Hello, I am flying with United Airlines from Tokyo to Honolulu and then I would like to go to Hilo on the same day. I think United has a partnership with Hawaiian Airlines, so maybe if I buy the HNL-ITO ticket with Hawaiian, they could check in my luggage all the way from Tokyo to Hilo.
This way, I could make a longer stopover and visit Pearl Harbour without worrying about my luggage.
Does anyone have some experience with this? Probably not flying from Japan, but any hint is appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
It's not a partnership that's important but interline baggage agreements. Yes, UA will interline your bags to your final destination (ITO). Just follow the instructions listed on the first page of this thread (and make sure your bags are tagged to ITO). You will have to reclaim your bags at customs in HNL and go through the proper US Customs procedure. But there is a recheck carousel in the customs area for you to recheck your bag over to the HA flight.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CTTS
AA is Hawaiian's partner, not United.
Not sure what this has to do with anything? Hawaiian has a FFQT partnership with AA, UA, DL, CO, and US.
It has to do with checking baggage to destinations not on the same itinerary. Perhaps I misinterpreted, but the original post read to me like OP was buying two tix, one NRT-HNL and another HNL-ITO. Buying one ticket NRT-HNL-ITO-HNL-NRT is a totally different animal, from a baggage standpoint, than buying one RT ticket NRT-HNL + another RT ticket HNL-ITO. If the former, checking your baggage all the way through is de rigeur. If the latter, not so much. Depends on several things, most importantly the willingness of the gate agent to do a little extra work.
A few weeks ago, for example, I was denied through-checking on my bags while flying Temuco -> Santiago -> Dallas -> Maui because the ZCO->SCL segment (on LAN) was on a different ticket than the rest (AA). This, despite the fact that AA and LAN are codeshare AND OneWorld partners. The AA Executive Platinum Desk told me beforehand it would be no problem unless I got a gate agent in ZCO who was either lazy or poorly trained. I lost that particular game of Gate Agent Bingo.
I had read the threads before but I was not sure if that could be applied to my case as I would buy the tickets separately AND I would fly from Japan.
I guess it can theoretically be done but depends on the person at the counter.
I really don't know what to do. If they don't check in my lugagge to ITO I will be stuck several hours in HNL airport dragging my luggage instead of doing some sightseeing in Honolulu as I planned.
I have sent an email also to hypac (storage company), which I also found in these forums, but they did not answer yet.
I might add, if I try to book a flight from NRT to ITO in United web, they use Hawaiian for the HNL-ITO segment, so that's why I thought they had some kind of code sharing.
I had read the threads before but I was not sure if that could be applied to my case as I would buy the tickets separately AND I would fly from Japan.
I guess it can theoretically be done but depends on the person at the counter.
It's not a theoretical thing. It can and should be done by the agent checking you in.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mortimerita
I might add, if I try to book a flight from NRT to ITO in United web, they use Hawaiian for the HNL-ITO segment, so that's why I thought they had some kind of code sharing.
They do have a codesharing agreement, but again, it's not the codesharing agreement that determines the baggage arrangements, it's the interline baggage agreement. And HA has an interline baggage agreement with UA at HNL.
I was wondering if I could find this written officially in the United web or somewhere else, or maybe I should write them an email and try to get their "approval" in written form, just in case...
Maybe you can give a hint because it looks like you are very sure about it. Do you know where to find this as official information I can print and take with me to the airport?
Sorry for all the questions and thanks in advance for your kind help!
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Let me just also say that I have done at least two dozen flights (including last week where there were one HA flight and three UA segments involved!) where I interlined baggage between an HA interisland flight to/from HNL and a UA mainland flight (or vice versa). It's a pretty standard thing.
I was wondering if I could find this written officially in the United web or somewhere else, or maybe I should write them an email and try to get their "approval" in written form, just in case...
Maybe you can give a hint because it looks like you are very sure about it. Do you know where to find this as official information I can print and take with me to the airport?
Sorry for all the questions and thanks in advance for your kind help!
It's all written in the internal rules for each airline, something not publicly available. If the agent you speak to in NRT gets it wrong, ask to speak to a supe.
Sorry, I am back again, I was wondering if go! airlines has this kind of interisland agreement with United since go! flights are cheaper and departure times more convenient for me?
And also, why do I have to pick up my luggage once in Honolulu to do the customs clearance? Why not in just in Hilo?
And also, why do I have to pick up my luggage once in Honolulu to do the customs clearance? Why not in just in Hilo?
You have to pick up your checked bags and have them screened at customs at any gateway airport through which you enter into the United States. That's how they ensure that customs screening gets done on your bags when you enter the States ( there is no customs/immigration office in ITO).
Well, the United hotline person in Japan told me that they will not check my bags to Hilo if I buy separate tickets, regardless of the airline. They confirm I have to pass the customs clearance in HNL and then I would have to recheck with the interisland airline.
But the interisland airlines don't let me check in 7 hours before, only 3, so I guess I wil rent a car for 7 hours just to leave my bags on the trunk
I appreciate all your information and I consider it trustworthy, but it looks like the interline baggage rules are not being followed in Japan and I can not risk to be stuck at the airport 7 hours with my bags and watching the beautiful sunshine outside
I really hope they will reconsider reopening the lockers because long stopovers in the USA look kind of disgusting and too cumbersome to many of us.
Someone said that this was so all over the world: wrong! There are plenty of storage rooms in Narita.
I was also 2 years ago in Barcelona and left my luggage in a storage room with a security guard at the entrance and my bags were put thorugh X-ray, just like before putting them in a plane. I don't understand why this can't be done in USA.
There is a link at the beginning of this thread about "long stopovers in HNL" which I would be happy to have a look at but it is broken.
