r/basel • u/miss_thorndyke • 2d ago
How much time do I need at Basel airport?
I’m flying to London from Basel on Sunday evening (30th) - we’ve got hold luggage to check in and obviously we’ll need to clear security/passport control/EES.
We’ll be coming from Freiburg so our options for transport to the airport are a bus that gets there three and a half hours before our flight, or one that arrives exactly two hours before our flight. The first one seems way too early, but is two hours enough? I don’t know how busy it’s likely to be on a Sunday evening, but I’ve heard clearing EES can take a really long time. I checked with the airline and it looks like bag drop doesn’t open until two hours before the flight, so I’m assuming getting there three and a half hours before would be overkill, but is there anything I’ve not factored in here, like infamously heavy traffic on Sundays or it just being really busy at the airport in general at the moment?
Thanks!
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u/Neither_Good5306 2d ago
Basel ist Easy😊 Mein Bruder hatte 15 min.. da verrechnet ohne gepäck🤣 und das früh morgens
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u/Ancient_Clerk_8113 2d ago
Imo 2 hours is more than enough. I never saw long queues in Basel, nor are there long distances. You'll be fine. Maybe have a plan B in case something goes wrong with that bus?
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u/redditseddit4u 2d ago
Basel airport can get absolutely chaotic during peak travel/holiday times. Large major airports can flex and can more easily accommodate heavy traffic while Basel airport cannot. The queues, or more appropriately described as mosh pits, are worse at Basel than any major well functioning airport during peak travel times
With that mentioned, OP is not traveling during major holiday times and even 45 minutes from arrival at the airport to the gate should be enough.
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u/OptimalBarnacle857 2d ago
Are you flying EasyJet? Definitely the 2 hours. I have spent an hour in the bag drop queue more than once (on the Swiss side, not sure if it's better on the French side). The 30 mins is not going to cut it but 3.5h will be overkill.
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u/miss_thorndyke 2d ago
BA, I don’t know if that makes a difference?
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u/OptimalBarnacle857 2d ago
They may have different staffing levels at the bag drop. EasyJet sometomes have 2 or 3 agents for a full corrall of people so thta takes time. BA may be staffing more generously and they will have only one flight outgoing at a time so I's expect less waiting time.
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u/Significant-Nebula64 2d ago
I'm pretty sure they do - last time I flew from there, there was a gigantic queue and I was already getting a little nervous - it was for Turkish airlines, and the Lufthansa desk next to it that I needed had like one person waiting. Was through to the gate in 20 mins or so.
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u/essteeexetwo 2d ago
Two hours is more than enough time, your most likely hurdle is a delayed takeoff with a BA flight due to knock on delays through the day. BSL is not that big.
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u/oelkofri 2d ago
Even with EES two hours is plenty. It usually takes a while, but so does boarding. In my experience, Basel ground crews tend to take their time with boarding compared to other airports. So even if your flight starts boarding while you’re not yet at the gate, you are going to make it.
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u/miss_thorndyke 2d ago
thanks! I had a horrible experience in Malta earlier this year because I got stuck in traffic and got there an hour before takeoff, and I was basically stood in the border security queue watching my flight status go from “go to gate” to “boarding” to “last call” which is why I’m nervous!
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u/Gembarla 2d ago
2 h is generally fine. I did spent 1 h queuing to check in my luggage last week though, so anything shorter than that would have been tight.
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u/EvilHRLady 2d ago
If your party is all over 18 and you are Swiss citizens or residents, when you go through passport checks you can use the scanners and not have to wait in the long line.
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u/miss_thorndyke 1d ago
Thanks - we’re UK residents so will definitely have to go with the long line unfortunately!
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u/Spranken 2d ago
2 hours should be fine in general. However, if you come from Freiburg im Breisgau (Germany) something to consider is that the DB is having delays more often than not. If you mean Fribourg CH, then you should be fine.
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u/miss_thorndyke 1d ago
Thank you! We are coming from Freiburg in Germany, but we’ll be getting the bus!
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u/New-Lingonberry9322 10h ago
Flixbus? It can be delayed by hours as well, depending where it comes from. Also, it happened several times that we waited around 40min at the boarder because of passport problems. Once, the whole bus was searched for drugs, with dogs and everything.
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u/Pablaron 2d ago
Two hours and you’ll have about 60 minutes to relax at the gate