I will be flying into Heathrow arriving around 11am on a Tuesday (this is in September) and need to book another flight from Heathrow to Edinburgh and trying to get an idea of how much time I should plan for between flights. I won't be checking any luggage.
It will not be a connecting flight, so will I have to go through customs (i'm thinking yes). Thanks, Megg
Posted by
New York, NY
4071 posts
When I have done a layover at Heathrow like you want to do (2 separate itineraries), i allowed at least 4 hours. My destination was Gibraltar where I went through immigration; I didn't go through immigration (not sure why you mention CUSTOMS -- it's a WALK THROUGH) at Heathrow but did go through security and there was a long line (30-45 mins). I didn't change terminals.
You will want to cushion layover time in case your inbound flight into Heathrow is delayed and also to transfer to another terminal if that is necessary. Also save time by checking into your second flight in advance online.
Posted by
Edmonds, WA 🌨 ☂
11948 posts
The consensus for this sort of situation is that anything less than 4 hours is financial suicide.
Why not do a single booking to your destination? ( Never mind, see from you other post you got a deal you could not pass up to go r/t London).
Given its mid September, prime hurricane season in your part of the US, your departure flight has a greater risk than usual of not going on time.
Good luck, and give yourself a good cushion of time
Posted by
Green Bay
21222 posts
No matter what you plan, your flight could get severely delayed and you miss your flight to Edinburgh. Or they could change the schedule of your inbound London flight, eliminating your time cushion. It is still 5 months away.
Posted by
Missouri, USA and Essex, UK.
1055 posts
meg2NC,
I get buying the cheap tickets into London - I do it all the time and then buy a separate ticket to the rest of Europe. Last year I brought my daughter a ticket to London on Delta and then a separate ticket on BA for Edinburgh. I allowed a 6 hour layover and it all went fine. If you can get at least a 5-6 hour window then your odds of missing the next flight at least go down. Yes you will have to go through passport control (customs is just a walk through). You can also use the connecting flight purple line and the buses will take you to your next terminal. when you get into one area there will be a flight departure board where you can check your flight gate etc. Then through a security/passport/boarding pass check. It was quite quick but still a fair amount of walking. (I don't recall all the steps and I just did this in March when I flew to London to Dublin on a separate ticket!). But it is certainly quicker than going Land side and changing terminals. just give yourself a decent window and it will be fine.
Margaret
Posted by
Long Beach, California, USA
3398 posts
For Heathrow no less than 4 hours, especially if you have to change terminals. You will definitely go through immigration which can take anywhere from 15 minutes to more than 2 hours depending on how lucky, or unlucky you are. To get to your connecting flight to Edinburgh you'll have to go back through security to the part of the airport where that flight leaves from. Keep in mind that they will close the gate 20 minutes before departure time so allow plenty of time.