sky13
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2012
- Messages
- 981
Even just the hassle of going through all the passport checks makes it not worth it. We spent an hour at Charles de Gaulle in Paris just going through the passport line to leave the country. This was after we had already gone through the regular airport checkin and security. I know this is typical outside of the US, but gosh it's so frustrating to have that extra check. And my experience with these checks right outside the international terminals is that they consistently have long lines.
I recall my airport experience in Shanghai and Beijing being similar? But that's been a decade so other folks might have a better idea how it works today. But basically if you were flying from Shanghai to Singapore, you'd want to plan on spending your whole day traveling. I assume it would be similar from Hong Kong, but maybe slightly more streamlined and a bit shorter flight.
Thought I'd just add my experience as a Singaporean living in Singapore who flies out of Singapore Changi airport several times a year... There is zero hassle going through this airport and I actually mean it when I say going through this airport is a joy, it's just such a good experience.
When flying out of Singapore I suspect I could probably get to the airport an hour before my flight and still make it onto my flight with plenty of time to spare. But I've never done this, because I actually like hanging out in the airport! I intentionally go to the airport about 3 hours before my flight so I can spend some time doing things like eating, shopping, seeing the butterflies in the garden, see the koi pond...
On arrival back in Singapore I typically take less than 30 minutes to get off the plane, go through immigration, pick up my checked bags and head into the main terminal.
And if I'm not wrong, the egates used for immigration are now available to most arriving/departing passengers (including non-Singaporeans) so should be pretty fast to get through immigration for most people.