vroom

Hi.

Looking for some advice. I am planning a transatlantic trip with EY in Y, but originating in YYZ with an AA flight to reach the TATL gateway. My concern is about the risk of a misconnection, since that would cause major problems for the rest of the trip. This is compounded by the fact that I'll be travelling in December, with a 7- and 4-year old.

My preference would be to fly YYZ-JFK with a 2h40 layover before the onward EY flight. However, I'm worried that 2h40 is not a long enough buffer, especially with a change in terminals. So my alternative choices are:
1. YYZ-JFK with a 6h45 hr layover before the EY flight.
2. YYZ-ORD with a 3h55 layover before the EY flight.

Any advice on which destination (JFK or ORD) is less likely to have delays and/or cancellations from YYZ in December? And any opinions on how long a layover buffer I should leave?

Thanks.

MiamiAirport Formerly NY George

Both are a crapshoot in. December but I'd favor ORD over JFK in weather. A buffer of a few hours should be ok but little good in the case of a weather cancellation.

george 3

Under normal circumstances a 2h40 layover is do-able at JFK, however traveling with a 7-y.o. And 4 y.o. is not. Consider the ORD connection because a 6hr45 layover is too much for children to be hanging around an airport.

Apieinthesky

And too little to really do anything in the city, at least with two small children in tow.

Neither has an advantage in terms of possible weather trouble, IMO.

Shareholder

Flying from YYZ myself, I can understand your concerns about onward international flight connections (though why not take the nonstop EY flight from YYZ?). In December the weather is a crap shoot to either ORD or JFK, let alone YYZ itself. I also assume this will be on a single through ticket and not two separate ones (an AA to ORD/JFK, EY to wherever).

At both airports you'll have to change terminals though if on a single ticket bags should go right onto the EY flight having cleared US customs at YYZ. I would not do a 2h40m connection at JFK but would consider the 6h45m one, but then I have lounge access. The ORD connection time should be sufficient even with some delays at either end.

However, if the weather is really bad at your US airport and you'll miss your connection, AA and EY should protect you on either the EY nonstop ex-YYZ or another carrier (BA being a ONEWORLD partner that could ultimately get you all the way, or to LHR where you can pick up another EY flight). Just be sure to purchase your tickets with a credit card that offers flight insurance that covers delays, weather and similar incidents. Or purchase just such a policy if your credit card does not offer it. Too many variables and unknowns to do otherwise.

george 3

After you walk out the door of T8 it takes at least one hour to get to midtown via cab/car, AirTrain to LIRR/Subway. And the immediate neighborhood of JFK is to be avoided.

seawolf

Are both flights on the same ticket or separate?
What is your final destination?

aa380

I would recommend the ORD one since the long layover with kids is not fun. I have done both of these, and have better luck with ord than the jfk delays or cancels.

Dr. HFH

OTOH I've said many times (and stand by it) that anyone who voluntarily connects at ORD in the winter is asking for [weather-related] trouble. That said, if you're talking December, December 1st is a very different situation from December 31st. I'd connect on the first, but not at the end of the month. Sure, you can have an early storm, but this is all about likelihood..

vroom

Thanks all for the advice. It will be on a single ticket, departing December 9. Unfortunately, that's not one of the days that EY is "allowed" to fly ex-YYZ, so we need to connect through a US gateway.

Frederik123

IMO the connection at ORD should be your choice. Given the weather situation, a possible delay on your inbound flight would kill your 2h40 connection in JFK. The ORD connection time should be sufficient even with some weather delays.

hillrider

If you're so worried about this, spend the night in either city. This is a matter of personal choice, as both look way more than ample to me, but taking a look at historical delays for last December of both of the flights in question on the DOT's site may give you some data-driven insights.

Sprezzatura

++ ORD. A 6 hour layover would be a real pain in the butt.