Is a 1 hour 50 mins layover at Chicago O'hare enough?
 

I'm flying to the US from Abu Dhabi on Etihad.

I'll arrive in Terminal 5 and I will have 1 hour and 50 mins to get out, go through immigration, pick up my baggage, go through customs, leave Terminal 5 for Terminal 3, recheck my baggage with American Airlines, go through security and board the plane.

Will I have enough time? Are the procedures slow at O'hare? I'm afraid I might miss my connection!

Thanks!

Presuming you are not handicapped or disabled, you should make it. As stated, you will have to change terminals, and that is a procedure. Familiarize yourself in advance with a map of O'Hare so you thoroughly understand what you have to do. If you have a lot of luggage, this might be the time to splurge for a porter to help, who will also guide you through the airport.

If your plane is delayed by 30 minutes or so, I don't think you will make it. I would think you need a minimum of 90 minutes to do this. Customs are not slow, but if a lot of foreign arrivals come in at the same time as your plane, and they get slammed, obviously it will take longer. Good Luck!

Well, the good news is that you do NOT have to recheck your bags. Etihad and American have a partnership agreement, so your bags should be checked all the way to your final destination. You can get an AA boarding pass in advance as well, either via Etihad from Abu Dhabi, or by online checkin 24hr before your AA flight.

At Chicago you will wait for immigration, then claim your bags at baggage claim, pass through customs, then drop off your bags right outside customs to transfer to AA. Since you will have your AA boarding pass already in hand all you need to do is make sure you are at the gate by about 30min before departure, 20min at the latest.

Just make sure your baggage tags say your final AA destination when you check in in Abu Dhabi - give the Etihad agent your AA itinerary.

Thanks everyone. Also I will arrive in O'hare at 3:35pm and my American Airlines flight will take off at 5:25pm on a Monday afternoon. Is O'hare usually busy around this time? Thanks

Please remember that Terminal 5 is, essentially, an international arrivals termina.

You'll take the "train" to your terminal and go through security. I've done this routine far too many times.

You did not say what your AA destination was, as that will determine what concourse you'll be in.

Regardless, you should be able to make it.

My final destination is Dayton OH

O'Hare is both busy at that time of the afternoon and liable to have afternoon thunderstorms that delay arrivals (and departures). This might work in your favor to delay the departure of your next flight, or it could make you too late to make the connection.

I think it's a bit misleading to say that you DON'T have to recheck bags. Everyone arriving on an international flight has to recheck their bags for the ongoing flight, and you still have to allow time to have them loaded onto the next plane. Granted, you don't have to check in for the FLIGHT, but you absolutely do have to drop off your bags again after claiming them at baggage claim and going through customs.

I only have one experience on an international arrival at O'Hare, and it went smoothly. I don't think O'Hare's international arrivals area is as busy as the one at JFK or LAX, where I'd always caution people against less than 2 hours between an international and domestic flight.

So all I can say is good luck.

Thanks Doug!

O'Hare is only NOT busy at midnight! You will make it unless something drastic occurs like a very very late arrival.

OHare will have flights arriving from the world over... and a good number of them arrive during the mid-afternoon. I usually plan on about 45-55 minutes from the time the plane gets to the gate to the time I walk out the door to be picked up at terminal 5 (I usually don't drop bags for continuing flight). Dropping bags doesn't take very long though, as the conveyor belts are right as you exit the secure customs area, and before you exit to catch the train to terminal 3. Trains run very often so you will not be waiting for more than a few minutes, typically.

Now, you've not stated your nationality at all. IF you are travelling with something other than a USA passport, your immigration line will be longer and slower!! The line for US citizens is long and slow enough, and particularly during late afternoon, and sometimes they have what feels like a skeleton crew working the counters!! They could easily double the number of agents they have stamping passports, but I doubt that's going to happen anytime soon.

You will most probably be just fine!

Having close connecting flights from Terminal 5 can be stresful - I'm going to do the One Stop Program with a carry-on only - this should help getting thru alot faster.

Navigating O'Hare is easy. However, Immigration lines in Terminal 5 can be ridiculously long.

Did you make it to your next flight?

>>Did you make it to your next flight?<<

The OP hasn't been on Fodors in about 2.5 years . . .

Perhaps they are stuck at O'Hare