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I'd rather arrive 3 hours early than 24 hours late. Remember, in many places there's only a single international flight on your airline to your particular destination each day.
This is exactly how I figure it.. I'd much rather have to kill 2 hours at the airport bar than to be sweating out the possibility of missing my flight.
True....and I'm usually very well organized before a trip, especially international so I'm just nervous and waiting around at home anyway! I might as well just go to the airport and nervously/excitedly wait there than risk being late.
I used to want to carefully plan just when to leave to get to the airport at the "right" time so as to not "waste" time and it was pure silliness and stress over nothing.
It depends on the airport. I have pre-check and arrive 30-90 minutes ahead of schedule, depending on the situation. (destination, airport, time of day, checking bags, parking/returning car/getting dropped off) TBH, international or domestic has little bearing on my arrival time for the most part.
Going to the airport is not like going to Walmart. It's a lat farther, traffic is more unpredictable, and the consequences of being delayed/late are significant. I give myself a minimum of three hours, no matter what the airline says.
I once waited at a downtown hotel for an hourly limo, which didn't show up at all. So I was delayed by that whole hour, and I had to run through the terminal to make my flight. Give yourself the extra time.
If you are flying out at a busy time of day/night at a big, busy airport, there may be many international flights leaving around the same time and the lineups for luggage check and security could be huge.
I'd rather be safe than sorry. If they say 3 hours, I'd be there 3 hours before.
Have you ever had to run full tilt dragging your luggage through an airport corridor jammed with people? I have and I was at the airport on time. It sucks.
The last thing I want is to be stressed out before an international flight. I get to the airport early, get checked in and find something to amuse myself with......checking out the shops, getting something to eat or just people-watching.
Actually, I take that back--I aim for two hours when I am leaving from an airport I am familiar with and more to the point, familiar with getting too--BOS, JFK, EWR, DUB, CDG, BCN--old hat at these. I was recently in Istanbul and the traffic there was such that I left for the airport VERY early and wound up with almost 4 hours to kill in the airport, even after going through the airport's multiple security checks. That translated to a lot of airport bar drinks.
...except that DUB flights bound for the U.S. clear U.S. immigration and customs in DUB, which is done very inefficiently and can take an extra hour. Even though it's a sweet little airport and I hate waiting around, I arrive 2-1/2 hours early there.
I arrive at the airport usually 90 minutes before flight. Three hours seems to be way to early - to me. However, I am good prepared - know the airport layout, have e-ticket in my hand. My luggage is the right size/weight, and I check on the phone for any changes regarding my trip and connections.
I plan my driving time accordingly - depending on distance, traffic plus extra time for anything unexpected. Usually take taxi or Uber, or family member drop me off.
Never missed a flight.
I fly international a lot. I fly out of Fort Lauderdale and as long as I enter the airport two hours before the flight, I'm good. I give myself 45 mins to park, walk to the terminal or take the shuttle, I don't like rushing. Now that they've opened new parking garages I can cut that time to 30 mins.
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