Connections at Heathrow or De Gaulle Airports

I am trying to book air for a cruise next April. I want to travel from Boston to Athens and return from Istanbul to Boston. I am looking for air using Kayak.com. It seems all available flights have at least one stop along the way. That said, the issue is to avoid long connection wait times.

 

I find several flights with connections through Heathrow or De Gaulle with connection times of 1~1.5 hour layovers. Has anyone been through Heathrow of De Gaulle lately? Is 1~1.5 enough time to make connections through these airports?

I am trying to book air for a cruise next April. I want to travel from Boston to Athens and return from Istanbul to Boston. I am looking for air using Kayak.com. It seems all available flights have at least one stop along the way. That said, the issue is to avoid long connection wait times.

 

The issue really is to make sure that you have enough time for connections without worry or rushing through airports. Better to have a 6 hour connection than a missed one, IMO, especially at CDG.

 

I find several flights with connections through Heathrow or De Gaulle with connection times of 1~1.5 hour layovers. Has anyone been through Heathrow of De Gaulle lately? Is 1~1.5 enough time to make connections through these airports?

 

I wouldn't be doing it if I had a choice. At CDG, you are often at a remote pad, and are bused to the terminal. Ditto for your outbound. That adds to the time eaten up in the connect. You will likely have to change terminals as well. Put in even a short delay and you have missed your flight.

 

Globaliser is the LHR expert here -- I'll defer to his expertise on that airport.

If it was me I would do two things.

 

I would use that web site just to get a feel for flights but I would book through the airline. I would see what other flights are available that are later from LHR to Athens. Same on returun. That way when I call the airline I would specify the later flights which would give me a longer layover. We do that all the time. Regardless of whether or not it's enough time if you rflight is delayed from taking off which no one on this board can predict you could have a problem. So I say go with a longer layover and spend the extra time walking around the airport without the pressures.

 

Second, whille I am not a Heatrhow fan I prefer it over CDG so I would go with Heathrow.

 

Keith

A couple of advantages for CDG: No UK carry-on regulations to deal with, more SkyTeam connections (if FF program is important). Disadvantages: Gallic charm, Gallic efficiency, AF ground service, many remote aircraft pads, confusing signage, reports of luggage issues. Oh did I mention AF ground service and Gallic charm?

 

Have you considered either DL in both directions (BOS-JFK-ATH and IST-JFK-BOS), or CO to ATH and DL on the return? Your connects would be at EWR or JFK (intra-terminal) and only one long flight across the pond. (no 3+ hour flight into ATH/IST). Also, look at NW/KLM through AMS. Newer A330's on the TATL segment with AVOD in coach.

I loathe CDG with a passion. I can't believe any moron would design an airport like that on purpose. That said you won't need to encounter the daft one carry on rules through LHR.

 

I can't think of any LHR connections that would be in the same terminal for BOS and since that is the case I'd say a 1hr connection is on the tight side, a 90min connection you might be OK. However the BOS flights do arrive at LHR peak time so you might get a bit jammed up.

 

If I were in your shoes I'd probably try and bump my connection time up another hour or so (you'll probably need to go longer) and go with whichever airline you prefer to fly with.

Inter-terminal connections at Heathrow are always intersting. Plus, you have to deal with the British VERY strict one carry-on no matter what policy.

 

Inter-terminal connections CDG are always intersting. Hint: know what terminal you arrive in and which terminal you depart from; study a map before you go; walk, do not wait for the shuttle.

 

There is no way that I would want to try to make a 1.5 hour connection at either airport. In fact, there is no way I'd want to make such a connection anywhere. If your first plane is just a little late, Murphy will invoke his Law and your second plane will leave on time (even if it has not left on-time since 1956). Even if you make it, your bags may not.

 

I'd do this route by taking the Amtrak or a flight to EWR and taking Continental non-stop to Athens. Or, fly to JFK and take Delta non-stop from there. The latter is most likely much less expensive.

 

Paul

]I find several flights with connections through Heathrow or De Gaulle with connection times of 1~1.5 hour layovers. Has anyone been through Heathrow of De Gaulle lately? Is 1~1.5 enough time to make connections through these airports?

For Heathrow, a 1 hour connection is not enough time. I don't think it's even a "legal" connection, so if any website is trying to book you with such a connection, my advice would be not to do business with it because it's probably trying to do something peculiar just to to be able to present you with an apparently lower fare, leaving you with all the risk if it goes wrong.

 

A 90-minute connection involving a terminal change is, I think, now the minimum legal connection time between British Airways flights. So regard this as the absolute minimum. Personally, I would be more comfortable with an extra hour built into the trip at this point.

 

That said, in May I did a "75-minute" inter-terminal transfer than actually left me with only 30 minutes from getting off the inbound aircraft onto a bus (not parked at a jetway gate but on a remote stand). I made it, and without breaking a sweat. So it is possible to have very little time and still make your flight. Just don't count on it!

 

Don't forget that price and connection times and points are only two of the factors that you need to consider when choosing a route. Some airlines are distinctly better than others, and can make the difference between a miserable experience and something reasonably pleasant on the same trip. (I won't pretend that flying in economy is ever a bed of roses, though!) If connecting through Heathrow gets you trips on better airlines, that's worth thinking about even if there is a certain amount of connection hassle.

 

One other thing: deliberately-chosen long connection times can actually be useful on a long trip. For example, you could use the opportunity to have a shower after the overnight trans-Atlantic flight before your shorter connection to Athens. It will make you feel much better. Ditto for taking time to get some decent breakfast and coffee rather than relying on the airline's food, which is often crammed full of sugar and salt to make it taste "better", as food flavours are very dull at altitude because of the low air pressure in the cabin.