Catching a flight at JFK from international arrive, will I have time?
If your flight arrives on time you should have plenty of time to catch your flight, especially the 6:15. You can get a free transfer via AirTrain to any terminal at JFK in 10 minutes or less. There is an AirTrain stop at every terminal, and it is built right into the International Arrivals Terminal, (Terminal 4.) Just take two escalators up when you come out of the customs. LaGuardia airport is about 6 miles away, but the road there is heavily congested in late afternoon. From 4 p.m. is the normal rush hour in New York, and road construction along the way only adds to the congestion. Plan on at least 45 minutes to get there from JFK. Newark is even further, in New Jersey. The roads to get there are just as, if not more, congested in late afternoon as the one to LaGuardia, so plan on at least an hour and a half. Oh, and if you take a yellow cab to Newark, you're responsible for tolls ($20.00+) and the driver can't pick up fares in New Jersey, so it's at least double the meter. And I will almost guarantee you that the driver will try to cheat you on the toll: you pay the toll on the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge once for the round trip, going from Brooklyn to Staten Island ($9.60 with the EZ-Pass) and you will have to pay for the return toll ~$13.00 for Goethals Bridge (paid going from NJ to Staten Island) and NJ Turnpike. Then he will also try to tell you that you also have to pay the $9.60 for the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge return toll. The driver will then return to Manhattan via the Holland Tunnel and will pocket the $9.60, and in the bargain will fill up with cheap gas just before the Holland Tunnel.
I am flying from Palermo PMO (Italy) to NYC (JFK) and arriving at 1pm. After landing, how long should I wait for a connective flight to Chicago (considering that I will be entering the USA from another country)?
Provided you ask for one reservation and receive one ticket for the whole journey you could argue it doesn't matter. Airlines publish what they call "Minimum Connecting Times" and it is not in their best interests to have you misconnect because then they have to try and find you a seat on another connecting flight.That said, I often think that US carriers can be a bit optimistic about connecting times at US gateways especially for non-US passport holders. The problem is that if they offer you (say) a 90 minute connection and then the next flight after that is 5 hours away do you really want to deliberately book that 6hr 30min connection? Somewhere inbetween is the happy medium.It also depends on the airport. Some places (Baltimore springs to mind) have so few international flights that a 90 minute connection is feasible. 90 minutes at somewhere like JFK or Chicago is probably optimistic, it can be done (I've done it) but it's a bit nail biting. One of the problems with major gateways is all the other airlines. I've had major delays in immigration at Los Angeles and JFK. On one occasion I landed at Chicago and was surprised how heavy the braking was. The pilot then explained that the plane in front was from China and he thought we might want to get into immigration before they did.Go back to my first statement. If you buy one ticket to the USA gateway and a separate ticket onward I would leave a nightstop at the gateway. Two tickets mean two contracts. One ticket is one contract. If your inbound plane is delayed the onward airline is under no obligation to carry you if you miss the onward flight.
Will I be able to transfer flights at Fort Lauderdale airport in 2 hours? I am a foreigner coming from Brazil and going to JFK but I am Dutch.
Customs and immigration are at terminal 4 of FLL airport. Terminal 3 is about a 5 minute walk to re-enter security. Terminals 1 and 2 are a little more, but you can cut straight through the parking lot if in a hurry. Two hours should be plenty of time to exit your plane, clear immigration, clear customs, walk to your departure terminal, re-enter security and find your gate. This assumes you do not have checked luggage and your arriving flight is on time. Still possible at FLL with a checked bag, but don’t try the same at MIA. Average wait time at the carousel in Miami is 42 minutes.
On average how long does it take to clear customs at JFK airport?
Expect around 60 mins on average.Some ways you can save time:APC Kiosks- For US/Canadian Passports, US Lawful Permanent Residents, 2nd time ESTA/VWP and B1/B2 Visas. The kiosk scans your passport, takes a photo, asks some questions, and prints out a receipt. You then go to an officer, who makes sure the picture matches, and lets you through.Mobile Passport Control- For US Citizens/Canada Visitors only. Kind of replicates the APC Kiosk on your phone. The big advantage is the shorter (usually nonexistent) line. Available at many International hubs, including JFK. Download the app before you leave, fill out the form on the plane, and press submit when you land.CPB Pre-clearance stations- Try and make your last stop in Canada or Ireland (plus some others). You will go through a quicker customs/immigration before you get to the gate. BA flies LCY-SNN-JFK on a really cool all business class A318, with a stop in Ireland to clear customs. The advantage is you can arrive as a domestic flight, and just walk out of the terminal.Global Entry/Nexus/SENTRI- A wide variety of programs for different groups of trusted travelers. The fee varies based on your citizenship and location. When you arrive, just go to a special kiosk, scan your passport, and walk right through. Most US citizens fall into Global Entry. If you live near Canada, Nexus is cheaper (especially with kids), but requires meetings with Canadian Border Control as well. SENTRI is primarily for Mexican nationals. Certain countries have complicated arrangements that allow their citizens to have access to these programs, check at http://Globalentry.gov to find out how to apply.1-Stop- At ORD, not sure about other airports, you can go through a special exit if you don’t have a checked bag. This saves major time and if worth looking into.Express Connection/First-Buisness Class/FF passes- can give you access to a special line.Don’t bring any food, expensive gifts, lots of money, commercial products, animals, seeds, insects, etc or touch any livestock. Check those boxes with confidence! Global Entry actually has a ‘No to All’ option to save even more time!Find another flight to a smaller airport.
7 hour layover in JFK airport on a sunday in june,Can myself and my two teenage daughters make it to manhattan?
I wouldn't try it....
How much time does it take to pass immigration at the JFK airport?
I went through immigration at JFK a few weeks ago.The short answer is: it depends.In my case, as a member of the Global Entry program, it took me 2 minutes, i.e., the time necessary to access the immigration terminal, scan my green card, tap the screen to answer a few immigration and customs questions, and print a receipt. There was no line to access the terminals. No immigration interview is necessary afterwards. You just show your receipt to an immigration agent and then to a customs agent. That's it.Apparently, if you are a U.S. citizen or a visitor with an ESTA waiver, you can now take advantage of the new Automated Passport Control program, which basically works in the same way as the Global Entry terminals, and does not even require you to be pre-screened. There seemed to be no wait time there either.There was still a number of lines, and a moderate amount of people waiting to be interviewed by an immigration agent. I supposed that's for visa holders and visitors from countries that are not eligible to the visa-waiver program.The process seems significantly faster and more efficient than it was a few years ago.I also suspect that at times of higher incoming traffic wait times might increase substantially.
After flight arrival, how much time can we stay in the airport?
You can stay in the airport for days or weeks if you want to. On the other hand, some airports frown on people sleeping in the airport and do things to discourage this.
Will 2 hours be enough time to go through customs at LAX Airport? I'm flying from New Zealand to LAX and arriving at 1400, then flying from LAX to O'Hare at 1600. I'm nervous.
Well this ain't gonna solve the nervesYou'll probably make it but no guarantees.I'll hope you don't have checked luggage. You do know that you will have to collect your checked luggage at LAX to go through customs and then you give it back before you transfer to your next flight I hope.If you've no checked luggage you've saved a lot of time.The few times I've done AKL-LAX going through immigration hasn't been a big hassle. Once I was able to transfer to an earlier flight because getting through LAX immigration was really quick.Find out which terminal you are flying out of though. It won't be the same as the one you land at. Ground transport at LAX is confusing and it's too far to walk. If I remember the transfer bus is at the far left of the road lane outside the Tom Bradley terminal. Not obvious.Do you have a single booking for your journey? If so, then if you do miss the connection, the airline will switch you to the next flight. Annoying but not traumatic.As an aside, customs and immigration are two different activities.
How can I get from JFK to LGA, and how long does it take? I will go to NY from China, maybe it will take more time for me to find ways, and I just have four hours. Do you think I have enough time to get there? I am worried.
Four hours is very tight, but you can do it. Part of it depends upon the time your flight lands…sometimes traffic can be very heavy and your travel will be slow. Tell the flight attendant on your flight your problem, and let your flight attendant get you a gate assistant to help you out with your luggage and through passport control. If your luggage is booked through to your final,destination, it might be easier, but I don’t really know about switching airports. Your flight attendant can put you in touch with a ground person who can assist you. It is possible that the ground person can call ahead to your airline at LGA.Then you must take a taxi to LGA. You tell the taxi driver which airline you are flying so you get the right gate. When you get out of the taxi, find a ground representative for the airline and let them help you with check in and get you to the right gate.Good luck. This is a tough situation in terms of time.