Ok, so you’ve been on the plane for 13 hours straight, and the baby next to you just wouldn’t stop crying. The plane food was horrible, and you think you’re starting to smell. So finally, you’ve arrived. You’re here. Finally.
But wait, you’ve still got immigration and quarentine to queue up for. Now who’s excited!? Here are a few tips that may help you schedule for the shortest wait, the easiest transition, and ultimately fewer headaches. Hopefully your experience was as easy as mine.
Avoid landing in the afternoon when most flights from Europe are arriving. Fewer aircraft land in the evening. Virgin has a flight into Newark at 11.10pm, American Airlines has one to JFK at 10.50pm while BA has arrivals at Boston at 9.55pm and Washington Dulles at 10.40pm. Air New Zealand’s daily service from Heathrow reaches LA at 7.45pm. If the thought of getting into town late is scary, prebook a transfer, for example through Super Shuttle. Alternatively, for early birds, American Airlines reaches Chicago from Heathrow every day at 10.20am and BA arrives at JFK at 11.20am.
Don’t dawdle. You need to get to the head of the immigration queue fast. First and business-class passengers have priority disembarkation, but in economy try to reserve a seat as far forward as possible to get off before most of your fellow flyers. Website www.seatguru.com has seat maps, and most airlines let you choose a seat when you book.
Fly in to an airport with fewer international arrivals. British Airways flies to Tampa, Denver, Phoenix, Seattle and Baltimore. US Airways flies to Charlotte, North Carolina, Delta flies to Cincinnati, Ohio, and Continental has flights to Cleveland (Ohio). Northwest arrives at Detroit and Minneapolis and American Airlines has a daily Gatwick-Raleigh (North Carolina) flight. If connecting through Frankfurt, Lufthansa has a useful Portland (Oregon) service, while KLM/Northwest (via Amsterdam) flies to Memphis (Tennessee).
Fill out the green visa-waiver form correctly. Sounds easy, but the boxes and lines are close together and confusing. Take two in case you bodge one.
Smile. You’re jetlagged and dehydrated, but if you sat in a booth for hours processing forms, you’d be grumpy, too. The more pleasant and cooperative you are, the faster you’ll make it through the queue.
Thanks to Times Online for help with this article. Photo courtesy of El Fotokapismo
