Lufthansa flights between Munich and San Francisco

I am aware that there are some people from the Bay Area here and was wondering if anyone had ever taken the non-stop flight from Munich to San Francisco or vice-versa. I have looked around the internet, but have not been able to find anything specific to this flight so any input would very much be appreciated. Thanks.

Flown the LH 458/459 route many times. What is it that you would like to know?

Everytime I've looked into it the cost has been way more (over 300EUR at least) than flights connecting through Frankfurt, Amsterdam or London (and the diff has been on the order of 2 hours).

Were you looking for a deal where it's the same? I've sliced and diced in everyway imaginable and haven't found the secret... if you do I'd love to know it.

Maybe the extra is worth the cost for some, but for me I just take the money and use it for a massage and a night out and figure I'm ahead.

never done this route, but am intrested in hearing opinions

Ta

P

as my company is based near oakland i have done this route a few times. its always a big airbus, i think, with 8 seats in a row, not a jumbo (if thats important to you).

for me the benefits of not having to change are huge. you especially don't want to change on the US east coast - it takes a good bit longer and there's usually a mad rush to get through customs and immigration in the US. if you do change, then do it in frankfurt/paris/london.

as i say its been company trips mostly, so can't say much about price differences. i reckon for a 300euro diff i would change planes, though! thats a nice number of dollars for shopping these days

I've done the non-stop to SFO and Chicago. I love it. If you buy it several months in advance it's usually the same price and sometimes cheaper.

Never change on the East Coast. everytime I've done it I've had problems. I get in late, customs takes so long, and then I miss my next flight.

Changing in Frankfurt isn't bad. I've missed flights a few times but flights to Munich are frequent so it's only delayed me a few hours.

I've basically done the same thing you have with three million sites and have gotten the same result. However one weird thing which I have noticed is that say you use Munich as an airport to connect through to go to San Francisco (or any other destination in the US for that matter), it works out much cheaper than leaving directly from Munich. For instance, I tried booking a Brussels-Munich-San Francisco flight and it was at least €100 cheaper than MUC-SFO!? Try this and see if you get the same thing. I figure you can get a BRU-MUC-SFO ticket and just show up at the airport in Munich without ever having flown the first leg.


I don't usually fly Lufthansa, however I have heard true horror stories about the legroom in steerage class which is why I'm enquiring.


Even the super long flights to SFO were bearable?

You and latecomer are not the only ones to have advised strongly against stopovers in the US. I haven't flown to the west coast in years from abroad (I always get off on the east coast!) and it seems to be a real nightmare having to go through customs after what is, in any case, not a short flight and have to make a connecting flight.

I moved here from SF and have done the Lufthansa non-stop a number of times as well. Did not have a problem with legroom, even with the mini-pup stashed under the seat in front of me, but then I'm average height and always ask for the aisle seat.

I hate, no loathe, changing planes (though if you do - I strongly recommend AGAINST changing in that toilet named de Gaulle. shudder at the memories). €100 would not make it worth it to me. That said, I changed in Dulles once, and oddly enough it went very quickly...

you can't do that. if you don't show up in brussels your ticket is effectively cancelled. i have seen the same sort of wierdness in pricing but i don't think you can work it to to your advantage.

legroom is pretty awful on any econ class flight. i found lufthansa to be no worse than anyone else with an airbus, and better than some jumbos (lufthansa and espeically south african which was really cramped). 757s are, however, more roomy, if you like atlanta (delta) or philly (us airways) for a stopover.

but as we all seem to conclude, stopovers on the east coast are a huge pain coz of immigration and customs and then you have another long flight ahead of you to cross the country. recently did MUC -> Atlanta -> Las Vegas it took 11 hours to Atlanta then another 5 to Vegas. heavy stuff.

Agree with all the comments about changing on the East Coast of the US. Nightmare.

It's not just the immigration, it's having to clear customs and then recheck your luggage, as well as going through the metal detectors again.

I recently went MUC to Las Vegas via Philly ... for some reason the immigration did not take the usual 10 minutes, but a frustrating 45. Thankfully the connection was also delayed.

I don't think it was the the photographs and fingerprinting at immigratuon, more that a bunch of people actually turned up with Visas instead of the Visa Waiver scheme, and it takes longer per person to process these. If you qualify for visa waiver I recommend you use it, as it's free, and fast.

There are some SFO flights that make a stop at Dulles ... other options include flying to Portland, Oregon on the direct LH flight then connecting (one hour), flying via Seattle or Toronto.

Always fly direct from MUC/FRA to SFO. Connecting through the east coast is an efffing nightmare and not worth saving the couple hundred unless you enjoy flying shitty discount american airlines(USAIR) that treat you like cargo. I have flown Luftwaffe and BA and even KLM thru Amsterdam with no problems, and they even friendly helpful flight attendants provided some level of service that is painfully absent from american carriers.

What does puzzle me about the pricing structure for this route is would be why is it cheaper to fly from MUC to SFO when it costs more to fly the other way. I just check the LH site and it was about 600 yoyos from MUC to SF and going the other way it was around 3000 ! WTF ?

Wow. I came to Toytown Forums this morning to post almost the exact question as Jules so it's great to find this thread. Thanks everyone. I'm posting on behalf of my German fiancee and step-son who will be traveling to San Francisco this summer.

So I gather a few things so far:

• Don't under any circumstances fly via the US east coast
• The long flights aren't so bad (I'm 6'4" and was perfectly happy with my Lufthansa recent flight from MUC to SFO)
• Buying your ticket via Munich will make it cheaper? Can anyone else confirm this? If this is true, where is the best/cheapest place to buy the ticket?
• I understand that using the visa waiver is the way to go, but I've been told from reliable sources that SFO immigration services are some of the most harsh.

Can anyone offer additional clarifications on the above points? Especially where to buy the ticket and/or any stories about dealing with US Immigration at SFO.

Thanks!

http://www.lufthansa.com/online/portal/lh_...p;tl=1&l=en

Thanks SFO! Do you recommend signing up for one of their email newsletters? Or should I just buy outright?

Josh, i have used these 2 discounters for flights(roundtrip) going to munchen and returning to SF :

www.cheaptickets.com

www.hotwire.com

These tickets were the discount variety(unrefundable, but changeable with a fee) I try to plan well ahead of time and fly(depart, return) on tuesdays and thats about as cheap as i have found.

Abfahrt und Rückkehr zu Bayern immer Lufthansa (or whoever they have in their star alliance which i think is BA/UAL/KLM). Must have something to do with taxes and country of origin.

Let us bay area folks know if ya find a better deal !

Viele Gluck !

This topic is awesome, I have been searching for flights from SFO to MUC. A few months ago, my parents found KILLER ticket prices for their European trip on www.1800flyeurope.com Lufthansa seems so expencive...but flying point A to point B is extremely convienient. Cheapest I've been able to find to get to Munich later this Juy is 1,222 on UAL, with a stop over in London. If I come across any new info I'll be sure to pass it along. On another note, I'm glad to see such a Bay Area presence here.

I am also 6'4" and can confirm that LH from SFO to MUC in an A340-600 was OK in econ - far better than with United.


As a British citizen I have entered US a small number of times at SFO over last few years and found no difference to LAX, DEN or Chicago.


I'd advise against transiting through London. Glad we didnt when we flew to US over Christmas (Fog chaos in UK).
Transiting in LHR involves distances, queues etc. I (starting in Hamburg) use FRA, MUC or even ZUR when flying to US...

Transit points:

Bad: LHR, LGW, JFK, EWR, ATL, ORD
Not quite as horrible: CDG, MCO, BWI
Good: IAD, PHL, FRA
Best: non-stop

CDG has gotten better. I had to fly through there last year on my nightmare trip to SFO.
Dulles and Philly are fast and efficient although the midfield terminal buses at IAD suck.
BWI is efficient but the place swarms with dickheaded Maryland State Troopers who make fucking battle-experienced Marines seem good-natured.

Do not transfer in London. You can only have one item in your hands even though the airlines allow two (i.e., hand luggage plus computer or purse or bag) even though you're already in a secure area having got off a plane. They're total fucks there, much worse than JFK and BWI.

woof.

I agree, would never put anyone through a London or JFK transfer. Having said that it often is the cheapest routing. Theres a reason for it. If your travelling with small children, older people, or your just a crotchety old bastard like me then non-stop is obviously the way to go but its just really expensive. On the EU side Ive put family and/or friends through Frankfurt, Amsterdam and Zurich with no problems, and Ive heard really good things about Dublin.

Personally I would avoid CDG like the plague: they regularly lose luggage, the airport is a mess and they are rude - and that's saying something as i speak french fluently and am quite familiar with the... flamboyance those of gallic origin can display!

Flights with LH to Frisco for €579.

Frisco???...oh mein Kopf tut weh...

there's a difference in using web sites whether you are researching / finding the best flight and price, OR, actually buying a ticket. Kayak.com is great for finding the best flights, but it is only informational. It tells you comparatives for given dates, basically shops all the sites for you, orbitz, cheaptickets, etc., and the airlines themselves, but then you are re directed to the sites (orbitz, airlines) for purchase.
Be careful when price shopping that the initial price you are given on a web site includes taxes and "fees" (which add as much as $200+ more)