Flying home from YVR question.

My question is re. the 3 hours suggested time for US check-in.

Is 3 hours necessary?

I'm trying to avoid having to get up at 4 am.

We are staying one night at the Pan Pacific (Post Cruise) so we can enjoy downtown Vancouver & Stanley Park, and we will be departing the following morning (before the next batch of cruisers get off their ship).

Our hotel is 30 minutes via cab from YVR.

We will be departing YVR on a Saturday June 27th on an 8 am flight to the US.

We are booked 1st class award tickets, so hopefully that helps speed up the process somewhat.

There are LOTS of online reports re. Int'l arrivals, or making an Int'l connection thru YVR, but not much re. my situation, so I thought I would ask the experts here.

TIA.

Personally no, I don't think any flight that early needs 3 hours. With 1st class tickets I believe you can use the priority queue at Security (we do with Nexus cards, so I haven't paid a lot of attention to what else is mentioned on signs but it's very common these days for 1st class tix to allow access).

We have taken the first Skytrain (c. 4:45am from downtown) for a 7am US-bound flight in the past and had no problems - there is always a buildup of people who don't realise that US CBP staff don't start until 4:30am and show up between 3am and 4am for flights in the 7-8am bracket. Arriving at 5am or later lets that initial rush die down -and until large numbers start arriving at once off cruiseships c.8-9am the queue should not be excessive.

If I were you I'd book a cab for 5:30am, arrive c. 6:00am at YVR. Still plenty early to avoid rush hour traffic and cruisers disembarking that day.

Thank You!

My question is re. the 3 hours suggested time for US check-in.

Is 3 hours necessary?

I'm trying to avoid having to get up at 4 am.

We are staying one night at the Pan Pacific (Post Cruise) so we can enjoy downtown Vancouver & Stanley Park, and we will be departing the following morning (before the next batch of cruisers get off their ship).

Our hotel is 30 minutes via cab from YVR.

We will be departing YVR on a Saturday June 27th on an 8 am flight to the US.

We are booked 1st class award tickets, so hopefully that helps speed up the process somewhat.

There are LOTS of online reports re. Int'l arrivals, or making an Int'l connection thru YVR, but not much re. my situation, so I thought I would ask the experts here.

TIA.

I wouldn't want to make it less than 2 hrs going to the United States. Problem isn't security or check in, it's that you have to pre-clear US Immigration and Customs, which can take a while. Of course that means you don't have to when you land in the USA, but that time does eat into US departures from YVR.

Out of YVR; I'd be happy with 1h30m before a domestic flight, 2h before an Intl (other than USA) flight, but to the USA would make it 2h30m just because the US 'border' crossing is such a giant question mark.