Obviously time of day and day of week matter, but what’s a good rule of thumb time to clear customs and be ready for onward ground travel at Frankfurt airport? Thinking early about train reservations based on a 11 am ish flight arrival. Went through Munich a few years ago and hardly believed the experience was so fast, smooth. Thanks.
Posted by
Vienna, Austria
5814 posts
Customs takes 5 seconds as you simply walk through a green door if you have no goods to declare.
Immigration, however, is where you need to allow some time. The time can vary quite a bit depending on how many planes have arrived. The intention is for efficiency. I would worry more, however, that my flight was delayed.
Where are you going after you land?
Posted by
Eastern Iowa, USA
8740 posts
My last time at Frankfurt, our plane landed just after another plane, the line did not look bad, but the previous plane was from a non-visa-waiver country. Every individual had some issue or another, taking about 5 minutes per person to process. Missed my planned train by an hour or more, and I left plenty of time. (If I recall, our plane was delayed as well)
The moral is, you never know what will happen. You could be through in minutes...or an hour, or more.
Might be worth investing in a flexible ticket, or paying the price to buy when you get there.
Posted by
Paradise
7546 posts
Thinking early about train reservations based on a 11 am ish flight arrival.
Caution here. What is your final destination?
The rule of thumb for ticketing onward ground travel from airports: Use only regional trains to reach your destination - and postpone buying tickets until you are finally at FRA's Regionalbahnhof station and ready to travel. (Regional trains do not take reservations or guarantee seats.)
Why only regional trains? Pre-purchased saver fares for long-distance ICE trains (which take reservations) become worthless should a flight delay prevent you from catching your scheduled train. While you can buy ICE tickets at the station, prices will be punishing for distant destinations.
A Deutschland Ticket (for regional trains only) or a German Rail Pass (covers ICE trains also) will allow you to show up at the appropriate airport rail station at any time and travel at any hour you please.
Also, time-flexible "Rail & Fly" tickets for ICE trains at modest fixed prices are sold by some airlines to their customers. Check with your airline.