Author Topic: Travel question from US - London - Edinburgh.  (Read 3384 times)

Tami1982

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Travel question from US - London - Edinburgh.
« on: January 12, 2017, 10:08:54 AM »
I have been researching and googling and can't get a straight answer on this.  I thought maybe some of you may have experience/advice.

I'm flying from US with a layover in London on my way to Edinburgh.  It's actually two different tickets.  The first was purchased with AA miles, and the second with cash from BA. 

My understanding is that if you have a connection they have quick connect trams/trains to get you to the correct terminal (I have to go from 5 to 3) and you can avoid having to go through security/customs as you haven't left the passenger area. 

Since my connection isn't one ticket, will I be able to do this?  I'm desperately trying to get on an earlier flight as my original flight was cancelled and the bumped me to a much later one.  If I can hustle I might be able to catch a flight 1-3 hours earlier, but I believe I will only have enough time to do this if I don't have to go through all the lines and instead can get right to my terminal and instead do immigration in Scotland. 

Any experience?  Thoughts?   

Richardp10

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Re: Travel question from US - London - Edinburgh.
« Reply #1 on: January 12, 2017, 12:46:13 PM »
Do you mean you fly into terminal 3 from the US and then out of terminal 5 to Edinburgh on ba?

I think you can follow the connecting flight route through the airport without going through security but you would have to get your hold luggage set to go all the way to Edinburgh. I think American Airlines and ba have a luggage agreement that facilitates this but you need to check.

Could be worth emailing their customer service team to see if they will check your luggage all the way to Edinburgh through ba.

KCM5

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Re: Travel question from US - London - Edinburgh.
« Reply #2 on: January 12, 2017, 01:06:49 PM »
If it's two different tickets I don't think you're going to get around claiming your baggage and going through customs/immigration. Once you get into the baggage claim to get your bag you go through customs. And if I remember correctly, you actually go through immigration, then the baggage claim, then customs, then you can get to your next terminal. If you were on a connecting ticket you would check you bag again immediately in the baggage claim area, but since you don't have a connecting ticket, you'll need to go to the departures hall to do that.

ZiziPB

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Re: Travel question from US - London - Edinburgh.
« Reply #3 on: January 12, 2017, 01:14:58 PM »
From terminal 5 to 3 at Heathrow?  Not easy and not quick, unfortunately.  Even if your connecting flight is at Terminal 5, you still have to go through the passport control and a second security check.  If you are on the same airline, they will transfer the baggage but if it's a different airline, I think you will need to claim your bags.
« Last Edit: January 12, 2017, 01:18:59 PM by ZiziPB »

Tami1982

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Re: Travel question from US - London - Edinburgh.
« Reply #4 on: January 12, 2017, 06:03:15 PM »
Thanks for the feedback!

I have no checked baggage - just my carry on:)

Incoming terminal 3 outgoing to terminal 5.  I'm going to see if I can check in and print boarding passes during an earlier layover so that I do have them without leaving the area. 

Thanks for the heads up -  All I can do is try!

nereo

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Re: Travel question from US - London - Edinburgh.
« Reply #5 on: January 12, 2017, 06:10:31 PM »
Thanks for the feedback!

I have no checked baggage - just my carry on:)

Incoming terminal 3 outgoing to terminal 5.  I'm going to see if I can check in and print boarding passes during an earlier layover so that I do have them without leaving the area. 

Thanks for the heads up -  All I can do is try!

I did something similar ~6 months ago.  You'll have to clear customs when you land in Heathrow, and there's a (slow, annoying) shuttle to take you between terminals.  You shouldn't have to re-enter security (I didn't) but it also took me about 30 minutes to get from one terminal to the next (i think it was 5 to 3, too).
Clearing customs will be the real time drag on you though... anywhere from 15 minutes to a couple hours depending on the time.

cerat0n1a

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Re: Travel question from US - London - Edinburgh.
« Reply #6 on: January 13, 2017, 03:56:10 AM »
You can also take the heathrow express train to go from T5 to T1/2/3. The flight connections bus is usually quicker though. The terminals are miles apart.

If you go to the following and tell it about your flights, it should tell you what to do. I think they suggest 90 mins for this particular connection, which is a fairly common one. Jan/Feb are not busy times for the airport, so queues shouldn't be much of a problem.

http://www.heathrow.com/flight-connections

Be aware that Heathrow lands 30-40 aircraft every hour, depending on wind conditions. If your plane misses its exact slot (through no fault of the pilot), you can end up circling over London for anything up to half an hour waiting in line. Can be great - sometimes you get a low flyby of Buckingham Palace or the sights of West London, but it can be a bit frustrating if you're in a hurry or have a connection.