I will be flying into Newark from Amsterdam and then I have a connection to Philadelphia. Will I need to claim my bags and recheck them? If so I am thinking about skipping the last flight altogether since I have a 4.5 hour layover and I could be home in that time. Any suggestions?
Posted by
New Paltz, NY
9100 posts
Yes, you have to claim and recheck your bags going through US Customs. There's also an NJ Transit/Amtrak Northeast Corridor station at the airport.
Posted by
Eastern Iowa, USA
7560 posts
I would at least take a look at the fine print on your ticket. While less of a concern since it is your last leg, technically you are violating the terms of your ticket. There is a remote possibility that the airline may have an issue.
Another factor to consider depends on the airport, while you do claim then recheck your bags, your bags are still ticketed through to Philly. Even if Newark was your final destination, procedure may require you to recheck even local bags that you claim later. This is usually the case if in leaving the International Arrivals hall you enter into the secure area of the airport (can't have checked items in the secure area). In this case, rechecking your bag will put it on the plane to Philly. If you are not on that flight, the airline may then have real issues. I am not saying that it can't be done, but you may need more info.
Posted by
Denver, CO, USA
1556 posts
Even though your bags are checked through to Philly, you do not actually have to hand them over again after clearing customs. I do this routinely where I actually carry on my bags for the final leg home to Denver in order not to wait for 30 mins for the bags to arrive at the carousel.
Also, a lot of times I standby for an earlier connecting flight home and so cannot afford to recheck the bags. I just take my bags to a counter and talk to the agent and have him/her retag them to the final destination with the earlier flight # in case I have any items that I have to have in checked baggage. Point to note that the agent I go to is normally at the main check in area, and not the one just outside of customs as I find these folks are not really ready to deal with standbys, etc.
All of my experience has been with UA either at ORD, LAX or SFO. I'm sure other airlines will operate similarly. The exception to this may be as Paul mentioned in the prior post at airports where connecting passengers are segregated from those terminating at that airport - I believe IAD is like this. However, even in this case I believe there is a way to exit from customs without having to reenter the secure area (I saw a pilot's wife do this - she said it was quicker than going through the section for folks terminating at IAD).
If I am not taking the final leg, I generally tell the agent that I have had a meeting come up and that I won't make the flight - this is so that they can off load me and my bags and not delay the rest of the folks while trying to find me.