Same Day Arrival for QM2 Crossing

[Jack E Dawson]

We have just been invited to join friends for a  Westbound Crossing on the QM2 departing in June. The price is right for the cruise but airfares are high. Our best deal is Are Lingus from Chicago to LHR with a change of planes in Dublin, however, the flight lands the same day as embarkation which we have never done before. Here is my question, coming from Dublin, will we still have to clear Customs and Immigration at LHR or will that happen in Dublin. I have spoken to Are Lingus 3 times and been told that we will only have to clear in Dublin, that we will clear at LHR and that we will have to clear at both locations. Does anyone have any recent actual experience please?

Thanks

Jack

[sfred]

Hi @Jack E Dawson.  Best wishes for your voyage.

 

I would've thought that any EU flight to LHR would have to clear UK customs at LHR.  I haven't heard of any special circumstances coming from Ireland, but others may know more.

 

One thing you might wish to investigate is that Aer Lingus has a morning flight from Dublin to Southampton airport.  It is an Emerald airlines codeshare on an ATR72 propeller plane, but carries an Aer Lingus EI flight code.  It departs 7.20a arriving SOU at 9.10, so should be a valid connection from the Chicago flight arrving Dublin at 5.15a.  Flying into Southampton would simplify your logistics of getting from airport to QM2, and avoids LHR. 

 

[gumshoe958]

You will have to clear immigration at Dublin before proceeding to your connecting flight.

 

Thanks to the Common Travel Area (CTA) agreement between the UK and Ireland you won’t have to clear immigration again at Heathrow, but you will have to clear customs. 99.9% of the time that’s just a walk-through though - no queueing involved unless you’re extremely unlucky and get stopped.

 

Edited April 25 by gumshoe958

[Jack E Dawson]

Thanks sfred and gumshoe958.

I was not even aware that I could fly into Southampton, that would be great. 

One of the agents I spoke to at Are Lingus did mention CTA but that was something I was not familiar with. 

With this information we will move forward and see if we can make it all work.

Thanks again

Jack

[buchanan101]

8 hours ago, Jack E Dawson said:

We have just been invited to join friends for a  Westbound Crossing on the QM2 departing in June. The price is right for the cruise but airfares are high. Our best deal is Are Lingus from Chicago to LHR with a change of planes in Dublin, however, the flight lands the same day as embarkation which we have never done before. Here is my question, coming from Dublin, will we still have to clear Customs and Immigration at LHR or will that happen in Dublin. I have spoken to Are Lingus 3 times and been told that we will only have to clear in Dublin, that we will clear at LHR and that we will have to clear at both locations. Does anyone have any recent actual experience please?

Thanks

Jack

I thought the only Dublin arrangements worked for clearing US immigration going west...

 

...however Ireland and UK are in same Common Travel Area - in theory you do not even need a passport for the flight; my OH came back from Dublin in to Stansted (different London airport obviously, but...) -  she did not have to clear UK passport control and was through very quickly

 

LHR is actually pretty good at passport control if you had to go through (not sure if US passengers can use egates) - the main problem with LHR can be collecting luggage.

 

I'd be more worried about flight delays coming all that way for a same day boarding... and it's still 60mins to Southampton on a good day

[buchanan101]

6 hours ago, Jack E Dawson said:

Thanks sfred and gumshoe958.

I was not even aware that I could fly into Southampton, that would be great. 

One of the agents I spoke to at Are Lingus did mention CTA but that was something I was not familiar with. 

With this information we will move forward and see if we can make it all work.

Thanks again

Jack

It's just the one flight a day I think leaving Dublin at 7:20 - which is great for getting to QM2 early... Dublin airport hotel overnight?

 

I guess a back up plan is then via LHR/taxi, via LCY or Bristol. If the flight didn't go for some reason. Loads of flights to LHR and LCY from Dublin

[MylesS]

Unsure of if this will apply to you Jack, so apologies if not, but a suggestion for yourself and maybe others in the same situation.

Is it possible you have air miles or points with an airline, or perhaps a credit card (ie American Express) where you can transfer them? If so, that may help reduce the cost of your flights significantly.

We were in a similar situation last year, a flight from LHR to JFK was £4,000+ one way. Luckily I had points and was able to secure the same seats for only £400

[buchanan101]

31 minutes ago, MylesS said:

Unsure of if this will apply to you Jack, so apologies if not, but a suggestion for yourself and maybe others in the same situation.

Is it possible you have air miles or points with an airline, or perhaps a credit card (ie American Express) where you can transfer them? If so, that may help reduce the cost of your flights significantly.

We were in a similar situation last year, a flight from LHR to JFK was £4,000+ one way. Luckily I had points and was able to secure the same seats for only £400

I don't fly anywhere without using Avios, though the "taxes" can be very high if you want anything above economy - still have 400,000 of them, enough for two transatlantic holidays over the next two years

[Island2Dweller]

"I would've thought that any EU flight to LHR would have to clear UK customs at LHR.  I haven't heard of any special circumstances coming from Ireland, but others may know more. "

The UK, Ireland and the Crown Dependancy Islands (Jersey/Isle of Man/etc) are in the "Common Travel Area".  This allows free travel.  In theory, this concession only applies if you are citizen within the CTA, but in practice, UK airports treat all arrivals from Ireland akin to domestics.  No immigration check, you'll breeze through

[buchanan101]

Just now, Island2Dweller said:

"I would've thought that any EU flight to LHR would have to clear UK customs at LHR.  I haven't heard of any special circumstances coming from Ireland, but others may know more. "

The UK, Ireland and the Crown Dependancy Islands (Jersey/Isle of Man/etc) are in the "Common Travel Area".  This allows free travel.  In theory, this concession only applies if you are citizen within the CTA, but in practice, UK airports treat all arrivals from Ireland akin to domestics.  No immigration check, you'll breeze through

It works the same as Schengen - once in the CTA you can travel freely in it, whatever nationality (as it is impossible to separate out UK/ROI and non UK/ROI citizens without... checking their passports!)

 

I've breezed through LHR many times (the egates work pretty well now), only to wait for ages for luggage

 

How long does immigration for US citizens take at Dublin, though I assume the OP is thinking about an overnight stay in Dublin?

[MylesS]

34 minutes ago, buchanan101 said:

I don't fly anywhere without using Avios, though the "taxes" can be very high if you want anything above economy - still have 400,000 of them, enough for two transatlantic holidays over the next two years

100% agree, although in my case "Virgin Points". Perhaps not the place given we're on a cruise forum, but I'm now moving away from Avios due to my lack of wanting to fly with BA anymore.

The yearly Disney World trips combined with business + occasional trip to meet QM2 in NYC has racked me up a comparable amount.

Even with the taxes, I'd suspect they are a lot lower than perhaps what Jack has been quoted for full fare flights. Unsure. In regards to economy, as someone who tries to avoid it, if needs must, then so be it! 

Edited April 25 by MylesS

[buchanan101]

Just now, MylesS said:

100% agree, although in my case "Virgin Points". Perhaps not the place given we're on a cruise forum, but I'm now moving away from Avios due to my lack of wanting to fly with BA anymore.

The yearly Disney World trips combined with business + occasional trip to meet QM2 in NYC has racked me up a comparable amount.

Even with the taxes, I'd suspect they are a lot lower than perhaps what Jack has been quoted for full fare flights. Unsure. In regards to economy, as someone who tries to avoid it, if needs must, then so be it! 

Virgin doesn't fly to ski resorts... the BA Avios tickets in Club Class are great value for skiing... Plus use them for a lot of European city breaks (off to Dublin in 3 weeks to see the Boss)

 

Have 150,000 Virgin points too, so they'll be used to get to NYC for our New England cruise in 2026 (and Avios to get back from Montreal)

 

"Taxes" on are a lot higher to US than even Canada on Avios and Virgin Points (paid £1k "taxes" for 2 club world tickets back from NYC after Oct 22 crossing)

 

Sorry, this is a cruise forum - headforpoints.com is good for Avios/Virgin earning and redemptions...

[Fairgarth]

I arrived at Heathrow from Canada on Monday this week.  Immigration was zero wait with the machines that scan your passport.  (Time of day, maybe?)  Customs?  Pah!  Walk right out.  I believe Aer Lingus also use Terminal 2.  But beware, it's a route march from aircraft to Immigration.  You feel like walking to Trafalgar Square might be quicker.  Your choice, Sir Jack, but I would never fly in day of departure.  Your faith in the airlines is touching and entirely misplaced. 

[buchanan101]

4 minutes ago, Fairgarth said:

I arrived at Heathrow from Canada on Monday this week.  Immigration was zero wait with the machines that scan your passport.  (Time of day, maybe?)  Customs?  Pah!  Walk right out.  I believe Aer Lingus also use Terminal 2.  But beware, it's a route march from aircraft to Immigration.  You feel like walking to Trafalgar Square might be quicker.  Your choice, Sir Jack, but I would never fly in day of departure.  Your faith in the airlines is touching and entirely misplaced. 

Us citizens CAN use egates (but has to have biometrics on the passport). These work well at T5 (but that's only BA flights). Waiting for your luggage though...I too would not arrive in UK on day of ship departure.

 

Edited April 25 by buchanan101

[Host Hattie]

10 hours ago, gumshoe958 said:

You will have to clear immigration at Dublin before proceeding to your connecting flight.

 

Thanks to the Common Travel Area (CTA) agreement between the UK and Ireland you won’t have to clear immigration again at Heathrow, but you will have to clear customs. 99.9% of the time that’s just a walk-through though - no queueing involved unless you’re extremely unlucky and get stopped.

 

I've flown into Dublin from Chicago on Aer Lingus, we had to wait for the immigration officer to turn up but I don't remember much of a queue once they were there.

Your luggage will be transferred and if you're flying on to Southampton rather than Heathrow you will save a lot of walking and queueing at the other end. 

 

 

 

[gumshoe958]

1 hour ago, Fairgarth said:

I arrived at Heathrow from Canada on Monday this week.  Immigration was zero wait with the machines that scan your passport.  (Time of day, maybe?)  Customs?  Pah!  Walk right out.  I believe Aer Lingus also use Terminal 2.  But beware, it's a route march from aircraft to Immigration.  You feel like walking to Trafalgar Square might be quicker.  Your choice, Sir Jack, but I would never fly in day of departure.  Your faith in the airlines is touching and entirely misplaced. 

 

Air Canada flights arrive at Terminal 2B at LHR, the satellite terminal which is indeed a long walk to immigration and customs.

 

Aer Lingus flights arrive at Terminal 2A, the main building with significantly less walking and - crucially - no immigration checks.

 

If @Jack E Dawson has an option to fly directly from Dublin to Southampton, though, that would be a no-brainer in this situation. Just have a Plan B ready via London in case the Chicago flight is late or the Southampton flight is cancelled.

[foodsvcmgr]

With all due respect this seems like an extremely risky and nerve wracking plan with the connections and good fortune required to make it to the ship on time.

I hope you can find a way to do one overnight.

[buchanan101]

1 hour ago, foodsvcmgr said:

With all due respect this seems like an extremely risky and nerve wracking plan with the connections and good fortune required to make it to the ship on time.

I hope you can find a way to do one overnight.

Agree - the Southampton flight from Dublin arrives by about 9am, so... 95% of the time that would be fine, but there's no obvious back up if that was cancelled - be a rush via a London airport

 

Heck I don't risk it driving 2.5 hours from Cambridge (have booked the Hilton at the cricket ground with pitch view - no match on, just be interesting...)

[D&N]

If the flight concerned is EI122 ORD->DUB it seems to be fairly reliable. Scheduled arrival in Dublin is 05:15. Average arrival in last 7 days was 04:47, earliest 04:18, latest 05:23.

Of course that's no guarantee it'll be on time when you use it.

 

[buchanan101]

2 minutes ago, D&N said:

If the flight concerned is EI122 ORD->DUB it seems to be fairly reliable. Scheduled arrival in Dublin is 05:15. Average arrival in last 7 days was 04:47, earliest 04:18, latest 05:23.

Of course that's no guarantee it'll be on time when you use it.

 

Leaving 2 hours for a connection to Southampton 😬 - and immigration has to be cleared in Dublin

 

I guess they are all red eyes to Dublin so nothing the evening before...

 

(of course if it's booked on one ticket and the luggage is booked through, they should wait...)

Edited April 25 by buchanan101

[Fairgarth]

4 hours ago, gumshoe958 said:

 

Air Canada flights arrive at Terminal 2B at LHR, the satellite terminal which is indeed a long walk to immigration and customs.

 

Aer Lingus flights arrive at Terminal 2A, the main building with significantly less walking and - crucially - no immigration checks.

 

 

Aha!  Good point, thank you.  Learn something every day.

[57eric]

Total agreement with posts 13 and 17.  Don't try this.

[Jack E Dawson]

10 hours ago, foodsvcmgr said:

With all due respect this seems like an extremely risky and nerve wracking plan with the connections and good fortune required to make it to the ship on time.

I hope you can find a way to do one overnight.

I don't disagree foodsvcmgr, this certainly isn't my normal modus operandi but sometimes you just have to throw caution to the wind. Of course we would insure our trip.

Unfortunately the flight we are looking at is EI 124 which gets in to Dublin too late to catch the SH flight plus, the lower fair requires LHR to be the final destination. We do have points in the bank but have those budgeted for trips in 2024, 2025 & 2026. 

This started out as a spur of the moment, "lets go for it"idea but thanks to the wise counsel above it is now more of a long shot. If we do end up going I will be sure to report back.

Thanks all.

Jack

[gumshoe958]

4 minutes ago, Jack E Dawson said:

I don't disagree foodsvcmgr, this certainly isn't my normal modus operandi but sometimes you just have to throw caution to the wind. Of course we would insure our trip.

Unfortunately the flight we are looking at is EI 124 which gets in to Dublin too late to catch the SH flight plus, the lower fair requires LHR to be the final destination. We do have points in the bank but have those budgeted for trips in 2024, 2025 & 2026. 

This started out as a spur of the moment, "lets go for it"idea but thanks to the wise counsel above it is now more of a long shot. If we do end up going I will be sure to report back.

Thanks all.

Jack

The EI124 arrives DUB at 10:25. The earliest LHR flight you could reasonably catch leaves at 12:00 and arrives 13:25. So once you’ve got your bags and gone landside you’re probably looking at a 15:30-16:00 arrival at Southampton, and that’s as long as all the stars align.

 

Sorry, but I fear that’s a non-starter. With the earlier EI122 you’d have a very good chance but even I, who quite enjoys the thrill of the chase, wouldn’t dare try this one.

[buchanan101]

Not sure how insurance would work for missed departure if they started asking for proof of how you got there. There has to be proof of some sort of delay/breakdown and the timings @gumshoe958 lays out are just normal. And his 90 mins in Dublin are tight as you have to clear immigration. 
 

I’ve sat at LHR on a plane after it landed waiting for a stand for almost an hour. T2 is also a few miles further from Southampton by the time you get out. Adds possible M4 spur/M4 hold ups to the already unpredictable M25.
 

Can’t you add a day’s stay somewhere even if it’s Dublin to get the Southampton flight.