cabovacation

Leaving for Dublin. Aer Lingus says arrive three and a half hours early. Does that sound right for an early afternoon departure? thanks.

meo

I don't know about Aer Lingus, but we stood in line at SFO for Air France check-in for 1 hr 45 mins, and the line was just for one flight. Then we had to go through security. You might check to see if you can check in online and save time at the airport. I guess I'd arrive a minimum of 3 hours early.

curmudgeon

Many of the international airlines flying from SFO have only one or two flights per day, so they don't have a lot of checkin staff. If you have a 747 flight, the baggage check lines can be quite long. 3+ hours is probably a good idea, though I would check flight status before heading to the airport (nothing like getting there 3 hours early only to find out the flight is another 4 hours late).

cabovacation

OK! Thanks so much.

FainaAgain

This morning on TV they showed long lines! If you're flying this week or next week, show up early.

StuDudley

You can not avoid the line by checking in online if you have an international flight leg (even if your ticket is SFO to JFK to CDG). You might be able to get a bording pass online - but that doesn't buy you anything - you still have to wait in line.

Also, I discovered years ago that if you find out your flight is 4 hrs late, and you arrive 3 hrs before the new departure time - your seat will probably be given away if the flight is full & there is a waiting list. They don't change the final check-in time just because the flight is late. Of course, if the plane has seats available, they will probably let you on.

I would go with the 3 hrs. The international terminal is quite nice.

Stu Dudley