POE question

[AMZJ 61]

I use Dublin a lot. All the direct flights to the USA go through pre clearance there but not if you are going with, for example, Air France Dublin - Paris - New York. I find it quite nice to do pre-clearance there. Not usually very busy and quite cheerful chaps on the desks.

Mostly I go through Oslo or Copenhagen. My trip last November was a steal. Copenhagen to Denver via Toronto at £122 return. I used air miles to get to Copenhagen. I deliberately booked a return that went Denver - Toronto - London - Copenhagen and took a carry on only. When I got to Heathrow I just waltzed off to the national express.

I have never paid more than £250 return going from Oslo.

I went though Oslo at Christmas. I don't mind doing stop overs, I always have done to get the best prices. I also saw one flight that stopped over in Canada which was also pre- clearance. I was considering doing it that way because it would make it easier. I flew Aer Lingus over the summer holidays. I flew SaS at Christmas. Although when we flew united inland it was admittedly a quieter flight. I much doubt that it would be the case in the summer. But I am keeping an eye on prices for 5 different possibilities at the moment. I can't know which will be cheapest until I have my visa and am ready to book but I will keep an eye on prices for all 5. Although the 3 nearest are preferred.

[Advanced Aardvark 82]

So I have started to look at flights (no I'm not buying any until I have the visa). I'm just looking at what sort of price I'd be looking at and what would be my cheapest most time effective option. But when you come in on a K-1 would it take a lot more time to go though customs? What about connections etc? It's just something I was thinking about so I can get an idea of which airport is more possible as the prices can vary drastically.

We came in through Atlanta, GA. It was not very busy and I believe we cleared Immigration processing in about 1.5 hours. Customs was about another 30 minutes or so. As I recall, we had a layover of about 3.5 - 4 hours, so there was time for lunch and a non-rushed transfer to our domestic US flight. It is best not to make layovers too short. Flights can be delayed for a variety of reasons.

Good luck!

[Kat&Jon 85]

Another thing to keep in mind are which airlines have hubs at which locations throughout the world. For example you want to fly into Cincinnati which is a Delta Hub so all flights for Delta tend to be cheaper if that is your final destination. JFK and DC are international hubs for British Airways who partner with American Airlines. Sadly Cincinnati is not a hub of American Airlines but your thoughts on Chicago I believe are! So you flight on British Airways from London to JFK to Chicago for example should be pretty cheap because you are bouncing from Hub to Hub!

I found this out from my friend who was a flight attendant for 7 years! Very handy information in my opinion!

[AMZJ 61]

Another thing to keep in mind are which airlines have hubs at which locations throughout the world. For example you want to fly into Cincinnati which is a Delta Hub so all flights for Delta tend to be cheaper if that is your final destination. JFK and DC are international hubs for British Airways who partner with American Airlines. Sadly Cincinnati is not a hub of American Airlines but your thoughts on Chicago I believe are! So you flight on British Airways from London to JFK to Chicago for example should be pretty cheap because you are bouncing from Hub to Hub!

I found this out from my friend who was a flight attendant for 7 years! Very handy information in my opinion!

Thank you that is really interesting.

[AndyR82 8]

United and American, are both hubs at Chicago O'Hare, both are pretty much the same costs to, best to get the internal one at the same time if needed.