Kuala Lumpur International Airport Long Wait Warning
Aug 5, 2017, 1:26 pm
#1
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Kuala Lumpur International Airport Long Wait Warning
This is a warning to passengers flying into KLIA 1 or KLIA 2; the immigration lines for foreigners have been so long and so bad the last month that wait times to clear immigration can take up to 2 hours so be aware especially if you are booking connecting flights and onward journey's at KLIA 2 on a different airline.
I was in the baggage collection office for Malaysia Airlines and a lot of passengers were looking for bags that were no longer on the carousel belts (2 hours) and were livid they were going to miss connecting flights on Air Asia at the KLIA 2 terminal or HAD already missed flights.
Beware.
I was in the baggage collection office for Malaysia Airlines and a lot of passengers were looking for bags that were no longer on the carousel belts (2 hours) and were livid they were going to miss connecting flights on Air Asia at the KLIA 2 terminal or HAD already missed flights.
Beware.
Aug 5, 2017, 10:04 pm
#3
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On my latest flight to KL I also experienced the long queue for immigration, even though it was 11.00 p.m.
Aug 6, 2017, 1:31 am
#4
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This is a warning to passengers flying into KLIA 1 or KLIA 2; the immigration lines for foreigners have been so long and so bad the last month that wait times to clear immigration can take up to 2 hours so be aware especially if you are booking connecting flights and onward journey's at KLIA 2 on a different airline.
I was in the baggage collection office for Malaysia Airlines and a lot of passengers were looking for bags that were no longer on the carousel belts (2 hours) and were livid they were going to miss connecting flights on Air Asia at the KLIA 2 terminal or HAD already missed flights.
Beware.
I was in the baggage collection office for Malaysia Airlines and a lot of passengers were looking for bags that were no longer on the carousel belts (2 hours) and were livid they were going to miss connecting flights on Air Asia at the KLIA 2 terminal or HAD already missed flights.
Beware.
I still find the arrival queues to be much worse than departure, but the latter comes with an extra frustration: families/groups of passengers turning up too late (relative to the queue lengths) and having to push to the front en masse. Just makes the whole experience more stressful than it should be.
Aug 6, 2017, 8:31 am
#7
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It's really difficult to predict these days, unfortunately. I always arrive with the mindset of expecting a one hour queue, and get pleasantly surprised from time-to-time. :-)
Aug 7, 2017, 5:42 am
#8
Join Date: Jul 2017
Location: CGK
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I'm surprised. Last time I went through KLIA1 Immigration (sometime in 2016), I recall it being rather empty or otherwise not crowded.
Any possible reasons for this? Is it due to a lack of Open Immigration Counters, Immigration system problems, rapid expansion of airlines or simple inefficiency?
I was hoping to take a quick same-day turnaround in KUL this December...
Any possible reasons for this? Is it due to a lack of Open Immigration Counters, Immigration system problems, rapid expansion of airlines or simple inefficiency?
I was hoping to take a quick same-day turnaround in KUL this December...
Aug 7, 2017, 6:45 am
#9
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I'm surprised. Last time I went through KLIA1 Immigration (sometime in 2016), I recall it being rather empty or otherwise not crowded.
Any possible reasons for this? Is it due to a lack of Open Immigration Counters, Immigration system problems, rapid expansion of airlines or simple inefficiency?
I was hoping to take a quick same-day turnaround in KUL this December...
Any possible reasons for this? Is it due to a lack of Open Immigration Counters, Immigration system problems, rapid expansion of airlines or simple inefficiency?
I was hoping to take a quick same-day turnaround in KUL this December...
1-Massive increase in numbers of tourist visiting Malaysia via KLIA and are either stopping in KL first before venturing else where OR are on transit and switching to a low cost airline like Air Asia (KLIA 2) or Malindo (KLIA 1) on a later flight in the same day or next day.
2-Increased tourism numbers in part due to Malaysia relaxing the visa requirement for China nationals and more direct flights to major Chinese cities
3-More chartered flights from Taiwan, Korea, and China into KLIA
4-Insufficient immigration staff numbers (an old problem that was never rectified and the introduction of biometric thumb print and photography for all visitors which increases the time spent per visitor vs immigration officer x 3)
5-Malindo operating out of KLIA instead of KLIA2 and increased loads of passengers on existing airliners flying into KLIA (emirates/etihad/qatar/etc etc)
6-Poor management of tourist in line as they arrive (no immigration staff or customer service staff to handle families vs individuals vs couples vs APEC card holders and to separate them into different lanes maybe)
Lack of planning and forsight by the airport management.
Aug 7, 2017, 8:04 am
#12
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Several reasons actually from what I can gather:
1-Massive increase in numbers of tourist visiting Malaysia via KLIA and are either stopping in KL first before venturing else where OR are on transit and switching to a low cost airline like Air Asia (KLIA 2) or Malindo (KLIA 1) on a later flight in the same day or next day.
2-Increased tourism numbers in part due to Malaysia relaxing the visa requirement for China nationals and more direct flights to major Chinese cities
3-More chartered flights from Taiwan, Korea, and China into KLIA
4-Insufficient immigration staff numbers (an old problem that was never rectified and the introduction of biometric thumb print and photography for all visitors which increases the time spent per visitor vs immigration officer x 3)
5-Malindo operating out of KLIA instead of KLIA2 and increased loads of passengers on existing airliners flying into KLIA (emirates/etihad/qatar/etc etc)
6-Poor management of tourist in line as they arrive (no immigration staff or customer service staff to handle families vs individuals vs couples vs APEC card holders and to separate them into different lanes maybe)
Lack of planning and forsight by the airport management.
1-Massive increase in numbers of tourist visiting Malaysia via KLIA and are either stopping in KL first before venturing else where OR are on transit and switching to a low cost airline like Air Asia (KLIA 2) or Malindo (KLIA 1) on a later flight in the same day or next day.
2-Increased tourism numbers in part due to Malaysia relaxing the visa requirement for China nationals and more direct flights to major Chinese cities
3-More chartered flights from Taiwan, Korea, and China into KLIA
4-Insufficient immigration staff numbers (an old problem that was never rectified and the introduction of biometric thumb print and photography for all visitors which increases the time spent per visitor vs immigration officer x 3)
5-Malindo operating out of KLIA instead of KLIA2 and increased loads of passengers on existing airliners flying into KLIA (emirates/etihad/qatar/etc etc)
6-Poor management of tourist in line as they arrive (no immigration staff or customer service staff to handle families vs individuals vs couples vs APEC card holders and to separate them into different lanes maybe)
Lack of planning and forsight by the airport management.
Aug 7, 2017, 11:18 am
#13
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Now they've introduced a chunky daily tax on overseas guests in hotels, I'm sure some of the cash generated will be used to improve the airport arrival experience.
(The sound of low-flying pigs overhead)
(The sound of low-flying pigs overhead)
Aug 7, 2017, 4:24 pm
#14
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It is up to Malaysia Airports Berhad to improve the immigration clearance experience.
Aug 8, 2017, 3:57 am
#15
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Several reasons actually from what I can gather:
1-Massive increase in numbers of tourist visiting Malaysia via KLIA and are either stopping in KL first before venturing else where OR are on transit and switching to a low cost airline like Air Asia (KLIA 2) or Malindo (KLIA 1) on a later flight in the same day or next day.
2-Increased tourism numbers in part due to Malaysia relaxing the visa requirement for China nationals and more direct flights to major Chinese cities
3-More chartered flights from Taiwan, Korea, and China into KLIA
4-Insufficient immigration staff numbers (an old problem that was never rectified and the introduction of biometric thumb print and photography for all visitors which increases the time spent per visitor vs immigration officer x 3)
5-Malindo operating out of KLIA instead of KLIA2 and increased loads of passengers on existing airliners flying into KLIA (emirates/etihad/qatar/etc etc)
6-Poor management of tourist in line as they arrive (no immigration staff or customer service staff to handle families vs individuals vs couples vs APEC card holders and to separate them into different lanes maybe)
Lack of planning and forsight by the airport management.
1-Massive increase in numbers of tourist visiting Malaysia via KLIA and are either stopping in KL first before venturing else where OR are on transit and switching to a low cost airline like Air Asia (KLIA 2) or Malindo (KLIA 1) on a later flight in the same day or next day.
2-Increased tourism numbers in part due to Malaysia relaxing the visa requirement for China nationals and more direct flights to major Chinese cities
3-More chartered flights from Taiwan, Korea, and China into KLIA
4-Insufficient immigration staff numbers (an old problem that was never rectified and the introduction of biometric thumb print and photography for all visitors which increases the time spent per visitor vs immigration officer x 3)
5-Malindo operating out of KLIA instead of KLIA2 and increased loads of passengers on existing airliners flying into KLIA (emirates/etihad/qatar/etc etc)
6-Poor management of tourist in line as they arrive (no immigration staff or customer service staff to handle families vs individuals vs couples vs APEC card holders and to separate them into different lanes maybe)
Lack of planning and forsight by the airport management.