Originally Posted by dcjono

I've had great success with an occasional "hidden city" itinerary and jumped on some great biz fares ex-Canada to JNB on KLM/DL recently. Was able to route my return trip through ATL where I live. Great.
As the trip approaches, I'm realizing that I'm gone a while and would be FAR easier to be able to check a bag, even on the return.
So there are two logistical questions -
1. Is it possible when connecting from an international flight in ATL to take my luggage through customs and simply exit the airport? I seem to recall connecting passengers being separated from ATL-bound pax. (this is assuming a domestic connection)
2. Will my checked luggage even have to go through US customs in ATL if my onward flight is to Canada? I understand that I'll go thru immigration, but would the checked bag (un)helpfully go directly on the international flight to YYZ?
I'm sure someone else has faced this before, but my search didn't turn up much.