Is 3 hour arrival at airport overkill for International flights?

[BobTH]

I was looking at my tomorrow morning Delta Airline booking from BKK to the USA and it is recommending arriving at the airport 3 hours prior to flight time. I was thinking 2 hours before I saw this, and was wondering if any frequent International flyers could confirm that arriving 2 hours before would be sufficient. My flight is a 6am and I planned on arriving at the airport at 4am. Thanks.

[Crossy]

If you can guarantee being at the airport 2 hours before your flight then you should be fine assuming you're not on overstay and don't need a re-entry permit or VAT refund (which add to your waiting time).

The issue is always the risk of being delayed on the way to the airport, I have a fairly long trip (50+ km) to Swampy and aim at being there about 2 1/2 hours before departure to give that bit of comfort room, it rarely takes more than 30 - 40 mins from the taxi to being airside with a beer (no, even I wouldn't have a beer at 4AM).

I would always prefer being in the pub / coffee shop rather than fretting in the security queue.

[BobTH]

Thanks Crossy, I have a re-entry permit and not on overstay so I will just plan on a good two hours prior. I also gave SkyMiles a call and they confirmed that it will be ok as long as it is not much shorted than 2 hours. Thank again.

[bubba1]

I would give it 2.5 hours unless flying business class

[impulse]

Got a kick out of dropping a friend off at DMK for an international flight this morning.

Showed up 3 hours early because I never know what the traffic will be like- even on a Sunday morning. There was a huge line at check-in. An hour later when she finally got checked in (after spending another 15 minutes paying for excess baggage) , the line was down to 2 or 3 people.

If we had shown up 2 hours early instead of 3, we would have walked right up to the counter. (But if we had left home planning on that, traffic karma would have probably punished us)

Edited June 26, 2016 by impulse

[harrry]

If your airfare is fully refundible 2 hours. If not 3 hours plus. In fact I would add the time it takes to the airport for that again just to ensure no breakdowns etc.

[OMGImInPattaya]

For a flight out of Swampy at that time of the morning, two hours should be plenty of time. I've taken the old UA flight to SFO with that departure a couple times and the immigration line was more or less empty.

For mid-morning and later flights I would recommend 3 hours before departure for an international flight (unless in Biz or First and using fast-track services).

[rak sa_ngop]

I would give it 2.5 hours unless flying business class

Yes, if you are flying business class Emirates you can check in 4 hours before for an A-380 flight, and then have a wonderful experience in their First Class lounge drinking champagne and gorging yourself on smoked salmon and other tasty delights.

That's what I do anyway.

[SantiSuk]

Arriving 1.5 hours before is fine at any time of day if you have the ballz to push in or apologise your way in on those one in ten situations when there is an extra long queue at immi or baggage (there will not be a queue at check-in as 95% of your flight will have checked in already (or if it is a counter handling regular flights it is very easy to ask to be seen first if up against a time deadline).

The issue is .... can you be sure you will arrive 1.5 hours before? This is rainy season; floods could catch you out; if you don't want to lose money on rebooking I would go for 2.5 hours, or even 3 if you are coming from outside Bangkok.

Travelling with wife and kids, always 2.5 to 3!!

Edited June 26, 2016 by SantiSuk

[xen]

Once i was travelling with my Thai family - wife,kids and brother in law and his wife. Got to the airport in plenty of time except for BiL. We wanted to have a meal and a drink but no BiL had arrived. Wife rang him and he is still in bed. Reminded him about leaving times and got him to take a taxi straight away. He arrives with just a smirk on his face. The c----t puts everybody to stress and all he can do is giggle . Results in no browsing the duty free or a casual meal and no casual stroll to the plane and luckily there was no holdup getting through boarding.

Then he repeats it on the way home except they had to hold the plane at the airport for us. Never ever will i travel with a dic------d like that again.

Edited June 26, 2016 by xen

[JMWPACIFIC]

Your 2 hours should be OK for that time of AM.

But what's the big issue with three hours? Enjoy Starbucks while you wait!

I go international in Business Class and almost missed it because of traffic.

Have you ever missed an international flight. It ain't pretty.

[mikebell]

Due to cost of coffee/food at BKK, I never arrive before the minimum I can get away with.

[bprinceuk]

Better safe than sorry springs to mind. You can never tell how long for immigration, I always take the same time flight back to Dubai, sometimes sail through immigration in ten minutes and other times it has taken more than one hour. Another factor to be considered is the increased security; this can also cause unforeseen delays.

[TPI]

Having just come through the airport twice in three days I can tell you that 3 hours might not be enough if you have a mob of chinese tourists in front of you or a couple of A380's that are loading!

I don't know how they will cope with "cattleclass" arrivals in the future with 2000++ chinese tourists all cramed in with their huge pile of carry on luggage in the immigration hall coupled with the slow handling of the paperwork??

[Mrjlh]

In March, I flew from BKK to Taiwan to SFO on EVA Air. I arrived BKK 3 hours 15 minutes early (11:15AM) and I was glad I did. My flight was to have left at 2:30PM. Due to bad weather in another part of the Pacific the arriving and turn around plane was going to be delayed 2 hours. That meant my flight to Taiwan was now delayed and I would be missing my connection to the US. As I sat just sat down outside the checking in/booking area for EVA and an EVA Rep was walking around asking which flights people were on. As soon as she saw mine, it was VIP Express Service by EVA agent (running) all the way through to the Boarding area for an earlier EVA flight.(11.35AM departure). I got on the plane only 5 minutes before we left the gate. Had I arrived mere 5 minutes later than I did I would have been stuck in Taiwan overnight.

What's the chances?...slim but it only takes one time to ruin your flight. That's a good reason to show up early for "any" International flight! I've never seen a Immigration Officer stamp so fast or Customs Inspection work so quickly. And my plane had to be at the far end of the concourse!

[Myran]

Why risk it? An extra hour spent at the airport is much better than an extra hour nervously spent in a taxi because some unforeseen problem on the way there.

[dddave]

To some of the experiences above, I would add that Delta usually has the longest, slowest Economy check-in lines I have experienced in my career as an air courier. They are the most diligent and thorough at questioning passengers prior to allowing them to check-in. They are also the most likely to search any bags or parcels they deem suspicious right there in the check in area. I once had a shipment of 20+ cartons and they opened each and every one. If they have any reason to believe something is not right, they will take you aside and question you thoroughly.

There is also a secondary hand baggage inspection and personal pat down at the ramp to the gate area. All this takes a lot of time.

You can never be sure about airport security inspection and passport control lines...sometimes I breeze through both, sometimes it takes close to 45 minutes to clear them.

More often than not, with most airlines, 3 hours is more than enough but with Delta, it's about right.

Look on the good side...Delta usually departs from one of the very far E-F-G gates...a considerable walk. Three hours should give you enough leeway to make that walk at a leisurely pace, so you don't board all hot and sweaty.

[amrishtony]

2 hrs before flight departure time is not bad. I always check in at 2 instead of 3 as sometimes the check in counters do not open up as well. just make sure its not a weekend as it might get crowded at the immigration check. Have a safe flight

[KhunBENQ]

I always check in at 2 instead of 3 as sometimes the check in counters do not open up as well.

And here is the important point: waiting at the check-in.

To my experience always a bigger problem than outgoing immigration.

And that is dependent on the airline.

I have no experience with Delta.

At Thai airways you never wait for a counter to open.

Always open during airport operating hours.

And as another poster wrote: you might even be penalized being early standing in the queue of the other early birds,

And after an hour the queue has melted down.

If you have a seat reservation you wasted your time.

Personally I always needed less then an hour from the airport entrance to the departure gate.

[Cirencester]

Definately not too long. Last trip March on Oman from Bangkok checked in 2 hours 50 before the motor was due to roll. Walked to immigration immediately and queue was at BOTTOM of escaltor proceeding up to scanners......time we reached scanners and then proceeded back down the other escaltor and finally through immigration is was 55 minutes to take off.

Get to check in 90 minutes before these days and you'll likely be offloaded for not turning up on final gate on time

[ChristianPFC]

I try to arrive at the airport 2 to 3 hours before departure. Rather wait for the airplane after going through check-in, security check and passport control, than standing in a line anxious if I will get my flight.

I have taken about 50 flights in my life (connecting flights counted as one) and never missed one. But in some cases there was not much time left (<30 minutes). If I decreased from being 2 to 3 hours early to being 1 to 2 hours early, I would have saved 50 hours waiting time, but missed two flights.