch the train right from the airport as a plan b.

 

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I was thinking that.

If you checked luggage you do have to get it back, which costs you time.

If you checked luggage you do have to get it back, which costs you time.

Only at your final destination on your baggage check. Not like the US where baggage must be claimed at initial port of entry.

For some years Switzerland was an "island" in the middle of Schengen, but it joined in 2008.

No, I understand that. If you are changing to the train, you need to get your luggage.

No, I understand that. If you are changing to the train, you need to get your luggage.

If you have a through air-rail connection in FRA, your checked bags are delivered to the AiRail Terminal; pick up your luggage, pass through the green or red customs line, and board the train with your luggage. Usually this will take only a couple of extra minutes

Again, we are talking about a situation where you miss a flight connection and decide to take the train. I was pointing out the small hiccup.

If you checked luggage you do have to get it back, which costs you time.

Would only do this in an emergency.

I wouldn't worry about trying to take a train if you miss your connection. Presumably you will be arriving at FRA early in the morning and there will be plenty of later flights during the day. As well, your ship will likely not be leaving Basel until the evening or in some cases, the next morning. As well unless you only have carry-on luggage, your bags will have been shipped through to Basel-Mulhouse, and you will likely be unable to easily retrieve them at FRA.