Originally Posted by
ryman554
It's highly unlikely that anyone, on a XXX-TYO-PEK-XXX with a "stopover" in TYO and "final destination" as PEK would re-transit Japan on the way back to XXX. Never happens in any of the itineraries that United or ITA throw at me when I go looking for SFO-TYO flights and need a third country to make the thing cheaper. So, it most likely will allow a TWOV.
Not that the original suggestion of waiting a few hours is for that -- it's for the awful connection logistics. Nor would I ever suggest doing a TWOV with only a "few hours" layover. A couple of days, sure. But not a couple of hours.
Correct -- the flights that I'd expect someone to take would be something like BOS-EWR-TYO / TYO-PEK-ORD-BOS or whatever.
And, yes, the extra time is for delays at PEK. You'd have no problem with the TWOV if you're not planning to leave the airport; there's an international connection line that you'd take and show your passport and boarding pass (assuming you're traveling on a passport that's PRC TWOV eligible, including the US). If you are planning to leave the airport, you should still not have any problems with the TWOV, but I'd be prepared with everything printed out including your Beijing-area hotel and return itinerary.