Elizabeth

Wanted--other travelers' opionions.

I made a round-trip NY-LA-NY over Thanksgiving, and followed American Airlines' advice to show up 2 hours early. I checked in at curbside, and had then an hour and 58 minutes in which to enjoy the airport. (The security check-in was a little slower than before 9/11, to be sure, maybe took 5 minues extra.)

My question--do others believe it's still necessary to follow this guideline? Have you had experiences where you needed more time? One thing I am thinking is that IF there are security glitches, then more time is needed, and that that's the reason for showing up early.

(I have always been someone who shows up when I'm told to, so I'm not looking for support to cut is close to a silly degree.)

John

Elizabeth, I think it really depends on the airport. I called Continental the other day and they told me 60-90 minutes at my home airport (New Orleans) should be sufficient. I would imagine that larger airports such as LAX and JFK could potentially have long lines, although curbside definitely helps!

Jan

Elizabeth - I feel your pain! We traveled from SFO to Kahului 10 days ago and, like you, had about an hour and 45 minutes to spare enjoying the airport BUT coming home last Friday decided to cut it closer and ran into a line at the security check almost 45 minutes long. Maybe personnel were on break or something, but like Forrest Gump's mama said, you never know what you're gonna get! I'll continue to allow those 2 hours, just in case.

Bon voyage, everyone!

Elizabeth

Thanks, Jan, and I hope to hear from others. Your opinion kind of confirms mine--there CAN be factors that make those 2 hours necessary, and of course I am grateful when these factors aren't happening, even if it means an extra dose of magazine-shopping for me.

Karen

We flew from Milwaukee, WI to Reagan International in D.C. We arrived a little more than two hours early in Milwaukee and sailed right through. We had been warned D.C. would take much longer so we showed up almost 3 hours early. Same story. The security line took about 15 minutes. Our longest wait was waiting for the ticket counter to open. Maybe it depends what day of the week you fly. We flew midweek.

l

I arrived 2.5 hours early each way and fortunately got checked in quickly and ended up on an earlier flight. I asked on my way out of Miami when I realized I had over 2 hours to wait around. On the way back the Delta agent suggested I take an earlier flight. Worked out great for me. I suggest you get there early just in case but ask about getting on an earlier flight - do it before you check your bags

Jacque

My dad flew out of Oakland, CA the week before Thanksgiving. Getting through security took 1 HOUR AND 40 MINUTES!! Many people in line around him missed their flights. It WAS Monday morning and a lot of people travel to LA from Oakland then, but you just never know!

May

Depends.
At Newark's B terminal, there is only 2 metal detectors. I spent over 1 hour in line to go through.
At Newark's C terminal, which is all Continental, they have many more metal detectors and a long line can take only 15 minutes.
At Orlando, it took only 5 minutes.

But since it did that over 1 hour, I would never take that chance, especially with the heavy restrictive on-line (i.e., Orbitz) ticket rules.

Jeff

If you fly Monday morning, Thursday Evening or Friday afternoon, expect longer wait times. This is the time most business travelers travel. I have seen big differences based on when I travel.

Sinbad

Yes, Jeff, I experienced the same thing. Wait time at security at 5am on Monday was 45 minutes. On Wed morning 5 minutes.

Ei

BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY!

I travelled out of LAG on October 14 and yes, we needed the extra time. But, of course, it was about a month after the terrorist strike and I was flying out of NY.

L

At Reagan National Monday, Amercian checked the bags curbside and also provided all boarding passes curbside. Security at 8:15 a.m. took 2 minutes. Then once my in-laws boarded their plane, they had to sit for quite a while ... tire change. I agree with whoever said it depends on the airport ... but it is ridiculous that it should ever take over an hour ... the airport needs to add security people. Ciao