Flying between countries in Europe- airport experience (Brussels to Strasbourg)

To be clear, you would be flying from the US into into Brussels airport and immediately right back out to Strasbourg from BRU? And not flying out of from Charleroi, the smaller southern airport in Brussels?

I've only flown out of BRU. It seemed pretty small. Once you fly in from the US, you go through immigration into the Schengen Area. ("Customs" is a 10 second walk without stopping as you exit baggage claim, for most people with nothing to declare.) Once you are past that, you don't need to go through immigration or customs again. A flight to Strasbourg from Brussels stays within the Schengen Area - like a US domestic flight. You will probably have to go through security again.

Are you doing this all on one ticket? Or are you buying a separate ticket on to Strasbourg? In that case, you have to plan carefully for what happens if your inbound flight from the US is late. Either you build in a long layover in Brussels to be sure you make it, or you have a plan for what happens if you miss the scheduled flight to Strasbourg. if you were flying on one ticket for both flights, then it's the airline's responsibility to get you on to Strasbourg on a later flight. If you booked separate tickets, you lose the second ticket if you miss that flight - and you'll probably need to buy another ticket at last-minute prices.

Assuming you are NOT arriving and immediately leaving, but are leaving after a stay in Brussels: Neither of the airports serving Brussels are exactly tiny. Both are international airports and are what I'd call "medium sized:,. Each has a website you can go to to see maps, departure info, etc. Both airports recommend arriving 2 hours before flights. You will go through security, but not passport control if your flight is to another Schengen country.

If you ARE immediately flying out after flying from the states, I'd recommend a minimum of 2 hours if this is a connecting flight on one ticket, or 4 hours (and a lot of praying) if you're trying go do this on separate tickets.

Direct flights from Brussels to Strasbourg are only a few select days in July and August, at least as far as I can determine.

We would already be in Europe, so not flying to and from US for this trip.
Flying from brussels to Strasbourg. I think there is a 120 pm flight-- i nned to look again for exact time.
Flight time only an hour...train is 5. At least from my last look on some search engines.

If anyone has other ideas of fastest way to get from Brussels to Colmar ( or Strassbourg) I am open to ideas!
This will be for 7/4/19 4 people.

You could fly to Basel and get a train to Colmar from there, if Colmar is your actual destination. I see two cheap flights on 7/4/19 leaving in the afternoon and evening. Just know that easyJet sometimes has extra fees - read carefully the restrictions on the weight of bags, etc. If Strasbourg is your destination, I probably would fly there directly.

You won't save much time flying from Brussels to Strasbourg then train to Colmar vs just taking the train.

Don't forget with flying you have to get to the airport, extra time for security, fly to Strasbourg, then train to Colmar.

With train, you go from city center to city center. And the train is more comfortable. Also no security screening.

Well, you can get a direct train from Brussels Midi station to Strasbourg that takes 3:32. (on 7/4, depart 7:17, arrive Strasbourg 10:49). From Strasbourg the train to Colmar is 32 minutes. You probably won't save much time by flying - as Frank says, you have to get to the airport, get there early enough for security - so figure at LEAST 1.5 hours from getting on a train in Brussels to boarding your flight at the airport, assuming you want to be there an your before departure. Actual flight is probably 45 min when you figure taxiing, take-off-landing, etc. To Strasbourg is only 15 min by train from the airport. You MIGHT save 30 minutes if you time it perfectly. But I agree, the train will be much less stress and more fun.

Thank You all, and Andrew, for giving details! I am so grateful and LOVE this forum. You are all confirming my thoughts about the airport/flying hassle. Marnie

To answer the OP's questions, I typically arrive 2 hours early for intra-European flights and prefer to fly if there is both a cost savings and if the train were to take longer than 4-5 hours. In your situation as was mentioned above, I too would take the train especially if the rail fares were a cost savings too.

I have not been to Brussels or Strasbourg airports. But in general intra-Europe flights are basically identical to a flight from, say, Chicago to Kansas City. New York to Orlando. If you aren't leaving the schengen zone (you aren't) then there's no immigration or passport control. Just go though security, show ID (this will be your passport, because it's your ID) and boarding pass, get on plane, get off plane, go on your way. In my experience, security lines are much shorter and easier, but that could vary by day. In general I'd leave 1.5 hours.

My rule of thumb is that if the train is 6 hours or less I prefer it to flying. Figure 1.5 hours at the airport plus the time to get there (45 min?) plus the actual flight plus time to get out of the airport and into the city. I prefer the train (I dislike flying) so while a flight could take a little less, I'd give the edge to the train on shorter trips. Of course, sometimes flying is much cheaper, so I have chosen it for shorter trips if I can get a very good deal.

It's true that you own't save much time. I prefer train travel for reasons of comfort and ethics, but I still fly and the reason is price.

If the cost difference is significant, and that makes a difference to you, there's your argument for flying. I haven't been to either airport (although I do fly out of Strasbourg at the end of the month) but unless you're at one of the really big international airports like CDG or Heathrow or Frankfurt, generally I find airports in Europe easy to manage, quick to get around, relatively quick security, etc compared to similarly sized airports in the USA. So I certainly wouldn't blink at the idea of taking a plane between Brussels and Strasbourg if it was saving me a lot of money.

www.skyscanner.com

This site is good for European budget carriers, especially one-way.
It shows no non-stop flights between Brussels and Strasbourg. If you do choose to fly on a budget airline, read the home page regulations carefully. They tend to be strict about luggage and have plenty of extra fees. Prices increase steadily as day of travel approaches.
www.trainline.com shows trains taking around four hours with one change, approximately the same as a flight. Major trains are priced like the airlines, much cheaper if bought well in advance. But trains connect the centres of cities, avoiding the extra time of commuting to airports, checking in, collecting baggage, etc.
As indicated, anything about rail travel should be checked with www.seat61.com Or you can go to the website of the French operator, SNCF.

The OP already bought train tickets.