Clearing customs in Philadelphia PHL
 

We are flying into PHL from Venice and have a 90 minute layover before catching our flight to Charlotte. According to our tickets it does look like we are scheduled to fly in/out of terminal A. I haven't arrived in PHL after an international flight before. Is 90 minutes enough time to clear customs and immigration and go through security? It seems awfully tight, if not impossible.

Thanks!
Tracy

Do you have Global Entry?
Even if you don't, you should probably be okay. PHL has improved the process in the last few years.

>>s 90 minutes enough time to clear customs and immigration and go through security?<<

Same booking or separate tickets?

That will make some difference - especially if after you collect your bags for Customs you have to check them in again for the next flight. (if it is all one booking you would still have to collect the luggage but can just drop it before heading to the next flight)

If they are separate tix just pray your arriving flight is on time.

It's the same ticket and we are checking one bag. No Global Entry.

It sounds like PHL is much better than my last international arrival in BOS....90 minutes just to clear customs and immigration.

It could be tight without global entry, but as long as you are on a legal connection and have a single ticket, the airline will be obligated to put you on the next flight if you don't make your connection. The downside is that you must collect and re-check your bags regardless and then go back through security, but that can't be avoided. I'd feel better if you were doing carry-on only, so if you can book a longer connection of at least two hours I do it. If you already have your tickets, then you already have your tickets. Ordinarily, I'd recommend you install Mobile Pass on your phone, which allows you to get through immigration almost as quickly as Global Entry, but it's not offered at Philadelphia. But Philadelphia does have Automated Passport Control, so you won't actually fill out a customs form but will use a kiosk to answer your questions. This really does make passport control go much faster. You won't have any time to spare, but you should probably make your connection if there aren't unusual delays.

Thank you all. We do already have the tickets. When we booked we had a two hour layover but the flights were recently changed. Of course they could change again between now and May when we return.

I looked into Global Entry but we don't travel abroad as often as we used to these days. Once a year or two. I may post this on a separate post, but do you find it worth the cost and effort for perhaps once a year of international travel?

>>Once a year or two. I may post this on a separate post, but do you find it worth the cost and effort for perhaps once a year of international travel?<<

It partly depends on your budget - for some people $100 is a mid priced blouse, for others it is a month's groceries. Since you travel overseas I assume the cost won't break you. BUT IMO/IME even for just one or two trips a years it is more than 'worth' it. My fear is that too many people will opt for GE and the lines at the kiosks will get long. But between the quick immigration and the pre-check security it is a great help.

I travel carry on only so most of the time I seldom spend more than 10 or 15 minutes from leaving my seat on the plane to exiting arrivals -- and most of that is the walk from the gate.

Although I have no experience with Mobile Passport, others seem to think it's very helpful, and free.

Our biggest delays in PHL came with going back through Security after Customs. Global Entry helps with the latter and being Pre-Check helps with the former. Timing is still going to depend on

where you are sitting when the plane arrives

how far away you are from Customs

how fast you move

how many planes arrive at the same time

Another "delay" can come with the speed at which any checked luggage is delivered to the interim claim point

Several of the credit cards are no paying for G Entry so it then is no cost. A big benefit of the GE is the pre-check that comes with the card. For us that is the greater value since we fly domestic far more often than international.

I'm really thinking about switching to carry-on only for this trip. We are a family of 4, traveling with two 9 year old girls, so it will take at least 3 carry-ons but we can avoid checked luggage fees (we purchased cheap tickets with no frills) and waiting for our luggage.

$100 for Global Entry seems like a great deal. $100 times 4 = ouch. So unless I can get a credit card that covers it (looking into it) we're going to pass this time. Unfortunately our new, unexpected garage door has to take priority. We are, however, looking into TSA Pre check and may do that for DH and I.

Tracy

I looked into a few cards that offer the $100 credit. We would need 4 Global Entry credits to cover all 4 of us. TSA Pre Check is only $15 less but only DH and I would need it as children under 13 accompany us in the pre check line. Still thinking about it...I hate the customs and immigration lines!

Me neither. I just assumed that younger children would accompany their parents but apparently anyone, including babies, that holds a US passport needs their own Global Entry membership. We will likely do the TSA Pre Check but I'm really happy to hear that PHL should be easier! I think we are going to do carry on bags to avoid having to pick-up our bag after clearing customs and immigration.

My biggest problem in Philadelphia flying AA this past October from Lisbon with a connection to SFO was in retrieving the checked bag before proceeding further in the process. The baggage handlers overload the belts which can't handle the weight and they must have jammed up 4-5x... so most of the time was wasted waiting for my bag. Going carryon only should help.

We decided to do carry-ons only for this trip for this very reason. I don't want to have to wait to retrieve our bags and then drop them back off. We are flying into/out of Terminal A so I'm hoping that by doing carry-ons only we have a fighting chance of making our connection.