KellyMB

Hello,

My husband and I will be flying Tokyo > Washington DC, with American Airlines stopping at Dallas Fort Worth for 2.5 hours.

My husband is a US citizen but I am a New Zealander.

I don't really understand the steps we will need to take at Dallas FW to get to the domestic flight, and if 2.5 hours will be enough.

My assumption is that since Dallas will be our first point of entry in the US, we will need to go through customs here, collect our checked in baggage and drop them off at a re-check area?

I have an ETSA so hopefully that will speed up my customs experience but I am still concerned about timing.

If anybody could confirm or correct my assumptions regarding the process I'd really appreciate it. As well as any advice or opinions regarding my situation would be great.

Thanks a lot,

Kelly

Odin

Your connection time is fine. If your flight from TYO to DFW is delayed and you miss the connection, AA will put you on the next available flight DFW to IAD, assuming you booked the itinerary on one ticket as a connection.

You need to go thru immigration on arrival at DFW, you can use a self service kiosk (automated passport control) which makes the process very much quicker, then pick up your luggage and go thru customs, after customs drop off your bags in the baggage drop area. Then get from Terminal D to C (or whichever terminals your itinerary shows) using Skylink. There is quite alot of help at DFW, people that you can ask questions to, they hang around immigration etc with cowboy hats on.

KellyMB

Odin, thank you very much for this helpful response!

BigRuss

As an ETSA, you can use a kiosk. You will split from hubs and then reunite. You're not coming into Miami or JFK, so the 2.5 hours should be somewhere between sufficient and semi-leisurely. Your IAD flight almost certainly will depart from terminals A, B, or C; your international inbound flight will come to terminal D. All are connected inside security by a tram system similar to Atlanta's or Newark's (or Narita's for that matter, although the DFW system is far larger).

If you have time after clearing customs and coming back through security after dropping your bags (all within the customs area and the security lines at DFW are usually quick), then get some food at Terminal D because it has the best options and they're all relatively easy to reach from the whole terminal; the food options at A, B, C are less attractive and more scattered (each of those terminals is shaped as a large C with amenities scattered intermittently throughout, not centralized).

Here's the customs info from the dfw website. They color-code the arriving passengers. Your hubs follows the orange lanes, you follow yellow:

When you’re flying internationally, we want your arrival at DFW to go as smoothly as possible. We’ve designed our customs areas to maximize traveler flow, dramatically reduce wait times and get you to where you need to go.

Ask yourself these questions and determine which color best suits your status.

1. Who am I?
2. Where do I go?
3. What do I do?

***

Yellow
B1 or B2 Visa, ESTA
• Have your B1 or B2 Visa , ESTA document in hand.
• To qualify for ESTA, are you here fewer than 90 days, traveling without a Visa and a citizen of a participating Visa Waiver Country*?
• Follow the YELLOW signs to the Automated Passport Control kiosk.
• Scan your Passport, place your fingertips on the scanner and answer a few questions on the touchscreen.
• Present receipt to Customs and Border Protection officer at exit.
* Visit travel.state.gov for full qualifications and ESTA Countries list

KellyMB

Big Russ, thank you so much for this advice! I really appreciate it.

LukeH

Dallas is one of the better airports in the USA for customs clearance, there's usually very little queues for the ESTA machines so you should be able to fly thru customs. Plus the airport has good signage, so you should be able to find your way around quite easily. 2 1/2 hours is plenty of time, assuming no real issues like weather delays.

toyocoro

The DFW Airport Website is very helpful: https://www.dfwairport.com Has flight information, maps, information on getting around the airport, facilities, shops and dining options. There is also a downloadable app available for your smartphone.

There is a volunteer-staffed desk just as you exit the international arrivals hall into the public area. the volunteers where a hat and a green waistcoat.

The area to re-check your bags onward to IAD is on the right after going through Customs. (turning right exits the International arrival hall into the public area of Terminal D). Your flight to IAD typically departs from Terminal C and the Skylink is the best way to get to Terminal C.

Some overseas airports now process you through immigration and customs at the point of departure and so you arrive at a domestic flight gate. Not sure if Narita-Tokyo has that in place as yet. In any case, DFW has good signage and helpful staff. The public is also generally helpful and eager to assist.

KellyMB

Luke H and toyocoro - Thank you so much very much for your tips and information! I really appreciate you both taking the time to answer my questions!