How long to be a Pearson before flight to US.

[peacefrogdog]

We typically fly out from Buffalo but are using points to fly out of Pearson. The airport website says to be there 3 hours before flights to the US. Is this really needed? How long does it typically take to get through customs for flights in the morning?

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

In the past when we flew from Toronto - Orlando on Air Canada or WestJet we always got to Pearson at least 3 hours before to be on the safe side. There have been times when the lineup at US Customs was long, however since they had a lot of agents that made the line move a lot faster.

 

[C&B Young]

It can really vary - on our last trip we were there 3 hours early and were through customs so quick that we sat for 2.5 hours at the gate waiting to board. The time before that, though, we only made it through with a half-hour to spare. I'd give yourself the 3 hours, hopefully you won't need it but it's better than missing the flight (and Pearson has free wi-fi to help pass the time!).

 

[sjsjbrook]

Our last flight was at 7 am on a Saturday morning.

we arrived at the airport at 5am. We got to our gate at 6:30, just as our flight started boarding.

The line to get through customs was long and I know there were people behind us saying our flight leaves in 12 minutes.

 

[Nahanni]

We generally abide by the 3 hour guideline and have experienced both the 15 minutes and 2 hours plus to get through. If you are flying Air Canada they still seem to "pull" current flights through the line, however, with multiple airlines at Terminal 3 I have never seen this courtesy - but have seen people try to work themselves through the line.

 

[YukiPhnx]

The early flights definitely have the super long Customs lines, so I would recommend the 3 hrs if you have an early morning flight.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

I forgot to mention after clearing US Customs you then need to line up for the security screaning and that's another line you need to factor to give yourselves enough time.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

We generally abide by the 3 hour guideline and have experienced both the 15 minutes and 2 hours plus to get through. If you are flying Air Canada they still seem to "pull" current flights through the line, however, with multiple airlines at Terminal 3 I have never seen this courtesy - but have seen people try to work themselves through the line.

When the US Customs line was long in Terminal 3 one of their agents would say the flight numbers of some flights that were close to leaving, so people on those flights would be allowed to go right up front and it's not just a thing Air Canada does. However they don't get to go right up front for the security screaning.

 

[DaniB]

We have never flown out of Toronto either. Our flight is at 10:25am (air canada), and I'm planning to be there by 7am at the latest.

That's almost 3 1/2 hours, so I hope it's enough!

 

[lin7]

We fly out of pearson and like the previous posters I wold give 3 hours too. The lines for customs are consistently long, sometime its long but go fast depending on the agents, sometimes these agents take forever with each traveler.

 

[sbnorton]

You may want to consider getting a Nexus card to clear through Immigration quickly by using a kiosk and an iris scan. $50 US for adults and free for under 18 yrs. You have to have a squeaky clean record, (recreational drug charges 20 years ago can deny you membership). Search GOES and it will take you to the application site.

 

[LittleFlounder]

We had a 6:30 flight out of Toronto to MCO in this February. We followed the 3 hours before flight rule and had 1 hours left before our flight after we cleared customs. I would never get there later than 3 hours before, just in case the lines are long. You might think getting through check-in, security and customs might might be a quick process, but you never know how long the lines might be.