Anyone care to share their experiences when flying thru Frankfurt?

Where are you traveling to, Namibia? My wife and I went trhough there in 2007 on our trip to Namibia for leopard, and found it quite a pleasant break. We got a day room at the Sheraton across from the terminal. She was quite tired from the flight, and it was a refreshing nap, shower, and then a nice dinner before leaving for Windhoek. A lot of people here on AR have done it, with some sightseeing on the break. The Germans were as efficient as ever, and we had checked our bags and rifle thru to destination, so no problems. I actually checked in with Lufthansa in the morning, and didn't have to stand in line for the Air Namibia flight check-in that evening. Don't know what they require now.

The experience my wife and I had was similar to Blank's. However I would add the the airport can be a touch confusing at times so allow yourself some extra time to navigate. I would recommend the day room; it was nice to stretch out and have a shower before the second half of the trip. One more thing - don't order a cheeseburger. The Germans may be great engineers, but they can't make a cheeseburge to save their lives

Didn't get a room, just guys on my trip then. Went to the zoo, at on the square there.
Got back in plenty of time to get checked in.

My then 14 yr old son and I "laid over" there for three days last summer on our way to Namibia. He had never been to Europe and I thought that even a brief introduction was better than none. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Nord which is relatively close to airport and has an excellent buffet for breakfast and dinner. Even tho the Euro is down against the dollar currently, if you travel into town, be prepared for price shock.....a 200ml (about 7 oz) coke cost about $7US, now that would be about $5.50 US. Beer was cheaper than coke so I saved all the money I could....

If you've got the time and haven't been there before, I'd say spend a day or two there, take a boat castle tour on the Rhine, eat some wienerschnitzel (sp?), drink some German beer or wine, and kick back and enjoy the whole trip instead of making it a marathon travel experience. But that's just me, and since I am a rancher without a job schedule, I can afford a few extra days here and there.

I've done the Frankfurt trip 3 times. It's a hell of a lot better than Dulles/Atlanta to Africa, no question. I do the day room at the Sheraton thing for a great break in the ordeal of travel.

To avoid the long lines at the Air Namibia desk, first make sure your kit is checked directly to your final destination when you depart the US. Then, when you arrive in Frankfurt, go immediately to the transfer desk and get your boarding pass for the next flight. All you have to do after that is go to the gate when it's time to depart, bypassing any and all lines at the ticket counters. This saves you a lot of time and hassle.

TWL, I will be flying Lufthansa to Frankfurt and then Air Namibia to Windhoek. I understand about checking my bags straight thru to Windhoek
but please explain "go immediately to the transfer desk and get your boarding pass for the next flight."
The last time Air Namibia did not open there counters until two hiurs before my flight and the line was huge.

I'll actually be going to Croatia for some driven boar hunting rather than Namibia but I wanted to get a feel for how they handled traveler's with firearms.

The group I'll be hunting with be mostly Brit's with a smattering of other European countries also represented - I didn't want to go thru England and Frankfurt seemed to the much better route.

When we got back from the zoo we checked and the counter wasn't open yet...we walked around a bit then sat down and waited in the area until the lines started. We just got in line w/ the rest w/o any problems.

Great idea on the transfer desk! Can you please explain it though

Nice zoo, nice brothels, great food, good hunting stores in Frankonia ($100 cab ride) and a lot more. It's a hell of a nice place to stop over.

Elkfitter:

Lufthansa has a transfer desk in the international arrival terminal. It's the same terminal and level you will be arriving at from Denver. When you get off the plane, start looking at the overhead signs for "Transfer Desk" and follow the directions. It's a fairly long walk.

Because Lufthansa and Air Namibia are partners, they will take your tickets at their transfer desk, confirm your baggage is "in the system and enroute" and issue you a boarding pass for the Windhoek flight. You'll be arriving Frankfurt in the AM and the transfer desk is almost empty. It'll take you all of 5 minutes.

Then, when it's time to leave for Windhoek, 10/12 hours later, all you have to do is go through the security screening and directly to the gate of departure. No line at Air Namibia. I've done this 3 times.

Check your PMs. Have a great trip!! Tom

THANKS!!!! Wish I'd know before....try to remember for next time.
Robert

quote:

Originally posted by TWL:
Elkfitter:

Lufthansa has a transfer desk in the international arrival terminal. It's the same terminal and level you will be arriving at from Denver. When you get off the plane, start looking at the overhead signs for "Transfer Desk" and follow the directions. It's a fairly long walk.

Because Lufthansa and Air Namibia are partners, they will take your tickets at their transfer desk, confirm your baggage is "in the system and enroute" and issue you a boarding pass for the Windhoek flight. You'll be arriving Frankfurt in the AM and the transfer desk is almost empty. It'll take you all of 5 minutes.

Then, when it's time to leave for Windhoek, 10/12 hours later, all you have to do is go through the security screening and directly to the gate of departure. No line at Air Namibia. I've done this 3 times.

Check your PMs. Have a great trip!! Tom

Great tip, thanks!

Transfer desk option didn't work for me last week. No real problems checking in later in the afternoon though either. Plane was not full so we had plenty of room to stretch out. ONly 4 hunters on the whole plane.... Guess the belts are being cinched a bit!

A post last week spoke of having to claim guns in Frankfurt and having to recheck them with Air Namibia. As I understand it,guns can be checked all the way through to Windhoek PROVIDED that the layover does not exceed 12 hours or that the next available flight is taken. The Delta flight from Atlanta lands around 7:00 AM and the Air Namibia flight to Windhoek departs just after 8:00 PM. Thus the layover exceeds 12 hours BUT the flight onward is the next available so no claim and recheck is necessary. I have flown that route 5 times with no contact with luggage until arrival in Windhoek. Suggest checking with Steve Turner @ Travel With Guns for verification...

quote:

Originally posted by Stopckmaker:
A post last week spoke of having to claim guns in Frankfurt and having to recheck them with Air Namibia. As I understand it,guns can be checked all the way through to Windhoek PROVIDED that the layover does not exceed 12 hours or that the next available flight is taken. The Delta flight from Atlanta lands around 7:00 AM and the Air Namibia flight to Windhoek departs just after 8:00 PM. Thus the layover exceeds 12 hours BUT the flight onward is the next available so no claim and recheck is necessary. I have flown that route 5 times with no contact with luggage until arrival in Windhoek. Suggest checking with Steve Turner @ Travel With Guns for verification...

Think that might have been me memory's not as good as it was.

Yes that's exactly so - however I think the reason for this (checking out and back in) is that when travelling from another EU country to somewhere outside the EU this is the last port of call. Not too sure at all if this applies from the US.

The problem with most of these "regulations" is that they keep changing. I suspect the only way to find out will be direct call/email to Luftwaffe - good luck with that. I was told categorically before I went that I could check straight through (this was in April).