Is this reasonable?

We have had short layover times at Frankfurt airport, and yes it is big. We have had to haul butt to get to our connection. Is it possible, yes, can it be stressful, yes. But if you are on one ticket, you should be alright. I doubt you will not be the only couple on that flight making the same connection to Rome. Try and book seats closer to the front of the plane.

I admit that the first time I had a layover in Frankfurt I got lost in the airport and took the longest route from gate to gate. That didn't matter since I had a 4 hour layover. Since then the 1.5 hour layovers have been fine. Just carefully follow the signs and you should be okay if your first flight arrives on time. With two of you watching the signs you should not make the mistake that I did!

If you miss your connection, Lufthansa will put you on the next flight to Rome. Personally, I wouldn't worry about it. In Frankfurt, proceed at your best speed through immigration, security re-check, and on to your next gate. Follow the signs. If there's a line at immigration, don't be shy about asking to get expedited through the lines!

And make sure you check in / get your boarding pass to Rome in LA if you can, to avoid needing to do so in Frankfurt.

If Lufthansa is ticketing you to your final destination, 100 minutes should be adequate assuming that your flight is substantially on schedule. Airlines typically include some margin for short delays in their flight times (the easy way to be an on-time airline) and have a lot of time to make up a few minutes. It also sounds like there is a later flight to Rome in the event that you miss the connection. I would go for the earlier flight saving time and money.

Take the 1:40 change, it is reasonable. You will pass through Schengen immigration, then go to your gate. Looks like it is the 4:25 flight. If the inbound flight is late, Lufthansa also has flights at 5:10 pm and 9:50 pm that will get you to Rome.

On one trip with a tight connection, Lufthansa staff met us in Frankfurt and whisked us to our connecting flight to Denver.

Spring 2020 is a long ways off. I would not be surprised to see that flight times for either or both legs of your trip are changed. If you book now it’s wise to periodically check your itinerary via the airline. If the connection becomes too long or too short you can take proactive steps to change it.

And if you check bags at LAX you won't see them in Frankfurt, you'll see them in Rome where you'll go through customs, most of the time by simply going through a door marked "Nothing to Declare." Immigration (passport control) will happen at Frankfurt where you enter the Schengen zone, and not in Rome.

Normally I like longer connections than yours, but given the savings, the availability of later flights that day, and your attention to navigating the connection, it seems worth it. If the flight lands late, don't be shy about asking Lufthansa to help you through quickly. They'd rather do that, if they can, than rebook you and transfer any checked bags.

And the funny thing is that if you don't make the connection, then they have to put you on one of the later flights that you would have had to pay more to get in the first place!!

I wouldn’t stress over it. Frankfurt is Lufthansa’s main hub so they wouldn’t suggest the connection if it was going to be too tight. If your incoming flight is delayed significantly the crew will notify you what you need to do before landing. Otherwise just follow the signs for transfers and you should have enough time to get through the passport check and to the next gate.

I have taken Lufthansa SFO-FRA with final destinations of Venice, Rome and Nice many times. All had 1 hr 20 or 1 hour 40 min layover times, never missed a flight. Frankfurt airport is a beast but doable. You will go through a “passport control” type thing and then off to find your connecting gate. Some walking and upstairs via an elevator/stairs. Plenty of people around to ask for help especially after you exit the passport control area.

Wow. THANK YOU to everyone that took the time to reply!! From reading the responses I think I will go for it and not stress the 1.40 layover. At $500.00 per ticket x3 (our college age daughter is coming with us) it’s a significant savings. Want to fly premium economy on Lufthansa and $1500 “savings” is significant.

Thanks all!

I will chime in also. Lufthansa to Lufthansa is not bad in Frankfurt. Lufthansa uses only A and B terminals, You will come in to Terminal A, and you will likely leave from A as this is also a Schengen flight. With luck, you will not gate but be bused from the tarmac, as the bus drops you practically at immigration control. Keep in mind that if your plane leaves LAX timely (I know nothing about how well or poorly LAX functions), you will have a good chance to land as much as 30 minutes land ahead of schedule. We have taken 6 round trips through Frankfurt from Philadelphia with ongoing flights since 2014, more often than not we have been bused in, we have never had an issue with our connections, even making one that had been reduced from 90 minutes to 15 because of problems with our plane delayed first coming to Philadelphia. And on that flight, Lufthansa had already re-booked numerous passengers before we landed. Actually, the only one we ever sweated was our return this spring from Venice, that had been rescheduled by Lufthansa from 80 to only 70 minutes, was late out of Venice, and there was a gigantic line at the Schengen passport exit. We barely made that one, luckily that plane was a bit delayed and loaded late.

Relax and go for it. I will bet you will even have enough ti me to grab a sandwich or pastry on the way to your gate.

Larry,

Thank you for the additional information. I did not know a bus was a possibility. I think we're going to go for it after what I've learned here today.