TxTravelPro

American arriving at 6:50am, Terminal 3. Loads of luggage - huge bag containing inexpensive gifts + 1 large suitcase of personal items + 1 carry on briefcase.
I figure it could take 20 minutes or so just to get off the plane.
I know that there will be many other arrivals around the same time.

A colleague is meeting me to pick up the suitcase of gift items. What time do you think he should plan to arrive at LHR?

Thanks!

TxTravelPro

To clarify: American citizen, arriving on American.

janisj

Ah so - you did get a colleague to pick you up. That is the best option.

Customs is not an issue - just walk through the green line. There is no way to say how long <u>Immigration</u> will take. A few minutes - to an hour or more. Depends on how many officers are on duty, how many other non-EU passport holders there are, and how many other flights are processing at the same time.

yk

I'd say 1 hour for immigration to be on the safe side. I don't recall hearing anyone taking much longer than 1 hour to get thru.

xyz123

Just to clarify...there is this continuing lack of understanding the difference between immigratin (passport control) and customs...

American flies into Terminal 3 at Heathrow..upon deplaning you will go through a maze of corridors till you reach passport control first..here they have establish disney type snaking lines...there are 2 lines..one for eu and Swiss passports, the other for all others...those in the all others line will have been given a landing card on the plane...here is where the real wait occurs...processing Americans, Canadians, Australians is usually a very quick matter if they are just tourists...processing those who will be staying on as students, for example, takes a bit longer. I once landed behind a flight from Frankfurt which contained many students from Ghana which takes a while for each to process.that queue moved ever so slowly...once you meet the immigration officer he or she will ask you a few quick questions (how long are you staying, what is the purpose of your trip) and will then stamp your passport...you will go upstairs to the baggage hall with the usual airport carousels...you find the carousel for your flight...depending how long you were in immigration, the baggage may already have been uploaded or you may have to wait...when you collect all your bagge, you then follow the signs to the exit...this is customs and there are two lines...a red channel with goods to declare (mostly for returning British residents on whom there are import restrictions) and the green nothing to declare...sometimes one is stopped on a spot check or whatever in that channel but usually you're through and into the arrivals hall where your friend can meet you.

How long that it takes in immigration is anybody's guess as noted.

flanneruk

&quot;a red channel with goods to declare (mostly for returning British residents on whom there are import restrictions)&quot;

Not so.

THe limits on what you can import permanently duty free (&pound;150's worth) are standard fior everyone. If you're bringing &pound;151 worth of presents (or samples) and you're American or British or Hottentot, you have to go through the red channel.

xyz123

flanneruk...

I think I said mostly for returning Brits...I didn't imply that only Britis would go through that...

In the USA, we don't have a red channel and a green channel at customs...everybody fills out a customs card and an inspector looks at it and decides whether to let you pass or to detain you for further questioning and perhaps inspection of your luggage...

In Britain and most other countries, you're on your honor but for the most part, usually visiting tourists have nothing to declare (the airlines don't distribute a list of what goods are allowed to be imported..I think in the customs hall there are signs to this effect but again for the most part, it wouldn't affect visiting tourists, or am I wrong about that?)

AAFrequentFlyer

There is also a line for Fastrack pass holders.

AA business/first class passengers can use that line. Just make sure the FA on your flight gives you a pass, but even if they don't (occasionally they run out), have your BP available for the line checker. I have also witnessed AA status holders in economy getting the pass if they asked nicely.

If the OP is flying J or F, figure about 15 minutes at worst.

AAFrequentFlyer

Slight corrections to the above:

If in economy, you will need the actual pass given out by the airline. AA status will not get you in on it's own. AA J/F BP will (in most cases)

15 minutes at worst = 15 minutes in the immigration hall, not the entire procedure.

xyz123

AA..

As an AA gold does that mean I can ask for a fast track for arrival at LHR???? (I have gradually found out that with my status I can check in at the business class check in and found out two weeks ago that I could go through the first class line at security in the AA terminal....

wombat7

Agree with AAFrequent - I've been through T3 about a dozen times in the last year and have not seen a line up that would take an hour.

I asked for a spare fast track for my travelling companion who was at the back of the plane (could not get a business class ticket on points) and was given one (after much muttering by the FA that each fast track costs the airline $25) - must have been a bad day.

My airline ones are bright pink - people often leave them behind in business class if they are transitting - so look out for one as you de-plane!

AAFrequentFlyer

We posted about the same time. As stated eariler, no status on it's own won't get you in. You need a Fastrack pass or J/F BP.

As a status holder you may be able to convince your FA to give you the pass if you ask nicely...

TxTravelPro

Thanks so much everyone...
I plan to take my reciepts for everything which proves that the gifts fall below a value of 150 pounds. Hopefully that will curb any problems with declarations.

I'll still have to navigate my way from LHR to the hotel using the tube, lugging 2 pieces of luggage, 1 big, 1 small. I pray that I am able to use lifts/escalators at the entrance/exit to the tube.
Should be an easy trip in if that is the case

janisj

Use a car service - if your luggage is big enough that you are worried about it - it is probably really BIG.

TxTravelPro

Well, it is big by my standards... 24&quot;. That is not BIG by many standards. My carryon will attach to the bigger one and I only have to lug around the one. Of course it is on wheels, so I ma not physically carrying it.
I really feel I must take the tube and from what I recall, the tube should not be too crowded at that end. I could be wrong, but when I was commuting to Hounslow, it was always empty by the time it got to LHR, a few stops further.
I think I can get a good spot for the ride in and it will save a good chunk of money.

yk

I'm a little confused. So your colleague will be at LHR just to pick up the bag of gifts... but not you?

So you'll still need to get from LHR to your hotel by yourself?

24&quot; is still pretty big. Just make sure you're able to carry it up 1-2 flights of stairs as not all tube stations have escalators/lifts.

TxTravelPro

The hotel is about a 300m walk from the Knightsbridge stop (Picadilly).
I am not familiar with this stop but it says it has 5 escalators, 0 lifts. Worse case, I can drag them up the stairs. My sister will be with me if I need any help.

My coworker is only taking the bag because I see no reason for him to fuss with me when the tube will take me almost all the way to the hotel. The gift suitcase is destined for Hounslow for an event the next day, so him coming to take that off my hands saves a lot of time and frustration

People have said it is a long walk from T3 to the tube. Long, like MILES? Or are we talking 15 minutes at a leisurely pace?

flanneruk

&quot;but again for the most part, it wouldn't affect visiting tourists, or am I wrong about that?)&quot;

OK, let's be clear.

UK rules say ANYONE importing permanently goods over &pound;150 (that's &pound;150 over and above their duty free booze and cigarette allowance) has to declare them. At that point all the goods are subject to import duty (on most things trivial: on clothes 12%: on excess booze and cigarettes several emperors' ransom) plus 17.5% VAT.

They declare them by going through the red channel: taking over &pound;150 of permanent imports through the green channel is a criminal offence (though that makes criminals of all of us). Permanent import means stuff we've bought at Bloomingdale's, stuff you're bringing for your chums over here, stuff salesmen MIGHT leave behind as samples and stuff chancers think they might sell on market stalls (how do you think those 12&quot; New York Dolls vinyls get into Camden Market?)

Unlike the US, Customs officials aren't really interested in any of this. They've got all sorts of systems to help them identify people bringing in stuff they want to keep out, and that's what they devote their energy to. The difficulty for most travellers is that if you ring one of their drug, weapons, bad porn or jungle meat bells and are clean, they're likely to stumble over the &pound;155 dress you bought in NY and do you for it.

wombat7

T3 to tube is not too bad and there are moving walkways to make it faster. Less than 15 mins at a leasurely pace.

bdj

xyz123…Excellent articulation of the process and route upon deplaning at LHR. If one is arriving on NWA at T4 is there much variance from that outlined? Also, if one is hiring JustAirports to take into the city, where are they met relative to clearing customs?

Thanks in advance…bdj