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Flight connections -how long to leave

  • 10-09-2011 04:52PM
    #1
    Usjes
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 327 ✭✭


    Hi,

    Does anyone know where I would find guidelines on booking flight connections? Or do such things exist? When booking short haul flights piecemeal (eg RyanAir Dublin->London to connect with EasyJet London-> Athens) how long should one leave to connect? I understand that if I book the whole journey (Dub-Athens) through a travel agent then it is their responsibility to make sure there is enough connection time and their responsibility to sort it out if the first flight is delayed causing me to miss the second. For individually booked flights though what is the deal? How long should I leave and if I do still miss it will my travel insurance cover the cost of a replacement flight or does the airline whose flight was delayed bear any responsibility?

    Thanks


Comments

  • #2
    Stinicker
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 7,102 ✭✭✭Stinicker


    Usjes wrote: »
    Hi,

    Does anyone know where I would find guidelines on booking flight connections? Or do such things exist? When booking short haul flights piecemeal (eg RyanAir Dublin->London to connect with EasyJet London-> Athens) how long should one leave to connect? I understand that if I book the whole journey (Dub-Athens) through a travel agent then it is their responsibility to make sure there is enough connection time and their responsibility to sort it out if the first flight is delayed causing me to miss the second. For individually booked flights though what is the deal? How long should I leave and if I do still miss it will my travel insurance cover the cost of a replacement flight or does the airline whose flight was delayed bear any responsibility?

    Thanks

    You have two separate flights booked with two different low cost airline companies, booking it though a travel agent would make no difference other that you'd be paying extra for doing so. Booking through a travel agent is handy when booking full service airlines as they can book you on Aer Lingus/BMI with a multitude of different full service carriers under one ticket with the interline baggage agreement and if the outbound flight to London is delayed they will usually put you on the next available flight out or put you up in a hotel until the following day etc. This does not usually happen with Low Cost Carriers however.

    It would not be their responsibility if you missed one flight as a result of the first one being delayed etc. and neither Easyjet nor Ryanair would accept that and as far as they are concerned you are the same as the passenger living near Luton or Stansted and it is up to you to arrive on time for check in for that flight. This is typical practice with low cost carriers.

    Quite often if you booked a flight eg. with a normal full service airline like British Airways to Athens etc. then you would be on one ticket and one booking wherby you'd fly with Aer Lingus from Ireland and connect at Heathrow for British Airways and your bags would be checked through as part of the interline agreement many full service airlines have with each other.

    However as you are flying two low cost carriers you will have to re claim your baggage, and go out into the arrivals hall and then go to departures and check back in with Easyjet or Ryanair depending on which leg of the journey you are on. This all takes time and in most cases check in closes 40-60 minutes before departure time so you'd want a minimum of at least two hours to do a lowcost airline transfer because you could be waiting 20-25mins for you baggage if you have any checked baggage and allow for any delays in your inbound flight.

    Both Ryanair and Easyjet only sell single flights and even if you were travelling with them for the whole journey they'd treat you the same so allow 2 to 3 hours for transfer and if it goes pear-shaped your travel agent won't be of any help.

    The airline whose flight is delayed bears no responsibility as they are contracted to fly you from point a to point b and unless the delay is over 2 and a half hours then you'd get nothing back afaik and after that EU regulations state you are entitled to compensation.

    All travel insurance levels of cover differ so you'd want to check your own policy to be sure, however a friend of mine booked two separate flights to Egypt last winter and due to the snow in Heathrow he was delayed in getting home by three days in which time he had long missed his separate Aer Lingus flight home, however his insurance covered him for it so it is all down to the Terms and Conditions of your particular insurance policy, some do, some don't is the answer really.


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