Overseas travel and leaving airport during layover

[Dancingfish Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Dancingfish]

Anyone have any experience with leaving an airport during a long layover while traveling overseas. I am looking for tickets and found some affordable ones that had a long layover in Paris or London and was wondering if its possible and doable to leave and catch a glimpse of the city?

[Keitht Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Keitht]

How long is the layover? To some people a couple of hours is a long layover.

[Dancingfish Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Dancingfish]

6 hours but I could make it up to 8 hours if its a doable option...

[Pstreet1 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Pstreet1]

I'd say no, it's not possible. For international flights, you need to be at the airport 2 hours before your flight if you leave the "controlled" area. That cuts you down to 4 hours to get out of the airport, get into the city, see something and get back to the airport.

[Carolinian Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Carolinian]

I have done that with layovers of about that long in a number of places.

London Gatwick is doable, from only just. The one time I went into London during a long layover at Gatwick, the Gatwick Express back from Victoria Station stopped for about 30 minutes for some reason, and I just barely made my plane. That. however, was before the new security measures which make the airport lines more difficult.

Vienna and Zurich are both very easy airports to go into the city on a long layover, and I have done that in both many times.

I have gone into Paris on an 8 hour layover last year, and certainly preferred being able to stroll around Paris rather that sit at CDG airport. You can get a Visite Paris card that covers both the frequent and efficient RER train to Gare du Nord in Paris and the subway that you can take from there to go elsewhere in Paris.

[Keitht Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Keitht]

It would be very, very tight at London Heathrow. There are numerous stories at present of very long queues to get through security. Although I fully understand your desire to do something other than twiddle your thumbs I'd agree with others that it is risky.

[Dancingfish Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Dancingfish]

thanks! I had a feeling that was the case!