Immigration lines at Heathrow?

[bornfreenowexpensive]

Anyone have problems with the long lines and needing to make connecting flights?

 

We actually have two separate tickets, from BWI to LHR and LHR to Stockholm (ARN).

[JohnnyFox]

Anyone have problems with the long lines and needing to make connecting flights?

 

We actually have two separate tickets, from BWI to LHR and LHR to Stockholm (ARN).

 

Oh dear. There have been some recent nightmares regarding the queues in LHR, including Terminal 5 where you're arriving AND departing. Assume an hour's wait in the morning peak and you'll not be disappointed.

 

Even though you have separate tickets, if the layover in London is less than 24 hours you can ASK British Airways at Baltimore to through-tag your luggage to Stockholm AND issue the Stockholm boarding pass which will be infinitely less painful because it means you can stay airside on the layover. If they don't give you the boarding pass for the LHR-ARN flight, you can pick it up at 'Flight Connections' airside in Terminal 5.

 

Otherwise, if the bags are tagged only to LHR you'll need to join the non-EU immigration queue and then pick up your baggage - at least it should be there by the time you're through immigration - and recheck it at a landside check-in desk for the Stockholm flight. There are 100 BA desks so it's fairly easy - especially if you have a BA Silver or Gold card (Oneworld Sapphire or Emerald) which gets you access to the business class desks even if flying economy.

 

Fortunately the BWI flight arrives at 9.35am which is usually past the morning Heathrow 'peak' for arrivals, AND the Olympics will have finished so you may be lucky with the wait times.

 

Any other London questions please ask me - and see you onboard Nautica!

 

J

[handfordr]

This customs thing is bringing out the worst in the media chasing headlines rather than doing a professional job and reporting factual news.

 

A month ago the media had found people where it took 3 hours to go through and broadcast that as though that was what could be expected by everyone. I passed through the Heathrow on the same day, but at the "wrong" terminal and it took 40 minutes.

 

Today the headline on the news was that people arriving for the Olympics are "only" taking 30 minutes to go through customs so shock horror customs are not doing the proper checks and lots of terrorists "must" be slipping through.

In small print the fact that 500 extra customs people had been drafted in didn't seem relevant as a possible explanation..

[DorneyBoy]

the fact that 500 extra customs people had been drafted in

 

Presumably a good few of these 500 extra customs officers have been drafted in from Dover, Southampton and Harwich cruise ports

[letsgo39]

Just depends on how many flights arrive at the same time. If yours is the only flight it won't be bad however I have gotten there when 5 other flights had just landed and it took forever. At least 2 hours.:eek:

[scottbee]

Oh dear. There have been some recent nightmares regarding the queues in LHR, including Terminal 5 where you're arriving AND departing. Assume an hour's wait in the morning peak and you'll not be disappointed.

 

Or, to put it another way, about ½ of what's common to enter the USA? I've even waited 30 minutes to enter the USA in a NEXUS (supposed express / preclearance) lane on a couple of occasions.

[bornfreenowexpensive]

Thank you John Fox!

[hehny]

I understand skepticism of the media. But having just gone through immigration at Heathrow, I can you there is no exaggeration. Thank goodness for first class, which offered fast track. That took approx 40 minutes. My colleagues, who did not want to pay for an upgrade, spent 2 hours queuing. It's an absolute mess.

[bornfreenowexpensive]

I hope there's a restroom on the way to the line!

[MATHA531]

This customs thing is bringing out the worst in the media chasing headlines rather than doing a professional job and reporting factual news.

 

A month ago the media had found people where it took 3 hours to go through and broadcast that as though that was what could be expected by everyone. I passed through the Heathrow on the same day, but at the "wrong" terminal and it took 40 minutes.

 

Today the headline on the news was that people arriving for the Olympics are "only" taking 30 minutes to go through customs so shock horror customs are not doing the proper checks and lots of terrorists "must" be slipping through.

In small print the fact that 500 extra customs people had been drafted in didn't seem relevant as a possible explanation..

 

The common misconception. It's not customs. It's immigration (or passport control).....customs occurs after immigration control when you pick up your baggage and most likely walk through the lane that says nothing to declare. That's customs.

[DorneyBoy]

My colleagues, who did not want to pay for an upgrade, spent 2 hours queuing. It's an absolute mess.

 

2 hours! - Heathrow seems to be slipping to US airport standards (where they don't provide toilets)

[Nigella]

2 hours! - Heathrow seems to be slipping to US airport standards (where they don't provide toilets)

 

My thoughts exactly, DorneyBoy. It seems that some of our US friends think it's unacceptable to have to wait to clear Immigration checks in our country.

I can't add up the times I've waited 90 minutes plus in Miami, JFK and other US airports.

I will concur with some posters that there certainly are some issues at the moment at LHR, and it's taking longer than normal. But these sort of waiting times are absolutely typical for us non-US citizens when we visit the States.....

[kathy16]

It took about 15 minutes when I was there last Saturday about 10 am

[celle]

My thoughts exactly, DorneyBoy. It seems that some of our US friends think it's unacceptable to have to wait to clear Immigration checks in our country.

I can't add up the times I've waited 90 minutes plus in Miami, JFK and other US airports.

I will concur with some posters that there certainly are some issues at the moment at LHR, and it's taking longer than normal. But these sort of waiting times are absolutely typical for us non-US citizens when we visit the States.....

 

At least the UK doesn't fingerprint foreign immigrants like criminals, as the US does.

[hehny]

It took us 20 minutes to clear passport control in the States where there is no fast track. With so much hype about Olympics and extra personnel, Heathrow has failed miserably.

[scottbee]

My thoughts exactly, DorneyBoy. It seems that some of our US friends think it's unacceptable to have to wait to clear Immigration checks in our country.

I can't add up the times I've waited 90 minutes plus in Miami, JFK and other US airports.

I will concur with some posters that there certainly are some issues at the moment at LHR, and it's taking longer than normal. But these sort of waiting times are absolutely typical for us non-US citizens when we visit the States.....

 

+1

 

The USA is the only country where I've ever waited more than an hour, and I've waited 1hr+ by land, sea & air entering the USA.

[handfordr]

There is currently a thread on Tripadvisor triggered from someone again worried because of media stories raising alarm.

All the responses from people on the "ground" is something completely different

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowTopic-g186338-i17-k5604579-o10-Heathrow_Customs_Crazy-London_England.html

 

Regards the US bashing immigration slants above I don't think anyone can argue with this fact of 1 to 2 hour delays being routine for many years in the US, I think its always been one of the main deterrents to visiting the US if you don't have a US passport.

 

What I would be interested in knowing from those in the US is how the US Media are presenting this and why it would be newsworthy at all that a single airport elsewhere in the world has flirted with service levels that are everyday and routine in their own country.

[Starlaker]

Why must any discussion such as this descend to bashing any country? Can we just agree that security has become a pain everywhere in this increasingly dangerous world. We stood in line for two hours in Vancouver a few years ago just prior to the Winter Olympics. As far as US media is concerned, I haven't seen a thing about it in our newspaper.

[skisteamboat]

Whatever it takes, it takes. Whining about it isn't going to change anything. :D

 

I have waited hours and I have waited minutes in airports all over the States, Central America and in Europe. As long as I am admitted to the country, it's all OK with me. There are bigger things to stress over than waiting in line (unless one is in dire need of the facilities).

 

Cheers

[celle]

Whatever it takes, it takes. Whining about it isn't going to change anything. :D

 

I have waited hours and I have waited minutes in airports all over the States, Central America and in Europe. As long as I am admitted to the country, it's all OK with me. There are bigger things to stress over than waiting in line (unless one is in dire need of the facilities).

 

Cheers

 

+1

 

In my experience, for delays in processing arrivals, LHR is no worse than many other airports I have travelled through. It just seems to me that there is a perception on Cruise Critic that LHR is particularly bad. Not so, although, because of the Olympics, there will naturally be more publicity about LHR.

 

FWIW, for those who are worried about such things, at LHR there are bathrooms between disembarking from your plane and getting to immigration processing. As my mother always told us as kids: "When you're travelling, always use a bathroom when you see one, as you don't know where you will find the next one."

[xcomet]

We arrived at heathrow on July 10, before the olympics, using business class, and the fast track, still too us nearly two hours!!!:eek:

[travellovers2]

We were just there in June. When we arrived it was a very long line. When we departed the security personnel took their time with their 20 questions so it slowed down the line a lot. Not sure what the questioning was for because they let some very strange individuals through without a search. I say put people and bags through machines to check them well and stop the 15mins questioning.

[3rdGenCunarder]

The common misconception. It's not customs. It's immigration (or passport control).....customs occurs after immigration control when you pick up your baggage and most likely walk through the lane that says nothing to declare. That's customs.

 

Thank you for posting that clarification. For some reason, Customs always gets the blame.

 

I think all the talk about LHR being slow is because of the Olympics. ANYTHING that can be tied to the Olympics gets media attention. I'm not saying it isn't slow, just saying why the fuss is in the media.

 

I think I've stood in line (T3?) at LHR for an hour a couple of times. Once we breezed through in 10 minutes. I was shocked when I saw how short the line was. I have no idea how we got so lucky!

 

I love flying into Manchester. The line splits into UK & EU and "everyone else." Well, there aren't a lot of "everyone elses" on flights from EWR to MAN, so we don't have to wait a long time. Checkin and security on the flight home, on the other hand, tends to be payback.

 

When we flew home from Australia this winter, we made our connection in San Francisco. Time was tight and the line was long. The Immigration inspector was a bit snappy. "Don't stand too close! Stand there!" When we fly into Newark, they always say "Welcome home." After we cleared in San Francisco and were going out the door, I said to DH, "He wasn't very nice." DH said "Who cares, we're in." and we took off running for our next gate.

[John Bull]

We were just there in June. When we arrived it was a very long line. When we departed the security personnel took their time with their 20 questions so it slowed down the line a lot. Not sure what the questioning was for because they let some very strange individuals through without a search. I say put people and bags through machines to check them well and stop the 15mins questioning.

 

The lines (yes, they vary a lot) are for immigration, ie passport control of who comes in, ahead of the baggage reclaim.

There's no searching at immigration booths, though I suspect that the questioning earmarks some for a tug when they reach Customs.

Iris recognition (when its working :rolleyes:) & computerisation of passport information helps to push people through but just like the USA, GB has more than its fair share of illegal immigrants & wanted felons - difference is that with no land borders the vast majority into GB use scheduled air or sea transportation.

Even so, I've experienced lines of similarly mixed lengths (longest about 90 mins) in the USA.

 

Customs, after baggage reclaim, never has a line - there's no delay at all, you don't even have to break your stride.

Unless you're given a tug ;)

 

JB :)