Is arriving at Shannon airport 50 minutes before flight departure too late?

Mr rebel

I have a little bit of a dilemma here and I'd appreciate some advice with those familiar with Shannon airport and how efficient their security check moves along.
Basically, I have a european flight there this weekend that is scheduled to depart at 10:50am, however the earliest bus I can get to the airport won't arrive there until 9:55am. This is obviously cutting it very tight but from previous experience of security checks at Cork airport for instance, I have always passed through in 5-10 minutes max with little queues.
I haven't experienced Shannon airport before so I'm not sure if they usually have long queues at their security check or not. I should also add that I have cabin luggage so won't need to check in at the airport so will be heading straight to security anyway.

The other less favourable alternative is to stay in Limerick the night before and fork out €50 for a room, plus additional travel costs, so I would prefer to avoid this option if possible.

So do you think I'd be fine with just 50 minutes to flight departure at Shannon?

TimeToShine

Are you by yourself? You'd get away with 50 minutes in Dublin let alone Shannon. You'll be fine.

Dr.Internet

check in online
you'll be grand, i've often arrived with less time to spare

Mr rebel

Cheers for the replies.
Yes I am travelling by myself and already have my boarding pass printed out so already checked in and everything.
Yeah I'll take my chances and put my faith in Bus Eireann to run on time:)

Arbiter of Good Taste

Are you checking in luggage? If not, you should be fine.

Mr rebel

Nope, just hand luggage.

peckerhead

Hang on. You say 50 minutes before *take-off*?

Ryanair boarding closes 45 minutes before take-off. Just how fast are you? :-0

And buses have *occasionally* been known to experience 5-minute delays.

I know what I'd do...

fits

peckerhead wrote: »

Ryanair check in closes 45 minutes before take-off. Just how fast are you? :-0

...

Fyp

Given they operate 25 minute turnarounds well... You know yourself.

toadfly

What if the bus is delayed? Cutting it too fine for me.

Mr rebel

Really, 45 minutes?

Damn, perhaps I do need to rethink this as I am flying Ryanair

Deagol

Mr rebel wrote: »

The other less favourable alternative is to stay in Limerick the night before and fork out €50 for a room, plus additional travel costs, so I would prefer to avoid this option if possible.

How much would a missed flight cost you? I regularly fly from Shannon and I turn up an hour before my flight with baggage to check-in. But I have been close once or twice doing it!

I certainly wouldn't chance 50 minutes even without baggage and trusting public transport to be on time is crazy! Especially as I would guess the bus you are taking will be trying to get through Limerick the tail end of rush hour / school drop off time. (Dunno if they use the tunnel)?

fits

Mr rebel wrote: »

Really, 45 minutes?

Damn, perhaps I do need to rethink this as I am flying Ryanair

He is wrong. The check in desks close 45 minutes before. Not boarding.

Id probably chance it. But id look for fast track security. You need to be at gate at least 20 minutes before departure time.

John T Carroll

peckerhead wrote: »

Hang on. You say 50 minutes before *take-off*?

Ryanair boarding closes 45 minutes before take-off. Just how fast are you? :-0

And buses have *occasionally* been known to experience 5-minute delays.

I know what I'd do...

Thats cutting it fine alright, I would also check the scheduled other Shannon Departures at your take off time as any congestion at security could prove "fatal". On my last trip with R.Air (from Palma), departure time was 1025, "gate closes" at 0955 which was only 30 minutes before take-off, check your ticket to see if yours is the same, you may have another few minutes to spare.

HeidiHeidi

Have to say the public transport/bus element of this plan is the bit that would be giving me palpitations.

If you KNEW you were going to arrive at the airport at 9.55am, I'd say go for it - but how actually reliable are those arrival times?

Mr rebel

Bus Eireann have been generally very reliable when I have used them in the past, but of course there is always a risk..
I think I will just compromise and once the bus arrives in Limerick bus station at 9:05am (it takes a 20 minute break there before leaving for Shannon which is the annoying killer), I will immediately jump into a taxi instead.
A taxi from Limerick to Shannon airport is very steep for a solo traveller (€35-€40) but still cheaper than an overnight hotel stay and I should be at the airport for 9:30am at least.

starlit

Is there an earlier bus you could take? You need to give extra time for time delays, getting to Shannon Airport the traffic isn't too bad. I wouldn't chance it with Ryanair though they can be a stickler for time sometimes. I'd suggest to stay at the hotel near the airport if you can book a room shouldn't be too pricey for one person otherwise stay in a hotel in the city or within walking distance of the bus/train station. Check out the prices and location of hotels that be of interest to you if it means saving time getting to the airport, no panic then?! The frustration of trying to make a flight on time can be a nuisance and stressful. Depending where you traveling from a Taxi is a good option too.

theteal

"Gate closes" 30 minutes before take off, I don't know where this 45 minutes mentioned earlier came from. "Gate closes" is actually the time that they announce boarding, nothing actually starts to move for another 5 minutes. You can sit at the gate for another 15 minutes waiting for the queue to dwindle down. You'll be fine OP

highlydebased

You'll definitely be fine. I regularly arrive just 35 min before a flight and I always have a wait for boarding

the_syco

Mr rebel wrote: »

however the earliest bus I can get to the airport won't arrive there until 9:55am.

Weekday or weekend? What roads will you be taking? Weekday rainy day could funk up your transport plans!

athtrasna

OP only you can decide how big a risk you want to take. Strangers on this forum have nothing to lose either way so it's easy to hand out "advice" . Personally I wouldn't risk it but that's because the stress of worrying I'd miss a flight is not worth it to me.

VG31

I've never been on a flight where the gate closed at the stated time. Mostly boarding starts at the time the gate is supposed to close.

grimm2005

Agree with most folk that MOST of the time the flight only starts boarding at the "gate closing" time but there has been one or two occasions where I got to the gate at that time and it was down to the last 10 or so people boarding the plane so I'd always build in enough time to be at the gate a bit before that time.

peckerhead

My bad, above — I confused the cut-off for check-in with the closure of the boarding gates.

Bag Drop Desks
We recommend that passengers travelling with checked baggage should arrive at the airport 2 hours prior to the scheduled flight departure. Bag drop desks close strictly 40 minutes prior to departure. You must have paid any checked baggage fees and/or excess baggage charges and deposited your checked baggage at a Bag Drop desk no later than 40 minutes before scheduled departure time.

Boarding Gate
Get to the boarding gate in good time - Boarding commences 30 minutes before the scheduled departure time. The boarding gate closes 20 minutes before the scheduled flight departure time.

Link

So you have an extra 20-odd minutes to play with. Travelling alone, checked in already, cabin baggage only... you might be fine.

Provided —
Bus to Limerick is not delayed.
Bus to airport leaves and arrives on time.
i.e. No unusual traffic, breakdown, unscheduled detours (to pick up another driver in Shannon Town Centre; it's happened to me twice...)
You don't suddenly feel sick or have to use a toilet. You don't lose/forget anything, or take a wrong turn in an unfamiliar airport.
No congestion/queues at security (it can take 5 minutes or 35 minutes, I've been flying out of Shannon for 20+ years... hence my misremembering of the 45-minute cut-off that Ryanair & Aer Lingus used to impose)
Nothing in your cabin bag or on your person causes security to send you through twice. Or someone else in front of you.
Noone decides to check out a young (?) male travelling alone.
Ryanair vultures staff don't decide to weigh/measure your cabin bag, just for lulz.

...etc.

I think at the very least you should go with your idea of bus-to-Limerick + taxi-to-airport. Most of the hackney companies listed here do a set fare to the airport of €30 (not €35/€40, that's what you'll pay from the rank, subject to traffic). The nearest set-price crowd to Colbert Station are Well Cabs (grotty hole in-the-wall place about 100m from the station entrance, turn right as you come out the front gates).

Bon voyage! :pac:

Mr rebel

Thanks for the advice everyone, especially the detailed post above me.
I believe I will indeed go for the bus to Limerick + taxi to airport option to be on the safe side:)

ger664

Assuming you are travelling Saturday morning
7:00 Train from cork gets in @ 8:35 and there is a 343 service going to Shannon @ 8:35. There are in the same building off the train leg up the platform and exit out to your left. You might just make it otherwise it gives you more time with the taxi option.

Mr rebel

ger664 wrote: »

Assuming you are travelling Saturday morning
7:00 Train from cork gets in @ 8:35 and there is a 343 service going to Shannon @ 8:35. There are in the same building off the train leg up the platform and exit out to your left. You might just make it otherwise it gives you more time with the taxi option.

Thanks, I'm travelling Friday morning but the schedule is the same. I could get the 7:00am train but having the airport bus leave at the exact same time the train arrives is pretty moronic considering I'm sure there are quite a few passengers like myself who would be looking to transfer over to that bus.
I'll try it anyway and if I likely miss that bus, I'll go for the taxi:)

Mr rebel

So I got the train and unfortunately the airport bus was already gone by the time I arrived in Limerick. I quickly looked around for the suggested cab office but couldn't see it, so went back to the taxi rank outside the station and forked out €40 for a 20 minute journey.
It's a shame really that Shannon airport is so poorly serviced by public transport from Limerick. There should be an express bus running every 30 minutes.

schemingbohemia

Mr rebel wrote: »

So I got the train and unfortunately the airport bus was already gone by the time I arrived in Limerick. I quickly looked around for the suggested cab office but couldn't see it, so went back to the taxi rank outside the station and forked out €40 for a 20 minute journey.
It's a shame really that Shannon airport is so poorly serviced by public transport from Limerick. There should be an express bus running every 30 minutes.

No there shouldn't.

How many flights per day go from Shannon?
How many people using Shannon are going from Limerick, rather than Galway/Kerry/Clare/Cork?

ger664

The fact that we have no rail link to any airport in this country speaks volumes for the joined up thinking with regard to linking the transports systems in this country.

Arbiter of Good Taste

ger664 wrote: »

The fact that we have no rail link to any airport in this country speaks volumes for the joined up thinking with regard to linking the transports systems in this country.

To be fair, there are plenty of airports in major cities with no rail link - never mind a quiet airport like Shannon.

Mr rebel

schemingbohemia wrote: »

No there shouldn't.

How many flights per day go from Shannon?
How many people using Shannon are going from Limerick, rather than Galway/Kerry/Clare/Cork?

There appears to be roughly 30 flights a day departing from Shannon which is a lot for a "quiet" airport.
Limerick is the base city for Shannon with the main bus station and rail links. Many of those travelling from the south-west would have their journey terminate at Limerick.
It makes sense that a regular shuttle service should be serving the Limerick - airport route.

JCX BXC

Around 24 flights a day depart SNN on Wednesdays in the peak season. 30mins may be a bit much but maybe they should have bus services focused on peak times for airport operations. Eg all year round flights to Heathrow, Boston, New York, Stansted all depart around the same time, they should have bus services based on these services. A bus departing Limerick at 5am is needed imo.

schemingbohemia

Mr rebel wrote: »

There appears to be roughly 30 flights a day departing from Shannon which is a lot for a "quiet" airport.
Limerick is the base city for Shannon with the main bus station and rail links. Many of those travelling from the south-west would have their journey terminate at Limerick.
It makes sense that a regular shuttle service should be serving the Limerick - airport route.

Carnacalla wrote: »

Around 24 flights a day depart SNN on Wednesdays in the peak season. 30mins may be a bit much but maybe they should have bus services focused on peak times for airport operations. Eg all year round flights to Heathrow, Boston, New York, Stansted all depart around the same time, they should have bus services based on these services. A bus departing Limerick at 5am is needed imo.

If there was money in the market I would have thought that Dublin Coach or Citylink or Gobus would be in like Flynn.
I wonder if the OP saw many people that got off the train in Limerick at Shannon Airport? I would seriously doubt it.
So basically people are saying that the public should subsidise a bus to go from Limerick train station to Shannon Airport - never going to happen, the market is just too disparate for it to work.
How many people get off at Sixmilebridge and get a Taxi from there?

JCX BXC

schemingbohemia wrote: »

If there was money in the market I would have thought that Dublin Coach or Citylink or Gobus would be in like Flynn.
I wonder if the OP saw many people that got off the train in Limerick at Shannon Airport? I would seriously doubt it.
So basically people are saying that the public should subsidise a bus to go from Limerick train station to Shannon Airport - never going to happen, the market is just too disparate for it to work.
How many people get off at Sixmilebridge and get a Taxi from there?

No point thinking about wheather private operators have entered the market, they don't prove that there's no market. Ireland is an usual country in terms of public transport as outside Dublin there's practically none that's not Bus Eireann.

I would also seriously doubt the OP say many faces getting off the train in Limerick for Shannon for 2 reasons.

1. Cork has an airport. People use cork airport alot.

2. Not many people are willing to take that risky connection.

How is that relevant though? Did you just say it for the sake of trying to undermine the airport?

Who said the public should subsidise a bus service from Limerick-Shannon? Why won't it work? I can't see why a service aimed towards the service times will not do better than the current one? How many people get a taxi from Sixmilebridge? Not many, unlike Limerick or Ennis there isn't a taxi rank.

Vic_08

... and the usual moany drivel from people who want a bus service to magically appear exactly at the times it suits them on the very rare occasions they actually want to use it.

Mr rebel wrote: »

It's a shame really that Shannon airport is so poorly serviced by public transport from Limerick. There should be an express bus running every 30 minutes.

And no doubt that dedicated shuttle will be well funded by your regular journeys, right?

That poor service you mention is actually 35+ services each way per day Mon-Sat.

Mr rebel wrote: »

There appears to be roughly 30 flights a day departing from Shannon which is a lot for a "quiet" airport.
Limerick is the base city for Shannon with the main bus station and rail links. Many of those travelling from the south-west would have their journey terminate at Limerick.
It makes sense that a regular shuttle service should be serving the Limerick - airport route.

It only makes sense that a dedicated shuttle is operated if the demand is such that the current service was filled with airport passengers. It isn't. There is a steady flow but nowhere near busy enough for a standalone airport service to cover it's running costs.

Carnacalla wrote: »

Around 24 flights a day depart SNN on Wednesdays in the peak season. 30mins may be a bit much but maybe they should have bus services focused on peak times for airport operations. Eg all year round flights to Heathrow, Boston, New York, Stansted all depart around the same time, they should have bus services based on these services. A bus departing Limerick at 5am is needed imo.

It is traditionally helpful to make some small effort to know the first thing about a topic before wading in with criticisms and suggestions.

Had you bothered to look up the current timetable you might have noticed there is in fact a bus from Limerick at 05.05 daily.

There are buses running all day with connections from Limerick to every outgoing flight and all but one incoming flight at the airport.

That flight by the way arrives nearly 3 hours later than the previous arrival and passengers on it probably miss the last bus to Limerick by around 15 mns, perhaps you should all complain to Ryanair for running flights that do not connect with the bus service.

Carnacalla wrote: »

No point thinking about wheather private operators have entered the market, they don't prove that there's no market. Ireland is an usual country in terms of public transport as outside Dublin there's practically none that's not Bus Eireann.

That will be more of your well researched expertise then I assume. :rolleyes:

JCX BXC

Appears I was wrong.
I shall retire.