Connecting in Warsaw [WAW]
Jun 21, 2019, 8:34 am
#256
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: YQM
Programs: Aeroplan/Altitude 50K
Posts: 16
Hi Guys, I will have a connection to Warsaw from Toronto with LOT. We are non Shengen residents. What Can we expect once at the airport? travelling with kids and we have 2hr20 for our next connection with Austrian Airlines.
Thanks for your time
Thanks for your time
Jun 21, 2019, 9:02 am
#257
Suspended
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Ontario, Canada
Programs: Aeroplan, IHG, Enterprise, Avios, Nexus
Posts: 8,355
Where are you going? On a Toronto-Belgrade (both non-Schengen) flight last month it was a simple matter of leaving the arrival gate, going up one flight at the terminal and locating the departure gate. No security clearance was required. 2 hours and 20 minutes should be ample time. We had about the same layover time and still had plenty of time even though our flight leaving Toronto was an hour late.
Jun 21, 2019, 9:08 am
#258
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: SJJ/AMS
Posts: 4,649
G
Jul 3, 2019, 9:54 pm
#259
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: YYC
Programs: United 1K Hilton Diamond
Posts: 21
Me and some coworkers are flying yyz-waw-tse in J. Have a lengthy layover of about 12 hr. We arrive about 12:30 pm and fly back out around midnight that same day to tse.
advice on killing time, finding a day rate for a hotel?
TIA
advice on killing time, finding a day rate for a hotel?
TIA
Jul 4, 2019, 1:19 am
#260
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: SJJ/AMS
Posts: 4,649
By all means, you should head into town: get on the train and stop at either Warszawa Centralna or Warszawa Śródmieście, you will have plenty to do and see before heading back to the airport. If there's anything in particular you'd like to see and do, let me know and I'll come up with suitable advice.
G
G
Jul 4, 2019, 7:10 am
#261
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 11,593
12 hours is a long time to spend in Warsaw sightseeing and in the lounge plus your red eye to TSE.
For whatever reason the Hilton’s don’t offer day rates in WAW. But you can easily book say the Hampton at the Airport or the Mokotow Airport and arrange in advance you can check in at 12PM.
Theres no need to check out, so day rate makes no difference.
I presume you're travelling soon, so over the summer it’s very cheap.
For whatever reason the Hilton’s don’t offer day rates in WAW. But you can easily book say the Hampton at the Airport or the Mokotow Airport and arrange in advance you can check in at 12PM.
Theres no need to check out, so day rate makes no difference.
I presume you're travelling soon, so over the summer it’s very cheap.
Jul 4, 2019, 7:54 am
#262
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: next to HAM
Programs: LH M+M
Posts: 960
WAW-downtown is like 25min, a train daypass (includess all public transport) is 15PLN (~5 CAD). Get it from the RED machines.
Cards widely accepted; if you need cash, go to a "Kantor" exchange booth IN TOWN (there are many).
Cards widely accepted; if you need cash, go to a "Kantor" exchange booth IN TOWN (there are many).
Aug 18, 2019, 8:37 pm
#263
Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 263
Seeking Clarity On WAW Transfer
U.S. citizen flying both segments in J LOT JFK-WAW on to Bucharest Romania. The official Chopin airport website states this for Non-Schengen to Non Schengen (Romania is non-schengen at this time): Passengers will deplane, go through security check and customs then to departure gate.
Terminal A is divided into Schengen and non Schengen. It appears from this information that Poland itself treats Romania as a Schengen member. Does Donald Tusk know this? Again, we see total confusion, disinformation, foul ups and a circus. It is unclear whether the LOT Bucharest flights depart Schengen or Non-Schengen side. I don't even think the LOT pilots have any idea.
Anyone with first hand recent knowledge/experience of having transferred WAW NS-NS, better yet to Bucharest. Thank you in advance.
Terminal A is divided into Schengen and non Schengen. It appears from this information that Poland itself treats Romania as a Schengen member. Does Donald Tusk know this? Again, we see total confusion, disinformation, foul ups and a circus. It is unclear whether the LOT Bucharest flights depart Schengen or Non-Schengen side. I don't even think the LOT pilots have any idea.
Anyone with first hand recent knowledge/experience of having transferred WAW NS-NS, better yet to Bucharest. Thank you in advance.
Aug 19, 2019, 1:13 am
#264
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: BRU
Programs: Miles&More SEN; ITA Premium, Asante Gold, IHG Platinum, BAEC Bronze, Accor Silver, Radisson Premier
Posts: 270
Hi,
While I didn’t connect from Bucharest, last Friday afternoon we did connect from non-Schengen to Schengen. It was a complete and utter disaster. The queues were huge, both for passport control and security. There were two security scanners for Schengen connections from non-Schengen. We landed 1hr before our connection to BRU was due to depart and we spent that entire 1hour in passport and security queues (arriving from KIV). There were three transfer agents trying to help passengers, but a large amount of people missed their connections. Some of those had arrived from Bucharest so I presume that Bucharest is therefore treated as non-Schengen (which it should be). We only got picked out of the queue (would have had another 20 mins wait or so in queue) when we proactively shouted that we were connecting to BRU and our flight was on final call. The staff picked us out of the queue, put us in front of everyone else and then we had to run across the airport and then got a bus to the plane. Those who didn’t understand English or didn’t really know what was going on weren’t so lucky. A group of elderly passengers in front of us missed their flight to CDG because they didn’t know what to do.
when we go to the plane the cabin manager asked why we had taken so long (they had held the flight for us, which was one good thing), and I explained that we were waiting fo 1 hour in transfer security. He wasn’t impressed.
After this experience I would actively avoid flying through Warsaw again on a Non-schengen to Schengen connection, particularly around mid-afternoon. Two scanners for so many passengers is simply not enough in a growing airport. I did take a photo but can’t upload it here for some reason. It was a joke, and the staff seemed completely at a loss as to how to handle it. The infrastructure is simply not there. So be wary of short non-Schengen to Schengen connections.
While I didn’t connect from Bucharest, last Friday afternoon we did connect from non-Schengen to Schengen. It was a complete and utter disaster. The queues were huge, both for passport control and security. There were two security scanners for Schengen connections from non-Schengen. We landed 1hr before our connection to BRU was due to depart and we spent that entire 1hour in passport and security queues (arriving from KIV). There were three transfer agents trying to help passengers, but a large amount of people missed their connections. Some of those had arrived from Bucharest so I presume that Bucharest is therefore treated as non-Schengen (which it should be). We only got picked out of the queue (would have had another 20 mins wait or so in queue) when we proactively shouted that we were connecting to BRU and our flight was on final call. The staff picked us out of the queue, put us in front of everyone else and then we had to run across the airport and then got a bus to the plane. Those who didn’t understand English or didn’t really know what was going on weren’t so lucky. A group of elderly passengers in front of us missed their flight to CDG because they didn’t know what to do.
when we go to the plane the cabin manager asked why we had taken so long (they had held the flight for us, which was one good thing), and I explained that we were waiting fo 1 hour in transfer security. He wasn’t impressed.
After this experience I would actively avoid flying through Warsaw again on a Non-schengen to Schengen connection, particularly around mid-afternoon. Two scanners for so many passengers is simply not enough in a growing airport. I did take a photo but can’t upload it here for some reason. It was a joke, and the staff seemed completely at a loss as to how to handle it. The infrastructure is simply not there. So be wary of short non-Schengen to Schengen connections.
Aug 19, 2019, 9:54 pm
#265
Join Date: Jun 2008
Programs: TK*G (E+), IHG Plat Ambassador
Posts: 7,884
After this experience I would actively avoid flying through Warsaw again on a Non-schengen to Schengen connection, particularly around mid-afternoon. Two scanners for so many passengers is simply not enough in a growing airport. I did take a photo but can’t upload it here for some reason. It was a joke, and the staff seemed completely at a loss as to how to handle it. The infrastructure is simply not there. So be wary of short non-Schengen to Schengen connections.
Aug 19, 2019, 9:57 pm
#266
Join Date: Jun 2008
Programs: TK*G (E+), IHG Plat Ambassador
Posts: 7,884
U.S. citizen flying both segments in J LOT JFK-WAW on to Bucharest Romania. The official Chopin airport website states this for Non-Schengen to Non Schengen (Romania is non-schengen at this time): Passengers will deplane, go through security check and customs then to departure gate.
Terminal A is divided into Schengen and non Schengen. It appears from this information that Poland itself treats Romania as a Schengen member. Does Donald Tusk know this? Again, we see total confusion, disinformation, foul ups and a circus. It is unclear whether the LOT Bucharest flights depart Schengen or Non-Schengen side. I don't even think the LOT pilots have any idea.
Anyone with first hand recent knowledge/experience of having transferred WAW NS-NS, better yet to Bucharest. Thank you in advance.
Terminal A is divided into Schengen and non Schengen. It appears from this information that Poland itself treats Romania as a Schengen member. Does Donald Tusk know this? Again, we see total confusion, disinformation, foul ups and a circus. It is unclear whether the LOT Bucharest flights depart Schengen or Non-Schengen side. I don't even think the LOT pilots have any idea.
Anyone with first hand recent knowledge/experience of having transferred WAW NS-NS, better yet to Bucharest. Thank you in advance.
Aug 21, 2019, 4:10 am
#267
Join Date: Aug 2019
Programs: Emirates, Qatar, Air NZ, BA, Virgin
Posts: 2
A question for the WAW experts out there. Wife and I are flying J class Qatar DOH-WAW, arriving 0545 in early January. We then need to fly onto LHR. Our options are either LOT at 0735, but obviously cannot through-check as the WAW-LHR would be different alliance. Option B is BA at 1245. Option A) as i see it key risk is flight delay, but also i have read some flights require a bus ride to terminal. Is Qatar one such airline at WAW that is subject to the bus risk? If we have pre checked in for the LOT flight, I guess all we need to then do is get thru immigration, retrieve bags - which one would hope be expedient given J class, and then bag drop our bags again and get back through security. Is 0545 arrival to non schengen, and departure from non schengen at 0735 taking into account all of the above re bags etc, too fine? (and i assume i'm right with my non-schengen / non-schengen combo). Ideally we would prefer not to have to wait until the BA flight, and the next LOT flight would be at 1500 if we missed the 0735. Thanks in advance.
Aug 21, 2019, 6:08 am
#268
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: SJJ/AMS
Posts: 4,649
Welcome to FlyerTalk first of all.
No risk when it comes to remote stand/bus to terminal (QR pays for a gate) but the 5:45-7:35 option seems a bit 'stretched' (not to say risky) to me: you would probably be okay assuming all on-time (say you would be collecting your bags just after 6:15, drop your bags again and clear security before 6:45) but even a slight delay could compromise the whole thing and I'm not sure I'd risk it.
G
No risk when it comes to remote stand/bus to terminal (QR pays for a gate) but the 5:45-7:35 option seems a bit 'stretched' (not to say risky) to me: you would probably be okay assuming all on-time (say you would be collecting your bags just after 6:15, drop your bags again and clear security before 6:45) but even a slight delay could compromise the whole thing and I'm not sure I'd risk it.
G
Aug 22, 2019, 2:21 am
#270
Join Date: Aug 2019
Programs: Emirates, Qatar, Air NZ, BA, Virgin
Posts: 2
thanks for that info - much appreciated. Now that i know QR pay for a gate, and the point about interlining, im a bit more confident on the short transfer time being doable. I have a gazzillion avios points that i never seem to be able to use, so as a hedge I may use them to pay for the BA flight later on, so if i don't need the BA flight its not money from my back pocket being lost. But at least i have a back up flight there ready if needed.. Thanks again!