Originally Posted by
Hokiedoke281
Hi all,
I'll be traveling international for the first time in years and would like some help with what the procedures are for checked baggage/overnight layovers.
My first leg is DC to Miami in evening, an overnight stay in Miami, and a morning flight from Miami to St. Lucia. Will I be able to retrieve my checked bags at Miami and start the custom process in the morning, or do I need to go through customs in DC and have them sent along to St. Lucia?
Thanks for your help!
1. The US does not enforce outbound Customs (as a general matter). You will go through Customs upon arrival in St. Lucia and then at your US port of entry on return.
As to your MIA stop-over, all depends how this is ticketed. AA will not "short check" a bag if this is a DC to St. Lucia flight. On the other hand, AA will not hold bags over a certain period of time. You should call AA well in advance. To the extent you can avoid pickup and recheck, I would do that and take a carry-on for the overnight in MIA. Checked bag charges can add up.