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Can someone with experience suggest a good place to clear where you don't have to stand in line for over an hour? Plan to visit the East coast and want to avoid the Zoo that is JFK/EWR/MIA/ATL , very flexable with locations, arriving from UK. TIA

Raleigh-Durham airport? It seems as if that airport has an AA flight to LHR.

RDU, CVG, SWF, PVD, Maybe when BWI

Connect through SNN (i.e. BHX/EDI/LGW/LHR/STN/MAN - SNN - BOS/JFK/EWR/SWF/PVD/PHL) and do preclearance there. I typically get through CBP in under 5mins.

Last time I was in EWR, clearing CBP was a breeze. Then again, my flight arrived shortly after 2 pm (and just after like 1 pm on the return leg) and having flown UA, it was all in Terminal C. It took more time to wait for my luggage to show up than clearing immigration and customs at all.

Look for a flight that doesn't hit your destination airport at the peak European arrivals bank. For most airports not on the West Coast, the peak hours are 12:30-2:30 pm. For example, BA has a late flight into IAH that arrives around 17:30, and with ESTA you should clear immigration in about 15 minutes. I'm sure this would apply to places like DTW, IAD, BOS, etc.

IAHWorldflyer wrote:

Look for a flight that doesn't hit your destination airport at the peak European arrivals bank. For most airports not on the West Coast, the peak hours are 12:30-2:30 pm. For example, BA has a late flight into IAH that arrives around 17:30, and with ESTA you should clear immigration in about 15 minutes. I'm sure this would apply to places like DTW, IAD, BOS, etc.

BOS is closer to Europe so the peak is much later, avoid BOS between 5-7 PM.

as was mentioned, pre clearance in Shannon is really best.
but if you are not completely stuck on an east coast arrival city, flying into MSP T2 via FI puts you into a pretty sleepy little terminal, where your airplane is likely to be the only international arrival at that time. You can return on FI via any of their serviced east coast cities. Just a thought.

If you're willing to fly at an odd time (leaving 7:30 am) and on a 757, there's a UA flight LHR-IAD that lands at around 11:15 am Eastern, which puts it roughly 3 hours after a group of Asia and Middle Eastern flights arrive and before the wave starts hitting from Central America around 1 pm, followed shortly by Europe and some more Asia/ME flights.

IAHWorldflyer wrote:

Look for a flight that doesn't hit your destination airport at the peak European arrivals bank. For most airports not on the West Coast, the peak hours are 12:30-2:30 pm. For example, BA has a late flight into IAH that arrives around 17:30, and with ESTA you should clear immigration in about 15 minutes. I'm sure this would apply to places like DTW, IAD, BOS, etc.

Doesn't IAH have APCs for citizens and ESTA passports, just like DFW? If you're in transit, to another airport in and out of the US, chances are you may even skip customs until your final destination by using the green APCs (that's from my experience in DFW, no idea if IAH has the same thing).

If you're willing to self-transfer I'd say Providence. Norwegian has flights to Providence from Cork, Dublin, Edinburgh and Shannon. Dublin and Shannon have pre-clearance, so everything is done prior to departure and you arrive in the USA like on a domestic flight. Cork and Edinburgh don't have pre-clearance, but since Providence is rather small it should go quick. Your flight will likely be the only international flight arriving at that time and it's only a 737 so not that many people. Same thing is true for Newburgh/Stewart by the way which also has a flight from Belfast. Belfast doesn't have pre-clearance either. But since Norwegian most likely doesn't fly from your home airport to any of these departure airports you'd need a self-transfer. In that case I recommend self-transfering at an Irish airport over a British airport. Flying from an Irish airport you don't pay APD so these flights are a whole lot cheaper than flights from a British airport where you do pay APD.

LTU932 wrote:

IAHWorldflyer wrote:

Look for a flight that doesn't hit your destination airport at the peak European arrivals bank. For most airports not on the West Coast, the peak hours are 12:30-2:30 pm. For example, BA has a late flight into IAH that arrives around 17:30, and with ESTA you should clear immigration in about 15 minutes. I'm sure this would apply to places like DTW, IAD, BOS, etc.

Doesn't IAH have APCs for citizens and ESTA passports, just like DFW? If you're in transit, to another airport in and out of the US, chances are you may even skip customs until your final destination by using the green APCs (that's from my experience in DFW, no idea if IAH has the same thing).

IAH does have the automated arrival kiosks for passengers arriving with a US Passport or ESTA, but at IAH all passengers pass through customs before the point at which they transfer luggage and re-clear security. These days though customs is more of a formaility like in Europe, with people just passing some officers who might randomly stop someone, but 98% just walk through. The questions now are handled by immigration officers upstairs.

Consider connecting through YYZ or YUL then to the US.

If you stick with one airline, usually AC, then very fast connections are possible. Not only is your flight from Canada to the US pre-cleared, so you arrive as a domestic flight ... but you don't even have to carry your bags through the connection either. Just walk off your International flight, straight to US pre-clearance, then down to your US flight. During your pre-clearance, the customs officer may ask you to identify your bag by video.

You remain inside the secure area the whole time.

One hour connections are possible and it is giving AC a huge edge over American carriers as there is no way one can connect through JFK, ATL, ORD, MIA, etc that quickly.

longhauler wrote:

Consider connecting through YYZ or YUL then to the US.

If you stick with one airline, usually AC, then very fast connections are possible. Not only is your flight from Canada to the US pre-cleared, so you arrive as a domestic flight ... but you don't even have to carry your bags through the connection either. Just walk off your International flight, straight to US pre-clearance, then down to your US flight. During your pre-clearance, the customs officer may ask you to identify your bag by video.

You remain inside the secure area the whole time.

One hour connections are possible and it is giving AC a huge edge over American carriers as there is no way one can connect through JFK, ATL, ORD, MIA, etc that quickly.

How long has it been this way at YYZ?

jetero wrote:

How long has it been this way at YYZ?

The fast track through Customs without bags at YYZ, YUL and YVR has been for a few years. About a year ago, US Pre-clearance at YYZ changed and it is now all stays within the security cleared area.

It's pretty impressive and a lot of Americans are now chosing to fly AC through Canada than to connect through large American airports like JFK, ORD, MIA, etc. A non-stop from the US to an International flight will always have the edge, but if a passenger has to connect anyway, quite a few are "discovering" Canada. Not just US to Europe and Asia, but I notice a lot of connections now from the western US to South America and the Caribbean.

longhauler wrote:

jetero wrote:

How long has it been this way at YYZ?

The fast track through Customs without bags at YYZ, YUL and YVR has been for a few years. About a year ago, US Pre-clearance at YYZ changed and it is now all stays within the security cleared area.

It's pretty impressive and a lot of Americans are now chosing to fly AC through Canada than to connect through large American airports like JFK, ORD, MIA, etc. A non-stop from the US to an International flight will always have the edge, but if a passenger has to connect anyway, quite a few are "discovering" Canada. Not just US to Europe and Asia, but I notice a lot of connections now from the western US to South America and the Caribbean.

Great to know, thanks. Can’t beat that.

TPA is a piece of cake, and surprisingly PHL can be an easy transition thru customs, bag claim/re-check and exit or transfer to domestic connection.
I just went thru PHL from a LHR flight and was thru it, bag claim and walking out to rail platform for commuter train to the 'burbs in less than an hour.
TPA was a "breeze" as I went thru everything including car rental, and 2 hours 10 minutes after the wheels touched down I was sitting in a bar at Rocky Point looking at the sunset while my dinner was being cooked!
And shockingly, even in Philly, everyone was nice, friendly and no one shouted instructions on how to form a line. Very civil welcome back home to the USA.

IAHWorldflyer wrote:

LTU932 wrote:

IAHWorldflyer wrote:

Look for a flight that doesn't hit your destination airport at the peak European arrivals bank. For most airports not on the West Coast, the peak hours are 12:30-2:30 pm. For example, BA has a late flight into IAH that arrives around 17:30, and with ESTA you should clear immigration in about 15 minutes. I'm sure this would apply to places like DTW, IAD, BOS, etc.

Doesn't IAH have APCs for citizens and ESTA passports, just like DFW? If you're in transit, to another airport in and out of the US, chances are you may even skip customs until your final destination by using the green APCs (that's from my experience in DFW, no idea if IAH has the same thing).

IAH does have the automated arrival kiosks for passengers arriving with a US Passport or ESTA, but at IAH all passengers pass through customs before the point at which they transfer luggage and re-clear security. These days though customs is more of a formaility like in Europe, with people just passing some officers who might randomly stop someone, but 98% just walk through. The questions now are handled by immigration officers upstairs.

I see. When I was in DFW, I was told to go to a green APC that allowed me to only go through immigration and skip customs. According to the CBP page, they were also conceived for people who travelled into the US without checked luggage. Then again, in my case I was an ITI transfer, so maybe ITi transfers on the same ticket and ESTA passport can transfer without going through customs, while international to domestic still goes through it.

So, you're going to fly into an airport where you can try to avoid spending an extra hour during a busy time standing in line for CBP, only to end up in a place requiring you to travel several hours to where you really want to be.

.....................................................................I mean, ok.

Ok so let me throw my plug in, next time fly to the Bahamas spend a few day at one of our hotels - we have a few - even visit one of our out-islands then enter the USA from either FPO or NAS, arrive at the domestic gates, situation done. A bit more expensive but you did not say cost was a factor, so...............

AUH took me 30 seconds in the summer.
JFK T7 took me 16 minutes just 3 days after the bomb cyclone.

Although, I am not an American citizen....

If the OP is ellibible for Global Entry, that is the way to go. I fly in through JFK, ORD. SFO, LAX, PHL, IAD, IAH, etc. I’m usually from plane to curb within 10 minutes. Mind you, I rarely check bags.

zrs70 wrote:

If the OP is ellibible for Global Entry, that is the way to go. I fly in through JFK, ORD. SFO, LAX, PHL, IAD, IAH, etc. I’m usually from plane to curb within 10 minutes. Mind you, I rarely check bags.

Yeah, definitely echo Global Entry if possible, and now they let you interview on arrival at certain airports (which was a very short line itself when I did it at PHL). Combined with Precheck, it makes arrival and connections a breeze and I never worry about CBP lines. I think the most I've ever had to wait was around 60 seconds for a kiosk to open up.

longhauler wrote:

Consider connecting through YYZ or YUL then to the US.

I just connected at YYZ last Saturday, flying YYC-YYZ-BOS on WS. I waited over 1 hour in the customs hall waiting for our bags to clear customs and my name to show up on the board. Immigration however was a breeze, with no line at all. Somewhere between 3 and 5 minutes for that process. So I'd say it all depends on whether you have checked luggage or not.

airbazar wrote:

longhauler wrote:

Consider connecting through YYZ or YUL then to the US.

So I'd say it all depends on whether you have checked luggage or not.

I would suggest it depends more on what airline you are flying and through what terminal. WS is pretty new at this. AC (for example) has been doing "no baggage" transfers through YYZ, YUL and YVR for years.