# Connecting through Madrid



## travelplanner70 (Oct 25, 2008)

Does anyone have experience has to how much time to allow between flights in Madrid airport?  The flight I am looking at has a 70-minute layover before I need to connect with another flight to Jerez. (I will be flying from Newark to Madrid.)  In the warning, it states that 70 mins. is a tight connection, and a missed flight will be very inconvenient.  What has been your experience going from an international arrival to then departing to another Spanish city?  Thank you for your help.


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## Jimster (Oct 25, 2008)

*Madrid*

It shouldn't be a problem but the airport is very large.  I would ask a representative as soon as I got off the plane as to where to go.  I would also check to find out the check in time and procedure of your second flight.  You can probably do this in advance.  I assume you are flying Iberia on both flights.


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## w879jr1 (Oct 25, 2008)

I hope that your transfer at Madrid will not cause you a problem. Your arrival at Jerez should be a much more pleasant experience though. It is one of those airports which can remind you of the hassle-free days of air travel.

I visited Spokane WA this summer and the arrival/departure experience was the same as the one achievable at low capacity airfields like Jerez.

Enjoy the sherry bodegas too!


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## silvib (Oct 25, 2008)

It's about 5 years since I flew into Madrid from the US and connected to another Spanish city with a tight connection. I seem to remember my gate was quite a long way from where I'd arrived but it seemed easy enough.   I agree that 70 mins is tight especially coming in on a transatlantic flight, customs, etc.etc. but I'm sure it'll work.

On the same trip, I flew from Orlando to Chicago to catch the Iberia flight to Madrid, where that connection was also tight, and as I came off of the Orlando flight the other one was being called.  I know I didn't have to fuss with bags or customs or anything, but that was too tight for my liking, but it worked.


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## patty5ia (Oct 25, 2008)

If you are flying on Iberia, the planes don't often leave on time from NYC.  And boarding is often a hassle.  I would worry a bit with a short connection.


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## LLW (Oct 26, 2008)

jo-jo said:


> Does anyone have experience has to how much time to allow between flights in Madrid airport?  The flight I am looking at has a 70-minute layover before I need to connect with another flight to Jerez. (I will be flying from Newark to Madrid.)  In the warning, it states that 70 mins. is a tight connection, and a missed flight will be very inconvenient.  What has been your experience going from an international arrival to then departing to another Spanish city?  Thank you for your help.



We had a horrible and stressful connection at the Madrid airport last December. 

Actually, we were not supposed to connect at Madrid at all. It was an Iberia ticket for a direct flight from Barcelona to Chicago then American Airlines to Seattle. When we checked in at Barcelona, surprise, we were told that we had to go to Madrid first, and connect to Chicago. OK. We had about 80 minutes, I think. There was only 1 ticket, and 1 boarding pass for the 2 flights (for each person).

After we landed at Madrid, we had to be bused over to another terminal. After arrival at the other terminal, we had to go through security again, even though we only had carry-ons that had already passed security at Barcelona. There must have been close to a thousand people (some of whom were connecting from other flights) trying to pass 2 security check points, with no lines. We had to be very lucky and aggressive to get through security. After security, we had to run to take an elevator, and run through a large terminal and pass many gates to get to our gate. When we got there, the gate had already closed, but the plane was still there. We told the gate agent that many people from our same flight from Barcelona to Chicago were still being congested at security. They had us wait for about 10 minutes. Only one more person was able to come through. They reopened the door to the plane to let us in but didn't wait for any other people. Many people had to miss the flight, I think. 

Some of the other passengers who were already on the plane told us that it was only late for about 5 minutes in leaving.

I would not take the chance on a 70-minute connection at the Madrid airport, not even from a domestic arrival. In fact, one person in the mob at security yelled, "we came from Spain!"


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## Cotswolder (Nov 1, 2008)

I came back through Madrid yesterday.

Nearly all flights now arrive or depart from terminal 4 or 4S. International flights mostly leave from 4S, especially if they are with a non Spanish Airline.

Your ticket should tell you which terminals you will be using. If you have to transfer from 4 to 4S or vice versa you should allow and absolute minimum of 30 mins. To be safe 45 mins.

If either of your flights is still using terminals 1, 2 or 3 you should allow more time but, as far as I know, this will not be necessary.

I have now been through Madrid Barajas Airport at least a dozen times in the last 3 years and am getting to know the place very well


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## travelplanner70 (Jan 17, 2009)

I have booked a Delta flight from JFK to Madrid with an hour and a half layover in Madrid before we go on a SpanAir flight to Jerez.

We plan to carry our bags in hopes that will save time.  I was told that Delta will not check our bags all the way through to Jerez so we do not want to wait for our bags at Madrid.  

Any suggestions?

Thanks.


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## mossimo (Jan 28, 2009)

*flights to Madrid/malaga*

Hello everyone, I am trying to purchase my tickets to Malaga.  I plan to spend a week in Malaga and then a week in Madrid.  Is it best to purchase a ticket with a 3 city stop with a large airline like Iberia or Lufthansa or is it better to fly into madrid and then find a flight to Malaga via a small Spanish airline?  Thanks for the advice!


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## DebBrown (Jan 28, 2009)

I would try to do it on one ticket.  If you have separate tickets and miss your connection to Malaga, the airline has no obligation to help you.  We flew Iberia to Gran Canaria this past May connecting in Madrid with no problems.

Deb


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## travelplanner70 (Jan 28, 2009)

What happens if you have a ticket from Orbitz that has you on Delta connecting with Spanair and the Delta flight is late causing me to miss the Spanair flight? Will Delta help me out there since it was one itinerary?  The entire itinerary appears on the Delta website under our itineraries which is curious since we bought the tickets through Orbitz.

Thanks for your advice.


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## Jimster (Jan 29, 2009)

*orbitz*

If i had to guess, I'd say NO.  The response is usually the same- CALL ORBITZ.  There are downsides to purchasing through a consolidator.  If this were priceline, I'd tell you SOL- Sorry out of luck.


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## jerseyfinn (Jan 30, 2009)

jo-jo said:


> Does anyone have experience has to how much time to allow between flights in Madrid airport?  The flight I am looking at has a 70-minute layover before I need to connect with another flight to Jerez. (I will be flying from Newark to Madrid.)  In the warning, it states that 70 mins. is a tight connection, and a missed flight will be very inconvenient.  What has been your experience going from an international arrival to then departing to another Spanish city?  Thank you for your help.



Which airline are you arriving on from EWR and what is your connecting airline? This will greatly impact how easy or difficult making your connecting Jerez flight will be.

The key idea here is that if you arrive T1 terminal and your *connecting *airline departs from T2 terminal, your connection will be tight, but you should make your flight ( Spanair, Air Europa & other carriers fly out of T2 terminal ).  If your *connecting *flight is on Iberia (IB), your flight will depart from T4 terminal and a timely connection  might be difficult to achieve ( most likely your bags will not make the connecting flight to Jerez ). 

All trans-Atlantic flights to MAD  on CO, US, DL etc. arrive at T1 terminal. Trans-Atlantic flights on AA and IB arrive at T4 terminal which is not physically connected to T1/2/3 terminals and requires a shuttle bus. Arriving T1 terminal and flying out of T4 terminal  might not allow enough time to clear immigration in T1 and hop the shuttle bus to T4 and recheck your bags and make the flight ( or you will experience tremendous agida in the process ).

I would check your itinerary to see which airlines you're flying so that you can determine if you need to alter your connecting flight itinerary.

A few *hints*.  


Try to find out if you can check your bags all the way to Jerez from EWR. This is not always possible because unless the airlines are partners or belong to the same alliance, they are not required to check bags to the final destination ( Jerez should have immigration & customs which allow your checked bag to arrive this way ).
If your connecting airline is an alliance member, you should be able to check your bags all the way to Jerez and you should be able to get *boarding passes *for both flights ( either printing them at home or getting them in EWR ).
If you arrive T1 terminal & have boarding passes for your connecting flight to *T2 *terminal, you can remain inside of security & take a shuttle bus to T2 where you can head straight to the gate. Otherwise, lacking a boarding pass, you must exit to the public side of T1 and walk some 7-10 minutes to T2 terminal where you check in and get boarding passes.
If your connecting flight is out of T4 terminal, you will have to go outside of security & take a bus to T4 terminal, but you can proceed directly to security screening with your boarding passes at T4.
If your bags are already checked to Jerez from EWR, you need only get to the gate to make your flight. If your bags do not make your flight, the airline will deliver them to you later.

I'd look closely at your itinerary, especially if you're flying in the summer when thunderstorms can delay flight departures and create late arrivals.  

In our experience flying into MAD T1 terminal on US Air, passport control is usually a brief 10 minute or less processs of queuing, baggage claim is right around the corner, and bags take 20 to 30 minutes to hit the belts after gate arrival. Airport signage is good at MAD and walking to T2 is quick and easy. Ckeck the monitors in the check-in area to find out which counters to check in at. Security at MAD is most usually efficient, requiring 5 to 10 miinutes of queuing at most. They don't remove shoes in Spain but you must remove your belts.

Presently, we usually fly our connecting flight to Malaga via Iberia out of T4 terminal. The shuttle busses are located 2 levels above T1 passport control & baggage reclaim ( keep walking to the right as you exit the front of the terminal and look for the green busses ). It's about a 10 minute ride to T4 terminal some 2 miles away. Once again, check monitors at T4 to find where to check in for your flight. Be sure to check the T&C of your connecting airline regarding baggage and check-in times before they no longer accept bags.

We've had some flawless 90 minute or less connections out of T2 terminal and done the same at T4 rechecking bags, but you always feel harried connecting out of T4 and heaven help you if your TA flight is delayed . But now, we allow more time for that connecting flight, usually arriving @ 0830 and catching an 11AM to noon flight out of T4. We use the time to wind down in a cafe in T4 ( which is a new terminal and  spectacular piece of architecture ).

I hope that this gives you a better feel for MAD Barajas airport. Enjoy your trip.

Barry


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