Snorkel 378 TH

Good evening,
my wife and our daughter and I are looking to go and visit her family in the Philippines next spring and do a stopover for a few days in Hong Kong, and we were thinking of flying our my sister in law who just graduated University to come join us, who has never been out of the Philippines. We would be flying CX from LAX and arriving around 7pm in the main terminal, and she would be flying KA from DVO landing in the North Satellite Terminal around 8pm. So never having flown from the north terminal, I am not sure if there is immigration there. Would it be possible for us just to wait for her by the 7/11 right before immigration and then we all enter Hong Kong together, or would we all meet landside independently? Thanks for the help!

889

Much simpler just to agree to meet landside by some landmark like the MTR service counter.

moondog

Possible, perhaps, but certainly not a plan that would get my endorsement.

garykung

North Satellite is basically a remote gate area. Arriving passengers from North Satellite will bus back to Terminal 1.

I have been heavily criticized for saying this in the past (even I am correct). But I would have say this one more time - What you have suggested is actually illegal, especially given the recent development of Hong Kong civil unrest.

Given the civil unrest has no sign of dialing down, access to island that houses HKG has been heavily guarded, not only restricted. Without a legitimate purpose to Hong Kong Airport Authority, you can be in violation of a court's issued injunction. In fact, people have been asked to leave the island when they claims they are picking up arriving passengers.

The best way is obviously waiting at the hotel you will be staying. If this is not possible, the best alternative, and to circumvent the injunction, is to eat and wait in a restaurant in HKG. Other than that, any other forms of waiting could and can land you some troubles.

ricktoronto

He's arriving on a flight as well from LAX. The relative arriving an hour later, also on an inbound flight from DVO. He's asking about waiting before immigration for an hour while she catches up. How two people arriving in the terminal violate the injunction about meeting passengers at the airport is a head scratcher.

He could sit for a boring hour at a big transfer point like E1 or W1 and wait for her to come to the same place, then all of them walk to immigration together. How are two arriving passengers violating the "come to the airport to meet people" rules? When they both arrive on flights?

After immigration it's at least semi-interesting to get bags, wander around and kill time but before immigration I doubt the plan is illegal. I'd send two to get the bags and wait for the relative at a transfer point.

moondog

I share the same doubt, BUT

1. I certainly wouldn't chance it because it might be illegal
2. Even if it's not illegal, it's still a recipe to get messed with by officials
3. It's simply a bad idea

garykung

As I have said previously, the reason why it is illegal as loitering is a restricted area is not designed for the purpose of waiting people. Given that people, who claim waiting for arriving passengers from ground transportation centre, have been demanded to leave the airport island by bailiff (this has been broadcasted live), I would not consider waiting is a legitimate purpose.

Also - transfer areas are used as described, which are for transfers only.

I did not write the injunction. But given the extremely tightened security, the airport island has practically become a warzone (at least to Hong Kong). So yes - OP is free to do whatever he/she wants. But I would not risk it at all.

Visconti

Also, the moment you make an exception, then comes the litany of a plethora of other exceptions rendering the original intent of the rule/policy/law completely meaningless.

:D!

Basically, the other posters are probably right that you are not meant to do this, but I have always seen hundreds of people just sitting around before immigration and nobody harrasses them.

However I have not flown into HKG since the protests started and perhaps something has changed.

You can always wait there and if you notice that security staff/police are trying to move people on then just head to the immigration queue.... use the airport wifi to communicate.

GeezerCouple

I'm not - yet! - familiar with the airside facilities, but we've been exploring using some transit facilities between flights.

Do those facilities/resting areas (e.g., Plaza Lounges?) require presentation of ticketing for outward bound flights before one can rest there?
If not, why is "waiting there" any different that "waiting [for someone] there"?
Again, the logistics may make the answer to this obvious, but we've not yet been there to see.

GC

garykung

Yes.

In fact, all lounges, except PPL T2 and CX Arrival Lounge, are located at the departure airside. An arriving passenger has virtually no chance to access the lounges unless the passenger is transiting and have an ongoing BP.

HarbourGent

Yes you could do this.
Does anyone who said it's illegal have evidence for that? I don't see how it's illegal.

christep

I agree. No problem at all waiting airside before immigration to meet family members coming off another flight.

People above seem to think that this would be in breach of the injunction obtained by the airport authority which, inter alia, forbids people from
But, of course, waiting for family members (airside) is a reasonable cause, so I don't see any problem here at all.

tentseller

Three arrivals since the injunction: I have not seen enforcement of it airside (restricted area) pre-immigration. I only saw security in the terminal arrival hall post customs.

garykung

With this injunction, the HKAA wants the airport island for both categories of people - those who work in the island, and those who use the island (i.e. departure/arrival only). When the bailiff demanded people, who claimed they were there meeting arriving passengers, to leave the island, I would not consider waiting for family members is a reasonable cause, at least to the Airport Authority. And this has been broadcasting live at that time.

Arrival hall is designed for arrival processes and other related purposes. If you say you need to buy something from that 7-11, sure. If you say you need to use the transfer desk or wait for the next ferry, sure. But waiting a family member? Definitely not.

You can believe what you want. You can see no problem at all. You can say there is no enforcement at all. But in the climate of civil unrest, is it a wise idea to do such thing? I don't think so.