Transferring from a domestic to an international flight (airline, itinerary, passport)
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I am looking to fly from California to London and then from Dublin to Newark, NJ. To get to London I may need to have a connecting flight from Philadelphia. Will I have to deal with any customs to get to my connecting gate in Philadelphia or will I have already dealt with American customs before I leave California? I would have a 2 hour and 30 minute layover in Philadelphia.
Flying from Dublin I would connect in Charlotte before flying to Newark. The layover with this connection is 2 hours and 5 minutes. I have read it can be difficult flying international and then domestic but I am considering this itinerary because it is cheaper than other prices I have seen by $200 or more.
If you have any insight or experience to share about this I would like to hear about it.
In California they will ask to see your passport before issuing boarding passes and checking your luggage. It's just a formality to make sure you've got a valid passport.
There will be no customs in PHL, however they will again ask to see your passport before they let you board. It's a very quick procedure, not like customs.
Your layover in PHL is more than enough time--fortunately there are some terrific restaurants and pubs to kill time in. Your flight will begin boarding an hour before departure time--unlike domestic flights that generally begin boarding half an hour prior.
In London you will clear UK customs (for your belongings) and immigration (for you). They may or may not be the same step.
On the way back, in Dublin you will again be asked for your passport just to verify you have one. It wont' be actual immigration or customs.
When you land in CLT you will pass through US customs and immigration. That should be barely enough time, you will have to claim and recheck your bag and re-clear security. You will probably not have time to dawdle, get anything to eat, etc. before the flight to Newark.
Thank you for the detailed response. It sounds like this possible itinerary would work. I forgot to mention that I travel as light as possible so I will just have one carry-on and no checked bags. From my experience of flying domestically, I usually clear through security within 15 minutes. It is clearing customs that I have no experience with but it doesn't sound like it would take too long, especially since I won't have any bags to check in.
If several international flights land at once and you are in the back of one of the last planes, you'll be behind 900 people for customs and immigration. Not having to wait for the bag and then recheck it will help speed things along.
If several international flights land at once and you are in the back of one of the last planes, you'll be behind 900 people for customs and immigration. Not having to wait for the bag and then recheck it will help speed things along.
You bring up a good point about having to possibly wait for several planes to be processed. If there were delays from customs, I'm sure the airline will eventually get me to my final destination if I missed my connection, right?
It depends on the airline and type of ticket. If it is a low consolidator ticket, they might, they might not. Give me a little more info.
The ticket would be bought through Expedia.com and I would be flying U.S. Airways. It looks pretty legitimate but admittedly, I'm not sure what a consolidator ticket is.
The ticket would be bought through Expedia.com and I would be flying U.S. Airways. It looks pretty legitimate but admittedly, I'm not sure what a consolidator ticket is.
That's legit. You'll be fine. If for some reason you are really delayed getting through immigration. US Airways will put you on the next flight with and available seat.
You only go thru US customs and immigration if you are arriving in the US from a foreign country.
For a flight departing the US, you simply just walk to your gate (although they might ask to see your passport again at the gate).
They WILL ask to see the passport again at the gate. When flying internationally they want to see it before you board the plane after you enter the secure concourse. If they take you to another country and you are denied entry due to an expired or invalid passport, the airline is obligated to take you back to where you started. They kind of like to avoid that scenario.
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