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That’s not just Miami. Most US airports require you to clear customs and get your bags on arrival. Part of the reason I am sure is that when depart US airports, most of the departure gates are shared both for domestic and international flights. You don't go through a true 'passport' control when you leave hence when you arrive no option to transfer in most US airports
Bingo. They don't have a sterile area for connecting passengers to go to, so they will mix with departing passengers. I remember arriving in LAX and had to face a long immigration wait because in front of me were Air France passengers flying from Paris to Tahiti. They're not even changing planes but they still need to clear customs!
Never transit through the US. All passengers must clear customs at entry regardless of final destination. I believe before 9/11 they had transit baggage counters in international baggage claim.
@@Andy-yl3ke At DFW you don't have to recheck your bag but you most definitely have to clear immigration. And the bag clearance (ITI) does only apply to certain airlines.
You have morphed into one of the very best travel bloggers available. I know Miami airport very well. It has always been tough. So much volume. Enjoy São Paulo.
Correct, but the difference is where you drop your bag, and the luggage tag he would have had. Compare with SFO or LAX where you can collect your bag, drop it immediately after customs. Your bag is normally checked through to your destination, so only a quick scan and off it goes. Because he had two non-linked flights Kym needed to take his bag out front and check it in on the second flight, getting new tags in the process. That was the problem.
@@KymIllman all due to 9/11. Sad but the way it is; the Twin Towers fell in MY city (NYC) but affects in every US city, by comments some more than others.
problems? lmfao this is a 1% problem that you will never experience. dude is sitting on a gold throne trying to nitpick why his servants haven't hand fed him grapes yet.
I always have the same experience in São Paulo - walk straight out no questions asked. My wife was told to stop using her phone but no one was interested in our bags 😅
I've flown over a million miles with AA, we could say I'm familiar with them. They couldn't care less about customer service, horrible horrible airline.
Kym - I did the same a few weeks ago Seville to Heathrow via Barcelona --- both airlines owned by British Airways but NO you cannot check your bag through... still, I had over 2 hours to pick up luggage in Barca and check in ------NOPE..... Seville plane landed on time but luggage took an age to arrive then BA had only 2 desks open to check the bag back in. Flight closed by the time I go to the front of the queue - had to put a huge bag through security and then run to the gate with it.... you are right, life is hell when you travel economy!
I’ve never heard such unfriendly customer policies. It literally will cost American Airlines extra money to make you collect and recheck your baggage. Silly inefficient and customer unfriendly policies
American has probably the most customer unfriendly policies among the US airlines these days. You can't even same day standby at the gate anymore, the agents won't do it anymore.
@@jasoncassady6286 You can't and dont even try to say you can, go and look up the Immigration and Nationality Act and how customs and border patrol enact it.
Ooops, forgot to say how much I love your experiences traveling 200+ days a year across the F1 world…there are the good moments too…like the San Paulo hotel and that fantastic race that make it all worthwhile and memorable!
Honestly Kym you are the institution for airline tarvel, Be it you travel business, which i can't afford but its still very informative. I mostly watch for f1 of course
As mentioned this is a transiting through US problem, not just individual Airports like Miami. My flight from Sydney was late arriving in LAX to make my Vancouver connection. My Nexus card got me through Customs without any inconvenience, but the Checked bag ended up with a handwritten tag that was untraceable. Fortunately it made it to Vancouver, but not to my home airport. It is always my priority to avoid transiting through the US, but it's not always possible. Add to this that often even the Trusted Traveler experience through security is the worst in the world that I have experienced...I'm just scratching the surface on how bad the transiting through US experience, starting with annoying official people at Sydney's airport. (thanks for letting me vent 😎)
I do enjoy these travel vlogs. It also reminds me of a part of my life when I travelled year round for work for years, and I miss it. Thank you Kym for the memories of what fun it could be.
Ever since 9/11 you can no longer internationally transit through U.S. airports. You are now forced to clear Customs. Even if the two flights were on the same record, you would still need to pick up your bag and re-check it.
Hey, Kym sorry for your experience transiting through America, unfortunately that is how it is at every major US hub airport that i've been to for domestic or international connections.
I'm impressed that you've done all that travelling and managed to avoid having to transit in the USA before now. NZ1 from Auckland to London, transiting through LAX... They used to make all the passengers disembark and clear customs, just to have to go back through security and reboard... ridiculous.
In Feb. I arrived from LHR on a Sunday evening. Our flight was late. We all trooped along and arrived at the carousel. However, someone had swiped a door open and left it open such that around 300 of us missed Immigration! They caught up with us and made us go all the way back. I missed my connection to my cruise and needed hotel stops and extra flight to catch up. Miami is not user friendly.
Yeah, I had to transit through Dallas once and was like "i don't need to fill out that immigation paper, I just get in the next plane". Little did I know...
Many years ago when I transited through French Polynesia off the plane and later back onto the same plane we had to take our carry on luggage and come back through security into the main terminal building. What amused me at the time were the locals swimming just off to the side of the runway, no security fences at that time.
It is not just Miami. You have to clear immigration in any airports in US if you are in transit, even if you are connecting from overseas for a domestic flight.
Of course I’m aware that when you come from international transfer to domestic you always do immigration and customs at the entry point, but having only ever used the likes of Singapore, Hong Kong, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Turkey etc, it blew me away that this archaic system still persists.
@@KymIllman those airports are all international hubs with no domestic flights (except a handful at IST). U.S. airports are primarily serving domestic flights and it is prohibitive both financially and legally to separate them from international. But I would recommend using the Mobile Passport Control app next time. It can save hours.
I connected through Miami back in 2014 coming back from the Dominican Republic and vowed never again. It was a horror show and customer service is alien to them.
Im surprised you booked two tickets , knowing you leave from South America … You are a seasoned traveller from what i gather from your channel. With the criticism finished, i really appreciate your travel videos!
Yes, I know your stress!!! I went through Miami when the earthquake took out Santiago airport in 2010. Had an hour on the ground from my LA inbound to my outbound to Rio then Belo Horizonte (after Perth to Sydney as well!). I decided to take carry on only. But then again, I didn't have a heap of camera gear to take with me! Glad it turned out well!!!
Kym, I'm not sorting through 151 posts to see if this has been suggested but, I've, faced this once in the past and I just picked up my bag and showed up with it at boarding. "oh, it's too big for carry-on, you need to check it" . I did it at the gate and they didn't even charge me for it! Bonus!
Had my first hand experience with international flights in the US after coming back to the US from São Paulo for the Brazil GP. The flight from São Paulo was late and I had to rush through immigration and recheck my bag then go back through security. My bag made it on connecting plane in Miami but I didn’t lol. I was rebooked by American Airlines on a later flight due to the delay but it was a learning curve for me because I didn’t realize the extra timely steps required when coming back into the US internationally. Blessed to travel nonetheless
I transited through Detroit to Toronto once and had the exact same experience. Had to clear immigration for the US as well even though I did not in fact enter the country. At the very least I didn’t have to clear immigration again in Canada, they just had me enter my passport at a machine that automatically checked if I got the esta equivalent for Canada and then I was good to go.
It is really annoying that there are no international>international connections in the USA, they make all arrivals head through immigration no matter the airport.
It is actually airport design. All departure lounges, including those leaving the US, are 'within' the US and you can enter and exit them without going through immigration. You could else just book a ticket through the US and exit on your transfer to enter the US illegally. Else you would need to go through passport control to enter and exit the international departures, which would inconvenience a lot more people. Only international arrivals have separate hallways forcing you through immigration. In Europe, at for example AMS, there are three different areas: schengen, non-schengen secure and non-schengen non-secure (arrivals only, from countries where departure security is not fully trusted). But then we are much more worried about people leaving with a tax debt or open fines. In ATL, before the international terminal, opened you would have to go through security if you arrived there as you final destination, as you would have to get the people mover through the domestic concourses to get out.
@@KymIllman I don't see how. I think it would be a lot cheaper to do international transit like they did pre-2001. Less Immigration agents, less Customs, less TSA
I live in Barbados and Miami is our main travel hub. Immigration is a nightmare and you always have to pick up your luggage, exit Customs, re check luggage and go again through security. Has been like this for decades and I doubt it will change now....
Miami airport staff helped me jump queue in a 40 min connection. My fault though, could have got a cheaper direct flight from london to Philly but really wanted to go on BA’s A380
Hi Kim, you are so right, I refuse to fly through any American Airports. Its not the staffs fault its just the system. Every time I used to fly from the UK I was delayed on the way to south America.
I was talking international to international. Not international to domestic. Every country makes you clear immigration and customs at your first entry point to the country. But smart countries like Hong Kong, Singapore, Qatar, Australia, Dubai etc would never ask you to clear immigration and customs, collect your luggage and then recheck in for your second or third international flight.
Kym: I agree with you on both points. MIA is a horrible airport to transit through - especially with the baggage issues. (been there, done that 😞) and AA and other USA carriers just don't seem to comprehend what travel should or could be like. The "pleasant touch" aspect of customer service seems to always be absent. Happy travels! Keep these video's coming (fine amusement on a Sunday morning with a coffee!) cheers!
"what travel should be like" all goes back to 9/11. Before 9/11 at JFK (1950's-1980"s) could have friends/parents just walk into terminal and walk you over to gate exit to plane.
I have a great video about the world’s best business class coming up later this week and another one next week about my 31 hour journey from Lancelin to Las Vegas.
American Airlines and British Airways both have a policy of not checking through bags on separate itineraries. It used to be OneWorld policy but the other airlines decided to rescind the decision. It’s also never been possible to join or link separate bookings, Amadeus is able to find bookings based on name and can let check in agents add a sector. American Airlines uses Sabre.
This wa me arriving lax to las vegas last year. Qantas arrival was delayed 2hrs. Crew were great and sat me near door and i raced to collect bag and immigration and change terminals. Early morning so nobody was in queue. Made the gate literally 25min after landng and 15 before departure. In los angeles!
Exactly why, when looking for flights from Barcelona back to the US next year, I chose to connect in Amsterdam instead of Atlanta or anywhere in the US: I knew we’d have to go through customs and recheck our backs at any US hotel.
I love the first world travel problems. I’ve experienced them myself. I encountered this same issue flying on Aero Mexico through Mexico City on the way to Buenos Aires, where I had to collect my bag and go through immigration. Same thing two years ago traveling from Munich to LHR, connecting to SFO. It happens - shrug
Don't change planes in Dallas/FW either. You'll have to wait at your final destination for the next flight from there to get your checked baggage! It was a long time ago for me, maybe it's better these days. ( Ft. Lauderdale to Chicago , United Airlines)
Unfortunately this is the international transit experience at every single US airport. Our airports don’t have a separate international area so you always need to clear immigration and recheck luggage when connecting from outside the country (unless you come from an airport with pre clearance like Dublin, or any in Canada).
This is not an AA or Miami situation, it is US immigration policy. Every traveler regardless of which international destination they are coming from is required to pick their luggage and do immigration. Yes, it is different than other countries of the world.
US airports are not Haneda or Schipol, you have to clear customs in Miami and re-check the luggage which sucks but it's the way it is. Most people connecting in Miami from international are going to another US city.
I had to clear through Jamaica on a flight to Curaçao. Got off the plane with a water bottle that I purchased after security screening and was told to get rid of it because it was over 3 oz. It’s ridiculous
Kym I am sure many people have told you by now that any international transit through the US means you need to clear Customs and Immigration, its not MIA specific or airline either. The only good thing is that the US doesn't have departure immigration to worry about, although if you have a temporary visa you need to have a arrival stamp from another country as evidence you left within the period before returning to the US. AA well you described them well. They focus on the hard product and try to to have On Time Performance but customer friendly policies or warm personable staff AA is not the airline. Anyway I love these travel videos and they help me learn or remember past experiences.
Upon entry to all US city from and international flight you need to clear immigration and customs, unless the country you are departing from has pre clearance for example Nassau Bahamas, Aruba, Dublin, Canada, Bermuda all of which has US Customs and Border agents in country.
i would always recommend to avoid international transit through the US if arriving from abroad without US pre-border check. you will always have to pass customs and pick up your bags. such a hassle. maybe next time take a direct flight from Mexico City to Sao Paulo (recommend aeromexico on their 787-9). or maybe connect through Panama City with Copa if it is much cheaper. i would avoid avianca through bogota now as they have transformed themselves into yet another ULCC, while still charging premium prices. they used to be good before the pandemic. 1200 USD saving to take this route over a direct flight is a valid reason. then maybe take an earlier flight to MIA next time. ;) and middle eastern carriers... warmth? i don't know. considering all their staff are foreign, on emirates i found 4 out of 5 staff usually being quite indifferent and rather arrogant in their body language. great hard product, but soft product meh! can't beat southeastasian carriers, specifically singapore airlines, thai and sometimes malaysian when it comes to staff friendliness. if you stay at the same hotel in Sao Paulo next year, maybe share a bit more about it. looks like a beautiful facility.
He didnt need to recheck as you exit customs in miami there is a recheck area in front of TSA and they hamdle its confusing first time but after that its easier GREAT VIDEO
Same thing happened to me and my family. Perth to Detroit. 8 hours to Dubai, 18 to Dallas, had 2 hours to transfer in Dallas. Had to go through immigration and recheck bags, took over 1 hour to get through immigration, ran to check in desk, ran up the the front. The American Airlines lady starts shouting at me like I'm a dog. I told her my flight is about to leave, she shouts again, even louder to get back in the que, I said check in closes in a few minutes. No, she's screaming now to get back in the que. We queued for 20 mins, get to the front, check in closed 10 mins previously, next flight was the next day, and they said that as it was immigration that caused the delay, they were not responsible to put us in a hotel. Called the Manager, complained and explained what had happened, noone cared - just go away - welcome to America ! No phone no internet, very tired Wife & 2 kids. Eventually managed to find a cafe's wifi and book a place to sleep.
I’ve transited through Miami twice, the first time I had my wallet stolen and they lost my luggage. The second time they just lost my luggage. I could not agree with you more on this subject.
Flew BA from Australia to London via Los Angeles many years ago. Flight was delayed due to a number of reasons and we missed our original connecting flight. Had to reclaim luggage, not easy when pushing an elderly person in a wheelchair as well. We were travelling BC and no assistance was offered to us. Had to go through Customs and security again. Was treated like a criminal at Customs/security when asked for fingerprints as I could not give them properly due to my hands being deformed. The security guy kept pushing my hands down to try and get fingerprints. Due to their rude behaviour I will never go to USA or transit there. Told the Customs/Security guy in a loud voice
I had a flight with Bangkok airways from Koh Samui to Singapore, then a completely sepperate booking on Qantas to Perth. At check in at a 2-bit OUTDOOR airport in asia, they offered to check my bag right thru to perth! Little did I know my flight was also a code share so maybe thats why. But you just dont get that service in the west (Australia/US)
Yea, Bangkok Airways built their business on the knowledge that most customers will be connecting to/from other international airlines. Through SIN or BKK. Made perfect sense to offer interline agreements with flag carriers. Fantastic airline 👍🏼
Why would anyone expose themselves to voluntarily transit through a US airport when they don’t have to? Anyone that travel frequently knows that is the worst idea ever. Kim, you were extremely lucky to get through that quickly, highly unusual
Same at JFK from Amsterdam to Reno and Amsterdam to Sacramento, and on the way back to Amsterdam the same. All JetBlue flights... Get you checked bagage, and recheck it. Last year when I did Amsterdam to Sacramento via Dallas, I didn't have to do a thing.
I understand that. You always clear immigration and customs at your point of entry, but with an international transit at all of the major hubs I travel through you always stay airside. I can’t believe in the world’s greatest country, they haven’t worked out how to solve that and save the traveller time and money.
@@KymIllman What I also hate is the inconsistency at security in the US. Shoes on, shoes off, laptop can stay in your backpack, laptop needs to be out, smartwatch off, smartwatch on, backpack in a bin, backpack just on the rollers... This differs not only per airport, but also per security lane at 1 airport.
@@KymIllman it could be an illegal immigration issue. If people were allowed to do international self transfers within an US airport with no immigration check, what’s to prevent anyone from simply leaving the airport to enter US illegally?
We had a miserable time with American in Miami. Flying from Buenos Aires to Los Angeles through Miami was a nightmare with huge lines and we barely made the connection. On top of everything, Miami airport is a rathole.
Ahhh…American Air flight from Minneapolis, Minnesota to Dallas on a 727 with no heat due to faulty auxiliary turbine…record -60 day and no hot beverage service. Never flew again on American Air but at least the plane landed safely, which was a big deal in 1985.
Miami is notoriously such a headache. Most nefarious people do fly through Miami and as such, creates a delay for normal fliers. You lucked out. I try to stay clear of Miami as far as transits are concerned.
Well, without looking it up, there might be a minimum connection time in Miami. If that’s the case, you couldn’t book a through flight due to this so it makes sense that they wouldn’t let you circumvent the minimum connection time.
Even if you did book through you'd still have to collect your baggage. Transiting through USA you'll always have to...now the only difference is you pickup and then you can do a quick bag drop. But it will never go through without you touching your bags!
Sad that travellers transiting through the US are denied what most of us outside that country are used to. Come on USA, get with the program. It’s costing travellers way too much in time and money.
6:00 well it makes sense that you had to clear immigration to get onboard your next flight because technically you were not transferring at miami because of the two separate tickets. In every country whenever you have to check in bags in that country you will have to obviously clear immigration
OMG Kym u had Ruth on the flight with u... She's justthe best... and yeah, American airlines is the WORST( international of course, Spirit domestically 😅)
When you fly into America you always have to grab your luggage and recheck into domestic or connecting international flights. To avoid the drama you had you would better off landing at Seattle, san Fran, Hawaii or Dallas Texas airports. Miami, Atlanta and NYC are night mares. Chicago is not bad, just a very old airport
BUT you should stay connected with unlimited data while you travel with Holafly! Use my code KYMILLMAN for 5% off your next Holafly eSIM! holafly.sjv.io/LKa3za
But you get flagship first check in the red door !!
the link m8 it's being blocked by my security
@Kymillman next time transit in Panama. A lot easier and shorter route. Every flight into the USA has to clear immigration, not just Miami
That’s not just Miami. Most US airports require you to clear customs and get your bags on arrival.
Part of the reason I am sure is that when depart US airports, most of the departure gates are shared both for domestic and international flights. You don't go through a true 'passport' control when you leave hence when you arrive no option to transfer in most US airports
Bingo. They don't have a sterile area for connecting passengers to go to, so they will mix with departing passengers.
I remember arriving in LAX and had to face a long immigration wait because in front of me were Air France passengers flying from Paris to Tahiti. They're not even changing planes but they still need to clear customs!
Never transit through the US. All passengers must clear customs at entry regardless of final destination. I believe before 9/11 they had transit baggage counters in international baggage claim.
That’s not true. You can transit internationally at Dallas
@@Andy-yl3ke At DFW you don't have to recheck your bag but you most definitely have to clear immigration. And the bag clearance (ITI) does only apply to certain airlines.
@@Andy-yl3keCommenter said most.
You have morphed into one of the very best travel bloggers available. I know Miami airport very well. It has always been tough. So much volume. Enjoy São Paulo.
Thanks.
Try LAX Terminal 4 - it’s like a provincial bus station in China
Transiting in the US always require to to clear immigration and drop of your bag again, regardless of a domestic or international connection.
Correct. He’s travelled so much, I thought he would know that.
Never had the misfortune of doing it prior. It will be my last time I promise.
Correct, but the difference is where you drop your bag, and the luggage tag he would have had. Compare with SFO or LAX where you can collect your bag, drop it immediately after customs. Your bag is normally checked through to your destination, so only a quick scan and off it goes. Because he had two non-linked flights Kym needed to take his bag out front and check it in on the second flight, getting new tags in the process. That was the problem.
@@KymIllman all due to 9/11. Sad but the way it is; the Twin Towers fell in MY city (NYC) but affects in every US city, by comments some more than others.
Exactly
Love how Kim actually uses his platform to call out things like problems these.
problems? lmfao this is a 1% problem that you will never experience. dude is sitting on a gold throne trying to nitpick why his servants haven't hand fed him grapes yet.
@@VerticalAxslol
Probably should have checked before he flew instead of just assuming that it was going to happen.
It's not a 'problem' it's the rules with every airline in the world.
oh! Ruth Buscombe is gold on F1TV!
Ruth is a favorite of mine. Always has an interesting take on pre and post-race commentary.
@RobertMacCready yeah. Sharp, quick thinking mind with great sense of humor
Ruth Buscombe and Sam Collins the best part of F1TV,!!!
I always have the same experience in São Paulo - walk straight out no questions asked. My wife was told to stop using her phone but no one was interested in our bags 😅
I've flown over a million miles with AA, we could say I'm familiar with them.
They couldn't care less about customer service, horrible horrible airline.
Kym - I did the same a few weeks ago Seville to Heathrow via Barcelona --- both airlines owned by British Airways but NO you cannot check your bag through... still, I had over 2 hours to pick up luggage in Barca and check in ------NOPE..... Seville plane landed on time but luggage took an age to arrive then BA had only 2 desks open to check the bag back in. Flight closed by the time I go to the front of the queue - had to put a huge bag through security and then run to the gate with it.... you are right, life is hell when you travel economy!
I’ve never heard such unfriendly customer policies. It literally will cost American Airlines extra money to make you collect and recheck your baggage. Silly inefficient and customer unfriendly policies
But they want you to book the trough ticket because then they added that and some more. That is why he bought 2 tickets bc it was cheaper
American has probably the most customer unfriendly policies among the US airlines these days. You can't even same day standby at the gate anymore, the agents won't do it anymore.
its TSA/CBP policy get a grip.
@@zq3yp then how come Alaska and Delta can thru check luggage on two tickets but AA can't...?
@@jasoncassady6286 You can't and dont even try to say you can, go and look up the Immigration and Nationality Act and how customs and border patrol enact it.
Ooops, forgot to say how much I love your experiences traveling 200+ days a year across the F1 world…there are the good moments too…like the San Paulo hotel and that fantastic race that make it all worthwhile and memorable!
Honestly Kym you are the institution for airline tarvel,
Be it you travel business, which i can't afford but its still very informative.
I mostly watch for f1 of course
As mentioned this is a transiting through US problem, not just individual Airports like Miami. My flight from Sydney was late arriving in LAX to make my Vancouver connection. My Nexus card got me through Customs without any inconvenience, but the Checked bag ended up with a handwritten tag that was untraceable. Fortunately it made it to Vancouver, but not to my home airport.
It is always my priority to avoid transiting through the US, but it's not always possible. Add to this that often even the Trusted Traveler experience through security is the worst in the world that I have experienced...I'm just scratching the surface on how bad the transiting through US experience, starting with annoying official people at Sydney's airport.
(thanks for letting me vent 😎)
6:00 You have to do that everywhere in the US
yep
I do enjoy these travel vlogs. It also reminds me of a part of my life when I travelled year round for work for years, and I miss it. Thank you Kym for the memories of what fun it could be.
Two more travel videos coming up in the next 10 days. Cheers.
Ever since 9/11 you can no longer internationally transit through U.S. airports. You are now forced to clear Customs. Even if the two flights were on the same record, you would still need to pick up your bag and re-check it.
I can't wait for the video to drop when you give us your impressions of Vegas and the hotels. Always fun to watch.
Thanks for taking us along around the world. I always enjoy watching with your friendly explanations. ❤
Coming up in a couple of weeks, my 31 hour trip from Perth to Las Vegas
Hey, Kym sorry for your experience transiting through America, unfortunately that is how it is at every major US hub airport that i've been to for domestic or international connections.
International to domestic, I totally understand. But not International to International, that is ridiculous.
It might get worse when Trump takes over.
@@KymIllmanwell that’s the US for you!
I'm impressed that you've done all that travelling and managed to avoid having to transit in the USA before now. NZ1 from Auckland to London, transiting through LAX... They used to make all the passengers disembark and clear customs, just to have to go back through security and reboard... ridiculous.
millions of thanks: only with such videos some things may change.
although i have had trouble at MIA being a miami native- this happens at pretty much every airport in the United States, safe travels!
Yes, it’s pretty crazy.
In Feb. I arrived from LHR on a Sunday evening. Our flight was late.
We all trooped along and arrived at the carousel. However, someone had swiped a door open and left it open such that around 300 of us missed Immigration!
They caught up with us and made us go all the way back.
I missed my connection to my cruise and needed hotel stops and extra flight to catch up.
Miami is not user friendly.
Yeah, I had to transit through Dallas once and was like "i don't need to fill out that immigation paper, I just get in the next plane". Little did I know...
Many years ago when I transited through French Polynesia off the plane and later back onto the same plane we had to take our carry on luggage and come back through security into the main terminal building. What amused me at the time were the locals swimming just off to the side of the runway, no security fences at that time.
It is not just Miami. You have to clear immigration in any airports in US if you are in transit, even if you are connecting from overseas for a domestic flight.
Of course I’m aware that when you come from international transfer to domestic you always do immigration and customs at the entry point, but having only ever used the likes of Singapore, Hong Kong, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Turkey etc, it blew me away that this archaic system still persists.
@@KymIllman those airports are all international hubs with no domestic flights (except a handful at IST). U.S. airports are primarily serving domestic flights and it is prohibitive both financially and legally to separate them from international. But I would recommend using the Mobile Passport Control app next time. It can save hours.
I connected through Miami back in 2014 coming back from the Dominican Republic and vowed never again. It was a horror show and customer service is alien to them.
Im surprised you booked two tickets , knowing you leave from South America … You are a seasoned traveller from what i gather from your channel.
With the criticism finished, i really appreciate your travel videos!
I book separate tickets lots of times. Doing it on my next trip too. Make sure you watch that video, “31 Hrs from Perth to Vegas”
Yes, I know your stress!!! I went through Miami when the earthquake took out Santiago airport in 2010. Had an hour on the ground from my LA inbound to my outbound to Rio then Belo Horizonte (after Perth to Sydney as well!). I decided to take carry on only. But then again, I didn't have a heap of camera gear to take with me! Glad it turned out well!!!
Kym, I'm not sorting through 151 posts to see if this has been suggested but, I've, faced this once in the past and I just picked up my bag and showed up with it at boarding. "oh, it's too big for carry-on, you need to check it" . I did it at the gate and they didn't even charge me for it! Bonus!
Had my first hand experience with international flights in the US after coming back to the US from São Paulo for the Brazil GP. The flight from São Paulo was late and I had to rush through immigration and recheck my bag then go back through security. My bag made it on connecting plane in Miami but I didn’t lol. I was rebooked by American Airlines on a later flight due to the delay but it was a learning curve for me because I didn’t realize the extra timely steps required when coming back into the US internationally. Blessed to travel nonetheless
I transited through Detroit to Toronto once and had the exact same experience. Had to clear immigration for the US as well even though I did not in fact enter the country. At the very least I didn’t have to clear immigration again in Canada, they just had me enter my passport at a machine that automatically checked if I got the esta equivalent for Canada and then I was good to go.
It is really annoying that there are no international>international connections in the USA, they make all arrivals head through immigration no matter the airport.
a revenue earner for the government.
It is actually airport design. All departure lounges, including those leaving the US, are 'within' the US and you can enter and exit them without going through immigration. You could else just book a ticket through the US and exit on your transfer to enter the US illegally. Else you would need to go through passport control to enter and exit the international departures, which would inconvenience a lot more people. Only international arrivals have separate hallways forcing you through immigration.
In Europe, at for example AMS, there are three different areas: schengen, non-schengen secure and non-schengen non-secure (arrivals only, from countries where departure security is not fully trusted). But then we are much more worried about people leaving with a tax debt or open fines.
In ATL, before the international terminal, opened you would have to go through security if you arrived there as you final destination, as you would have to get the people mover through the domestic concourses to get out.
@@KymIllman I don't see how. I think it would be a lot cheaper to do international transit like they did pre-2001. Less Immigration agents, less Customs, less TSA
I live in Barbados and Miami is our main travel hub. Immigration is a nightmare and you always have to pick up your luggage, exit Customs, re check luggage and go again through security. Has been like this for decades and I doubt it will change now....
Miami airport staff helped me jump queue in a 40 min connection. My fault though, could have got a cheaper direct flight from london to Philly but really wanted to go on BA’s A380
Always! Its a pain, bad customer service and no sense of urgency!
Hi Kim, you are so right, I refuse to fly through any American Airports. Its not the staffs fault its just the system. Every time I used to fly from the UK I was delayed on the way to south America.
Great content as always! Thank you Kym! :)
so enjoyable - kudos on the travel videos
Glad you liked it.
To be fair, when flying into Australia internationally, you also have to clear customs and recheck luggage before your connecting flight.
I was talking international to international. Not international to domestic. Every country makes you clear immigration and customs at your first entry point to the country. But smart countries like Hong Kong, Singapore, Qatar, Australia, Dubai etc would never ask you to clear immigration and customs, collect your luggage and then recheck in for your second or third international flight.
You were super lucky with immigration, regularly had 1-2 hours in those Miami immigration que's. Hate arriving at Miami.
I did have a 90 minute white entering the US via Miami going back to the first F1 race in that city.
Kym: I agree with you on both points. MIA is a horrible airport to transit through - especially with the baggage issues. (been there, done that 😞) and AA and other USA carriers just don't seem to comprehend what travel should or could be like. The "pleasant touch" aspect of customer service seems to always be absent. Happy travels! Keep these video's coming (fine amusement on a Sunday morning with a coffee!) cheers!
"what travel should be like" all goes back to 9/11. Before 9/11 at JFK (1950's-1980"s) could have friends/parents just walk into terminal and walk you over to gate exit to plane.
I have a great video about the world’s best business class coming up later this week and another one next week about my 31 hour journey from Lancelin to Las Vegas.
Ha! I had the exact same problem this time last year flying Honolulu - Los Angeles - Las Vegas. Was going to the F1 also!
Never transit through Charlotte “ rude customer service and your pre assigned seat is just a reference apparently. Great video thanks .
American Airlines and British Airways both have a policy of not checking through bags on separate itineraries. It used to be OneWorld policy but the other airlines decided to rescind the decision.
It’s also never been possible to join or link separate bookings, Amadeus is able to find bookings based on name and can let check in agents add a sector.
American Airlines uses Sabre.
The Ruth Buscombe cameo!
This wa me arriving lax to las vegas last year. Qantas arrival was delayed 2hrs. Crew were great and sat me near door and i raced to collect bag and immigration and change terminals. Early morning so nobody was in queue. Made the gate literally 25min after landng and 15 before departure. In los angeles!
Exactly why, when looking for flights from Barcelona back to the US next year, I chose to connect in Amsterdam instead of Atlanta or anywhere in the US: I knew we’d have to go through customs and recheck our backs at any US hotel.
Oh we have all been there Kym. And they don't care what class you are in.
A kip? A dickie seat? Loving the your Ausiness! Fun seeing Ruth in the background 👍👍👍
I allways like your airplane videos. Keep them coming.
Another one in 2 days.
It's fairly normal in the US. You have to clear immigration on a transit flight. Does not matter where you come frome. Same in Los Angeles.
I love the first world travel problems. I’ve experienced them myself. I encountered this same issue flying on Aero Mexico through Mexico City on the way to Buenos Aires, where I had to collect my bag and go through immigration. Same thing two years ago traveling from Munich to LHR, connecting to SFO. It happens - shrug
Don't change planes in Dallas/FW either. You'll have to wait at your final destination for the next flight from there to get your checked baggage! It was a long time ago for me, maybe it's better these days. ( Ft. Lauderdale to Chicago , United Airlines)
A better option Mexico City to Panama City, then Sao Paulo. Miami is always packed
Many Americans and Canadians transit through MIA to the Caribbean and it’s not a problem.
Nice little cameo from Ruth Buscome-Divey.
I always check my flights history on flight radar to get a rough idea on likely landing time 😂 thought it was just me
Just ran into this sort of mess at Boston. We were lucky that we had a long layover. Horrid! I'm embarrassed at American airport procedures.
I would imagine there are some security implications around having two separate books but wants to send the bag all the way through.
You do have to buy a through ticket for baggage. If it's been done before, the agent has done it as a favor..but if it goes wrong your bags are gone
Unfortunately this is the international transit experience at every single US airport. Our airports don’t have a separate international area so you always need to clear immigration and recheck luggage when connecting from outside the country (unless you come from an airport with pre clearance like Dublin, or any in Canada).
This is not an AA or Miami situation, it is US immigration policy. Every traveler regardless of which international destination they are coming from is required to pick their luggage and do immigration. Yes, it is different than other countries of the world.
US airports are not Haneda or Schipol, you have to clear customs in Miami and re-check the luggage which sucks but it's the way it is. Most people connecting in Miami from international are going to another US city.
I had to clear through Jamaica on a flight to Curaçao. Got off the plane with a water bottle that I purchased after security screening and was told to get rid of it because it was over 3 oz. It’s ridiculous
Kym I am sure many people have told you by now that any international transit through the US means you need to clear Customs and Immigration, its not MIA specific or airline either. The only good thing is that the US doesn't have departure immigration to worry about, although if you have a temporary visa you need to have a arrival stamp from another country as evidence you left within the period before returning to the US.
AA well you described them well. They focus on the hard product and try to to have On Time Performance but customer friendly policies or warm personable staff AA is not the airline.
Anyway I love these travel videos and they help me learn or remember past experiences.
You sure live the fancy life with your first class seats, armour plated vehicle and lovely hotel. Sure are either lucky or smart
I never stop working.
Just imagine if you werent a priority member, you defenetelly wouldn't make it, you were very lucky.
No chance.
Hey Kym, great video. I'm wondering, how did you manage to get a job as a cameraman in f1? Would love to hear your story.
It was good Kym 🌞
you are a superb videographer
High praise indeed. Many thanks.
Upon entry to all US city from and international flight you need to clear immigration and customs, unless the country you are departing from has pre clearance for example Nassau Bahamas, Aruba, Dublin, Canada, Bermuda all of which has US Customs and Border agents in country.
i would always recommend to avoid international transit through the US if arriving from abroad without US pre-border check. you will always have to pass customs and pick up your bags. such a hassle. maybe next time take a direct flight from Mexico City to Sao Paulo (recommend aeromexico on their 787-9). or maybe connect through Panama City with Copa if it is much cheaper. i would avoid avianca through bogota now as they have transformed themselves into yet another ULCC, while still charging premium prices. they used to be good before the pandemic.
1200 USD saving to take this route over a direct flight is a valid reason. then maybe take an earlier flight to MIA next time. ;)
and middle eastern carriers... warmth? i don't know. considering all their staff are foreign, on emirates i found 4 out of 5 staff usually being quite indifferent and rather arrogant in their body language. great hard product, but soft product meh!
can't beat southeastasian carriers, specifically singapore airlines, thai and sometimes malaysian when it comes to staff friendliness.
if you stay at the same hotel in Sao Paulo next year, maybe share a bit more about it. looks like a beautiful facility.
Thank you for sharing 👏❤️🇬🇷
@kymillman, when did you last eat caviar on the flight?
Emirates first and Qatar business offer it.
So where do the cameras travel? Carry on?
Trying to understand how you travel
High F1yer 👍
Good channel to follow.
Kym! Why the armor plated car with driver? Because of safety issues? I’m accustomed to you renting a car most times. So I’m curious!
He didnt need to recheck as you exit customs in miami there is a recheck area in front of TSA and they hamdle its confusing first time but after that its easier GREAT VIDEO
That’s exactly what I did, exited and then dropped off my bags again.
Same thing happened to me and my family. Perth to Detroit. 8 hours to Dubai, 18 to Dallas, had 2 hours to transfer in Dallas. Had to go through immigration and recheck bags, took over 1 hour to get through immigration, ran to check in desk, ran up the the front. The American Airlines lady starts shouting at me like I'm a dog. I told her my flight is about to leave, she shouts again, even louder to get back in the que, I said check in closes in a few minutes. No, she's screaming now to get back in the que. We queued for 20 mins, get to the front, check in closed 10 mins previously, next flight was the next day, and they said that as it was immigration that caused the delay, they were not responsible to put us in a hotel. Called the Manager, complained and explained what had happened, noone cared - just go away - welcome to America ! No phone no internet, very tired Wife & 2 kids. Eventually managed to find a cafe's wifi and book a place to sleep.
I’ve transited through Miami twice, the first time I had my wallet stolen and they lost my luggage. The second time they just lost my luggage.
I could not agree with you more on this subject.
A right royal shambles.
Flew BA from Australia to London via Los Angeles many years ago. Flight was delayed due to a number of reasons and we missed our original connecting flight. Had to reclaim luggage, not easy when pushing an elderly person in a wheelchair as well. We were travelling BC and no assistance was offered to us. Had to go through Customs and security again. Was treated like a criminal at Customs/security when asked for fingerprints as I could not give them properly due to my hands being deformed. The security guy kept pushing my hands down to try and get fingerprints. Due to their rude behaviour I will never go to USA or transit there. Told the Customs/Security guy in a loud voice
MCT for Miami intl to intl is 90mins and you were less than that ands so you can book this connection
It was originally three hours and 30 minutes until American changed one of the flights
I had a flight with Bangkok airways from Koh Samui to Singapore, then a completely sepperate booking on Qantas to Perth. At check in at a 2-bit OUTDOOR airport in asia, they offered to check my bag right thru to perth! Little did I know my flight was also a code share so maybe thats why. But you just dont get that service in the west (Australia/US)
Yea, Bangkok Airways built their business on the knowledge that most customers will be connecting to/from other international airlines. Through SIN or BKK. Made perfect sense to offer interline agreements with flag carriers. Fantastic airline 👍🏼
Why would anyone expose themselves to voluntarily transit through a US airport when they don’t have to? Anyone that travel frequently knows that is the worst idea ever. Kim, you were extremely lucky to get through that quickly, highly unusual
Kym, it’s the USA. You always have to clear customs AND recheck your bag.
So I discovered. That is a very sad state.
Same at JFK from Amsterdam to Reno and Amsterdam to Sacramento, and on the way back to Amsterdam the same. All JetBlue flights... Get you checked bagage, and recheck it.
Last year when I did Amsterdam to Sacramento via Dallas, I didn't have to do a thing.
I understand that. You always clear immigration and customs at your point of entry, but with an international transit at all of the major hubs I travel through you always stay airside. I can’t believe in the world’s greatest country, they haven’t worked out how to solve that and save the traveller time and money.
@@KymIllman What I also hate is the inconsistency at security in the US. Shoes on, shoes off, laptop can stay in your backpack, laptop needs to be out, smartwatch off, smartwatch on, backpack in a bin, backpack just on the rollers... This differs not only per airport, but also per security lane at 1 airport.
@@KymIllman it could be an illegal immigration issue. If people were allowed to do international self transfers within an US airport with no immigration check, what’s to prevent anyone from simply leaving the airport to enter US illegally?
We had a miserable time with American in Miami. Flying from Buenos Aires to Los Angeles through Miami was a nightmare with huge lines and we barely made the connection. On top of everything, Miami airport is a rathole.
None too pleasant I agree.
Ahhh…American Air flight from Minneapolis, Minnesota to Dallas on a 727 with no heat due to faulty auxiliary turbine…record -60
day and no hot beverage service. Never flew again on American Air but at least the plane landed safely, which was a big deal in 1985.
A video of the Hotel? and food in Mexico, thanks
Miami is notoriously such a headache. Most nefarious people do fly through Miami and as such, creates a delay for normal fliers. You lucked out. I try to stay clear of Miami as far as transits are concerned.
I will avoid it at all costs
Same as going through Aussie!
Well, without looking it up, there might be a minimum connection time in Miami.
If that’s the case, you couldn’t book a through flight due to this so it makes sense that they wouldn’t let you circumvent the minimum connection time.
Even if you did book through you'd still have to collect your baggage. Transiting through USA you'll always have to...now the only difference is you pickup and then you can do a quick bag drop. But it will never go through without you touching your bags!
Sad that travellers transiting through the US are denied what most of us outside that country are used to. Come on USA, get with the program. It’s costing travellers way too much in time and money.
6:00 well it makes sense that you had to clear immigration to get onboard your next flight because technically you were not transferring at miami because of the two separate tickets. In every country whenever you have to check in bags in that country you will have to obviously clear immigration
Welcome to American Airlines. I never fly American. And yes, Miami is a nightmare. I had a 5-hr wait to connect from NYC to Barbados.
OMG Kym u had Ruth on the flight with u... She's justthe best... and yeah, American airlines is the WORST( international of course, Spirit domestically 😅)
TIme flies like an arrow, Spirit flies like a banana!
When you fly into America you always have to grab your luggage and recheck into domestic or connecting international flights. To avoid the drama you had you would better off landing at Seattle, san Fran, Hawaii or Dallas Texas airports.
Miami, Atlanta and NYC are night mares.
Chicago is not bad, just a very old airport
are u still in the states because of the las vegas GP or did u fly back ?
In Singapore now