Help me with flights please! First time going to US...

[sahmoffour]

I'm clueless....lol.

We're flying from Edmonton, AB, and heading to WDW. We of course have to have a connecting flight at Houston International. A couple questions...

We're flying with 4 kids as well, is 1 hr and 24 min a long enough layover for us to make our next flight?? When you land, what is the process? Do you go through customs, then go to the counter to check in for your next flight? Or do you have to claim your bags first and re-check them? Both flights are with Continental if it makes a difference...

C'mon someone, please hold my hand here?

 

[ABCanada]

Plenty of time

You will clear customs in Edmonton and will get your boarding passes for the Houston flight at the same time as for your Edmonton flight.

When you arrive in Houston either ask or check the boards to ensure the gate is has not changed since check in and then go to the gate (your will stay within the security area so no delay there).

If it will make you more comfortable go to the Houston airport website and you should be able to find a map of the airport. I suspect the Continental magazine will have a map since it is one of their major hubs.

I cannot remember the specifics of Houston airport but I do remember that it is one of the better ones.

Enjoy your trip.

 

[ccudmore]

Everything should go smoothly as long as you don't have any major delays.

Most major Canadian airports (Edmonton included) have a US pre-clearance facility where you clear US customs at the Edmonton airport. That way your flight arriving in Houston will be arriving as a domestic flight. You won't need to pick up your bags, re-check them, go through customs or anything else in Houston. You just to to your gate. When you check in in Edmdonton they should give you your boarding pass for the connecting flight as well, so it truly is as simple as just looking on the departure board in Houston to find your gate and then just walk there (assuming you're not changing airlines of course).

Often times just before you land in the connection city, the flight attendants will announce what gate people on the plane need to go to for their connections. If they do that, grab the airline magazine out of the pocket of the seat and look for the terminal maps to get an idea of where you'll need to go once you're on the ground. If they don't announce it, don't be afraid to ask - they'll usually go get you the information if they can.

Worst case you'll have to change terminals in Houston but that too should be straight forward.

1h20m should be tons of time. If you every have any concerns or questions, don't hesitate to ask either a flight attendant or airline staff in the terminal.

 

[Sue M]

We flew Continental and connected in Houston in Jan, and had a 1 hr connection time. It is a big airport, and we had a bit of a hike to the connection gate, but had plenty of time to stop along the way go grab a sandwich to take on board for the next flight. If you're lucky, you gates will be close by.

 

[sahmoffour]

Thanks to you both for the info, but now I'm confused lol. I finally found some info on Continental's website, here's what it says:

"Arriving Passengers

All Continental and Continental Express international customers will be processed through the U.S. Customs and Border Protection facility, which is located in Terminal E.

If you are departing the same day on another international flight operated by Continental or Continental Express, your checked baggage will be directly transferred to your departing flight. If you are connecting to a domestic U.S. flight, then you will be able to recheck your baggage once you've exited the inspection area.

Customers making connections beyond Houston may claim their checked baggage, proceed through Customs and Border Protection, and recheck baggage for connecting flights."

So if you go by that then I would have to claim baggage, go through customs and border protection, and recheck bags again? This flying is confusing stuff! LOL I'll just maybe ask when we're checking in for our flight in Edmonton what the process will be when we land in Houston so I'm not wasting time trying to figure it out when we arrive lol.

 

[sahmoffour]

We flew Continental and connected in Houston in Jan, and had a 1 hr connection time. It is a big airport, and we had a bit of a hike to the connection gate, but had plenty of time to stop along the way go grab a sandwich to take on board for the next flight. If you're lucky, you gates will be close by.

Thanks for posting! That's good to know! So since I'm confused after reading Continental's website on it's policies at Houston International, what was the process you went through when you arrived? Did you go through customs prior to leaving Canada, and already have your boarding pass for the Houston to Orlando flight, and get to just skip security and picking up luggage and head straight for the next gate?

 

[ccudmore]

No confusion needed on this. Once you pre-clear customs in Edmonton, your flight is not an international flight - it's a domestic flight. So what you read on the Continental site doesn't apply to you.

 

[canadianjovigirl]

We flew Calgary to Houston then Houston to Orlando and had a similar lay over time frame. We cleared customs in Calgary and then upon arrival in Houston found our next boarding gate (it was close by) and then grabbed the kids some lunch from the food court and had time to get back to our gate prior to boarding and we had 3 kids with us. Sure helps changing planes in the US as you have already cleared customs and dont need to worry about collecting luggage or anything. Relax and enjoy your trip.........it will all be fine!!!

 

[sahmoffour]

Wonderful! Thank you all for clearing it up for me, I'm an over-planner and a huge worrier so you've really helped me TONS by replying. Now to figure out how to make time go faster...