Sell me on Global Entry please...

[Deleted]

Thinking of joining, but here's what's making me hesitate...

We usually check bags on int'l flights, almost always fly coach, and we have no special status with any airline, so our bags come out after all the status bags have come out.  When we flew home from Paris last year on an Airbus A380, we didn't leave the airport for two hours after we landed because it took so long for our bags to get off the plane.  So while we had to wait in line for passport control which I guess was annoying, skipping that line and then standing forever at baggage claim isn't all that much better...

Is Global Entry really worth it if you're going to have to wait a while for your bags anyway?

Thanks for any input

[wanderlustfoodie]

I LOVE global entry. It's relatively such a small expense for such a long validity. Even on occasions where I have to wait for my bags, I'd much rather blow through immigration and customs and not have to deal with surly immigration officers or annoying blue customs forms.

Plus you can use your global entry ID for TSA pre-check when you fly domestically which is also all sorts of wonderful to blow through long security lines.

[Deleted]

Aug 26, 2013 13:59:41 GMT -5 wanderlustfoodie said:

Plus you can use your global entry ID for TSA pre-check when you fly domestically which is also all sorts of wonderful to blow through long security lines.

I'm not as familiar with pre-check -- does it work at lots of airports?  (JFK/LGA/EWR are of course my biggest concerns, but...)

[wanderlustfoodie]

Aug 26, 2013 14:07:34 GMT -5 v said:

Aug 26, 2013 13:59:41 GMT -5 wanderlustfoodie said:

Plus you can use your global entry ID for TSA pre-check when you fly domestically which is also all sorts of wonderful to blow through long security lines.

I'm not as familiar with pre-check -- does it work at lots of airports?  (JFK/LGA/EWR are of course my biggest concerns, but...)

Once you become eligible for pre-check you get to go through a different security line where you don't have to take off your shoes or remove your laptop or fluids from your carryon. You blow through in like 2 minutes because there's never anyone there.

They have pre-check at those 3 airports and a lot of others around the country but it is specific to certain airlines in certain airports (I think it has to do with what gates they had enough space to create the separate line). But pre-check is awesome. You can look up some here: www.tsa.gov/tsa-precheck/tsa-precheck-participating-airports

A few credit cards waive the global entry fee, so you might already have one of those or you could just sign up for the fee waiver if you don't want to pay. We paid since we joined before credit cards started offering that as a perk but knowing what I know about the benefits of global entry and now pre-check, I would've paid at least 5 times the cost. I love it that much.

Once more people start signing up, it might become a little less awesome (the last time we reentered the country was the first time we'd seen all kiosks occupied, but we still didn't have to wait at all to get up to one) but even after that happens it is just such an awesome program. I'm shocked the US transportation agencies actually did something great for once.

[Deleted]

My favorite benefit of my favorite travel credit card is being phased out so I may be switching to a card with a much higher annual fee but that reimburses for Global Entry, which is why I was asking, actually

Thanks so much for all the info!

[SJ]

I don't even really care about Global Entry but TSA PreCheck is incredible. I really love it so much. Between TSA PreCheck, preferred status, airport lounges, and boarding passes on my iPhone, I really think my travel experience has gone up about 100 points in the last few years.

[Deleted]

Aug 26, 2013 14:30:37 GMT -5 @sfgal530 said:

PreCheck is the best thing ever. You should pay for Global Entry just to get PreCheck. It feels like Christmas every time I encounter a PreCheck line at an airport.

I'm assuming you're considering the AmEx Platinum. I will tell you right now that I'm underwhelmed with its offerings for the price. I would cancel it but (1) I'm kind of lazy and (2) I'm in the middle of buying a house and a condo right now so I don't want to eff with my credit score. The AmEx customer service is great, but the perks for Platinum are kind of lack-luster in my opinion.

I'm actually thinking of Citi Prestige, which is a bit cheaper and has slightly different benefits (including my beloved point-per-dollar-flown reward), because I've never been able to see how the current Amex Platinum benefits would be worth $500 to me (from what I understand, a few years ago it was WAY more worth it... but I guess that's how credit cards have been going generally).

[Bob Loblaw]

My home airport has hellacious security lines so Global Entry/TSA PreCheck is a lifesaver. I used my work CC and was reimbursed, but we paid for my H ourselves and I would definitely pay for it myself otherwise.

[GilliC]

Aug 26, 2013 15:24:50 GMT -5 @mx said:

While I agree that pre-check is awesome, you can't use it when you fly internationally/on non-participating carriers (only American, United, Alaska, Delta, Hawaiian, US and Virig America are in)/from airports or terminals/gate pods that don't have it set up. So while I have the pre-check clearance I go through standard security 80% of the time, even when I fly domestically because at DCA there is only one set of gates with pre-check set up. Which at least for me makes the indignity of the pat down even worse when I know I'm considered a low risk passenger and have the background check and interview to prove it.

OMG! OMG!  THEY CHANGED THIS!  *cue the skies opening up and shafts of light*

When I flew out of IND last week, my boarding pass had the PreCheck logo on it.  I went to the normal line, because I was going to connect in Newark to an international flight.  When they looked at my boarding pass, they said, "You know you qualify for PreCheck?" and I said, "Yes, but I'm on an international itinerary."  They told me that they changed the rules three months ago and walked me over to the empty PreCheck area!  With all my carry-on crap for the international flight, not having to separate everything out was a.ma.zing.  I nearly cried.

[GilliC]

Regarding GlobalEntry...

I typically fly into Newark (not worth it) and Houston (definitely worth it). It comes down to how much and where you fly. I'm not sure I would pay for it if I was always flying my usual route into Newark, because 9 times out of 10 I'm through immigration before the first bag has hit the carrousel. Because Newark baggage handling is ridiculous (Last time I went through Newark, my priority bag took a full hour to make it from the plane to the customs baggage claim.)

The major benefit of GlobalEntry in my opinion (TSA PreCheck aside) is being able to sit down while I wait, and being able to use my iPad while I wait.

A lot of people don't want to sit after a trans-oceanic flight, but I have low blood pressure, and the dehydration from flying makes it worse.  Standing in a long immigration queue right off the flight is difficult for me and I get very dizzy and uncomfortable.  I would much rather zip through immigration and then sit in the baggage claim while I wait for my bag to show up.

Similarly, they now have a "no electronics" policy in the immigration queue that's sporadically enforced.  I usually have a paper book when I fly (for taxi, takeoff, and landing), but the dehydrated-standing-in-line jitters make it hard for me to concentrate on reading.  At that point I'd much rather just play a silly game or watch a movie on my iPad.  I've never seen a sign or had anyone tell me to turn it off in the customs area the way they do in the immigration area.

I got my GlobalEntry application paid for through my frequent flyer status, so it was only a time and scheduling investment for me.  When it expires, I'll have to think about whether I want to renew it, but I probably will unless they jack the cost way up.

[GilliC]

Aug 27, 2013 9:13:37 GMT -5 @mx said:

Aug 27, 2013 9:05:12 GMT -5 GilliC said:

OMG! OMG!  THEY CHANGED THIS!  *cue the skies opening up and shafts of light*

When I flew out of IND last week, my boarding pass had the PreCheck logo on it.  I went to the normal line, because I was going to connect in Newark to an international flight.  When they looked at my boarding pass, they said, "You know you qualify for PreCheck?" and I said, "Yes, but I'm on an international itinerary."  They told me that they changed the rules three months ago and walked me over to the empty PreCheck area!  With all my carry-on crap for the international flight, not having to separate everything out was a.ma.zing.  I nearly cried.

You're right. They changed it for select destinations in Canada, the EU and Australia if you fly on one of the US carriers who has paid to join the program. If you fly a non US carrier ot are going to a different destination you can't. Though I do sometimes play dumb and get in the pre check line anyway just so I can skip 20 minutes ahead of everyone else

I have hope that they will continue to expand it, but I guess it still sucks for Africa!

(Honestly, I'd rather have them go back to the old system where everyone still takes shoes off, etc. but you could use the priority queue as long as you had high enough status on any airline.  I definitely used my Gold card to go through security once when I was flying a different airline.  I asked first if I could use that line, but the TSA agent said, "Of course you can!"  The advantage was that only FFs were using that line, so they all knew the system and could get things done quickly.  None of those people who walk through the metal detector with coins in their pockets and then look shocked when it goes off.)

[Deleted]

With respect to the participating carrier issue, what happens if, for example, you're flying a Delta/KLM/Air France code share? If you're ticketed through AF are you SOL, or does the fact that Delta is involved make you eligible for pre-check?

[orangello]

One bad Saturday night at the Miami airport was enough to convince me that this was worth it, lol! It's good for a while (5 years, I think?) so if you even do one or two international trips a year, I think the convenience is worth it.