Dallas to Venice

You won’t have to go outside of security to make the connection. Your flight to Venice will depart from terminal A. You will probably arrive in either B or C. From the far end of C to the far end of A is about a 20-25 minute walk. If the flight from DFW is on time, you will be in good shape.

Edit: Do you have status on American Airlines? Are you flying in business class? If you have platinum status or higher, you can access the British Airways lounge in terminal A. It’s a great way to kill a layover if you decide to take the earlier flight.

I'd much rather take the 3:30 connection. It seems like a long time but the flight could be late getting in (have you looked at flight stats for that flight in terms on percentage of on-time arrival?) and the longer connection will give you a chance to eat, stretch your legs, and not cause any stress.

Thanx Stephen. I rather suspected that was the case, but this is the sort of thing I worry about. Needlessly generally :)

Thanx Agnes. On time runs about 78%.

78% doesn't sound good enough and it's hard to know how late it usually is (what if it's an hour late as opposed to just 30 min?). You can certainly chance it, but it depends if you feel comfortable feeling rushed if the need to get to the next gate quickly came to pass.

The answer also depends on when the next flight would be if you missed the connection. That way you know both the risk and the tradeoff.

And I agree with Agnes. Philly is notorious for delays if the weather is not too good. Rain absolutely perplexes them! And Newark, JFK and LaGuardia seem to get priority for airspace over Philly. They have some decent restaurants between B and C terminals as well as some places to browse or shop.

Personally I'd like the longer connection time. Better to be bored while awaiting a connection than stressed about not making one.

You want to hear my story of how my flight circled DFW for 2+ hrs, went to IAH for for fuel, came back and circled another hour, because of weather at DFW before the airport opened and we could land. ( no flights were leaving either).

Turned out to be the most time I have spent on one airplane. ( longer than my YVR-LHR trip)

Depending on when your flight is you could have weather issues at both DFW and PHL ( and also where the plane is coming from that is your DFW departure)

Sitting in an airport is no great fun, but beats standing in line trying to reschedule a missed flight.

"Sitting in an airport is no great fun, but beats standing in line trying to reschedule a missed flight."

Putting it that way makes it kinda hard to argue with :)

Philly is a difficult airport, especially if you have to change terminals. Last time I connected through there, it involved myself, the husband, and two young children, running through the airport with luggage in tow, desperately trying to make our connection at a terminal way across the way, after a very slow bus transfer and a non-working moving sidewalk.

Philadelphia is one of my least favorite airports.

While an hour and a half will be plenty of time to make the connection if the first flight is on time, there is no guarantee that the first flight will arrive on time.

Weather. Mechanical issues. Crew issues. Anything at all could delay flight number one. (Okay, yes, anything could delay anything, but if your first flight is seriously late it could jeopardize your connection time.

And if you can hang out at one of the airport lounges, it does make a longer wait a little more relaxed and enjoyable.

I always try to book about a three hour connection for major flights, because I like not having to worry as much about delayed flights, running to find another terminal, etc. Some people put more value on a shorter wait at the airport, and that's fine, too. It all comes down to what you think will make the travel experience more enjoyable for you.

So have you already booked this flight?

"So have you already booked this flight?"

Nope.

Lot's of solid advice from others. If you end up with time to kill, get yourself a Tony Luke's cheesesteak. I know they are in the airport, just not sure if they are where you will be.. Everyone can debate which ones are the best, but Tony Lukes are my favorite (as seen on Food Network). Any time I have to fly out of Philly, I reward myself with one, it makes PHL a little easier to take.