Italiantable

Hi .. I have searched for a recent answer t this question but cannot find one less than 3 years old.. so.. We are considering purchasing tickets returning from Rome to Phoenix with a connection in Philadelphia.. the details of the flight say :"terminal change"... from what I am reading.. it looks like we come in on international and leave on domestic and we have to change terminals..

Anyone done that recently.. advise?

doug_stallings

What exactly is your question? Is it whether this is in fact true (i.e., that you do have to change terminals)? Is it how much time do you need between flights? Is it whether there's a lot of walking? You may wish to repost this question with a bit more useful detail in the US travel forum, which tends to have more visitors.

I've never connected through Philadelphia, but I can tell you that it's not at all uncommon to have to change terminals between an international arrival and a domestic departure. You generally have to go through both immigration and customs unless you are coming from certain destinations in the Caribbean, Canada, Ireland, or a handful of other places. You'll have to retrieve your bags before customs and re-check them for your domestic flight. This can take a while, especially in Philadelphia.

In general (and this is regardless of the airport), I'd never schedule an international-to-domestic connection with less than a 3-hour connection window. At some airports, I'd allow longer.

elberko

The terminals at PHL are spread out in a long attached line, and international flights usually arrive at A west, so yes, you will need time. The immigration line can be long and time consuming, and which terminal you'll need to get to depends on your Airline.
http://maps.phl.org/phl/#mapView

P_M

A terminal change at any airport is not unusual when you are making an international connection. We went thru Philly twice last year and we had no difficulty getting from one terminal to another. You didn't tell us how much time you have between flights but they will not sell you a ticket that is not a "legal" connection, meaning they cannot sell you a ticket that doesn't give you time to get from one place to another. That said, a flight delay or long lines in customs can be a problem. If you will give us more information we might be able to give you a more concise answer.