Connecting flight panic - worried about timings at Geneva

[Thatwaskindoffun]

I’m going to be travelling Nice to Geneva and then Geneva to Bristol in a couple of weeks time, hand luggage only, flights were cheaper to book this way but now I’m panicking I won’t have enough time between flights.

The Nice flight lands at 9.05 and the Bristol flight gate closes at 10.20, does anyone have thoughts on whether this is doable?

As long as the first leg of the flight isn't delayed significantly, that's loads of time. Plus if it's a true connecting flight on the same booking, if you do miss the second flight, they'll put you on the next one.

Also, while you should aim to be at the gate before the 'gate closes' time, it's rarely the latest time you'll be let on the plane - quite often with a lot of flights, you'd not be let through the gate until 10-20 mins before take off time and at gate closing time, the incoming flight hasn't even arrived. I've been on connecting flights at similarly large airports (CDG, Schipol, Brussels) with a connection time from landing to take off of under an hour, but in reality, it's been fine, although I did have to walk briskly from one end of Brussels airport to the other, sadly passing all the chocolate shops that I didn't have time to look in.

Don't forget that, especially if you have a non EU passport, you'll likely have to go through a passport check at Geneva.

Thank you! I should have said in my op it’s not a true connecting flight, it’s 2 separate flights. Between the worry about timings and fear of flight cancellations thanks to the jet fuel issues now, I wish I’d sucked it up and booked the expensive direct flight for 3 x the price

Do you know if you can stay airside?

Geneva is big and the last twice that I’ve been there, I’ve had long queues for passport control on the way to my gates.

try to book a seat at the front of your first flight so you can get off quickly. Sign up on the Geneva airport website for WhatsApp or messenger updates for your second flight so you know the gate the second that it’s announced and be on a mission to get there.

Good luck!

OK, so if you make the second flight, which you probably will, you've saved a lot of money.

If you miss the second flight, you'll still need to get from Geneva to Bristol. How time critical is it? Will you need another flight the same day or will you be able to stay in Geneva if a later flight is much cheaper or not until the next day? Can you get the train back? If you do end up having to book another flight, unless it costs more than the difference between the cheap flight you booked and the expensive direct one, you're not any worse off. Plus if there's a delay beyond 3 hours and it's the airline's fault, you'll get compensation towards the cost.

At least I'd be looking at other flights from Geneva to Bristol later that day, plus any other airport you could get home easily from (Birmingham, Cardiff, London?) so I know where to start looking if I needed to.

Geneva airport tends to run on a punctual timetable so chances are you’ll be fine. I assume your first flight from Nice is on easyJet. These planes are usually parked up a distance away from the main terminal area, so you might have to walk a significant amount and/or wait for a shuttle if you arrive at a remote stand (unlikely at that time of day).

Follow signs for exit or connections until you’re in the main departures area, then you’ll have to go towards the ex-Schengen gates where your UK flight will be departing from. It should be doable, but keep moving.

It’s actually very likely your flight from Nice will land at the French sector gates, which are not very far from the exit point, as they’re treated more as a “commuting” terminal and therefore located quite close to the entrance and exit.

PS I’ve just looked at the flight history of your 9.05 Nice arrival, and for the past week it’s always been on time, even 5/10 mins early on occasion. It’s incredibly likely you’ll have no issues, but do formulate a plan a B like PP said, for peace of mind, should something go wrong!

in GVA, there is a "french side" and a "rest of the world side" - i ve only done the trip via the french bit the other way, but back then i had to get out of one area and in (through security) the other.

based on this, and the fact that many easyjet planes land away from the main terminal, i d be planning a plan B if i were you. sorry

I’m not sure you’ll make it. By the time the plane disembarks (and you may need shuttles to the terminal by bus), it could already be 9:20.

You are going from European Schengen area, over the the other part of the airport for UK flights, probably needing passport control again. It could be very tight.

Is there a later easyjet flight you could travel on to Bristol?

The EasyJet gates at Geneva close 30 minutes before departure so it’s likely you are going to run out of time.

thanks all, really regret my choices but I am where I am with it I guess, will look at a plan B today

It’s worth a try!

I remember literally sprinting across Schipol when my flight arrived late one time, and the lady on the security gate hurrying me and shouting “Run! You can make it!” as I whizzed through.

You need your trainers on.

Don’t stand and queue at security - very politely make yourself known to staff and other passengers “excuse me I have a flight connection departing in 25 minutes, please may I go past?”

I did make my flight. I hope you do too!

What kind of passport are you travelling on? Is it an egate-friendly one?

Don’t worry yourself too much ahead of time, simply check what other flights there might be to Bristol later on that day. EasyJet charge a flat fee of £110 for a “rescue flight” - eg same destination but you arrived at the airport max 2 hours late for your booked flight.

Otherwise, there are plenty of flights to London from GVA every day - I’m sure one of them will have seats.

In the future, check the worldwide connections feature on easyJet which might sell an itinerary such as yours, but on a protected through-status.

If you need to go through passport control, it could be anything. I’ve been through Geneva twice in the last month - once we queued for over an hour both in and out, the other they were both less than 10 mins (same days of the week).