7-Hour International Transit at Delhi Airport
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Corpus Christi
Programs: UA, AA
Posts: 99
7-Hour International Transit at Delhi Airport
On May 21, we arrive in Delhi from Kathmandu on Jet Airways at 5:15pm.
We depart Delhi to ORD on American Airlines at 12:15am. I assume that we will be using the International Terminal for entry and departure.
I think I've read all the reports on Delhi airport but hope for more current information.
What can we do to make a 7 hour transit in the new International Terminal more tolerable? We spent 3 weeks in India four years ago (departed one week early to escape!) and I do not want to leave the terminal no matter how bad it is.
We are flying coach so no lounges!
Any and all suggestions are welcome.
Jane
We depart Delhi to ORD on American Airlines at 12:15am. I assume that we will be using the International Terminal for entry and departure.
I think I've read all the reports on Delhi airport but hope for more current information.
What can we do to make a 7 hour transit in the new International Terminal more tolerable? We spent 3 weeks in India four years ago (departed one week early to escape!) and I do not want to leave the terminal no matter how bad it is.
We are flying coach so no lounges!
Any and all suggestions are welcome.
Jane
#2
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: ORD
Posts: 746
Ck out http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/india...rts-forum.html
Other than that a good book or paying 500 rupees or so per person for lounge access might be what you want.
Other than that a good book or paying 500 rupees or so per person for lounge access might be what you want.
#4
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: India
Programs: Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium, IHG Plat, HH Gold, Trident Plat, DL Diamond, AI Maharajah
Posts: 29,673
i would suggest heading over to the radisson to kill some time....its less than 5 minutes from the international airport & a great place to have some drinks or a nice meal before heading back to the airport to catch your long haul flight....
#6
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: India
Programs: Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium, IHG Plat, HH Gold, Trident Plat, DL Diamond, AI Maharajah
Posts: 29,673
there are a number of lounges at the airport....all of them are decent, nothing to write home about....if you are travelling business or first then you can get entry to them....if not then you can pay & get entry....have something to eat, watch some tv or use the net....you can easily spend a few hours in them....
#7
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: ORD
Posts: 746
There are no lounges in the transit hold area. all lounges are pre security at DEL. I am not sure what is the situation at the new T3 but very likely w/o a visa you will be in a transit holding area with bare facilities. suggest either getting a visa or taking a later flt to del.
#8
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Corpus Christi
Programs: UA, AA
Posts: 99
Thank you, rsh. There are no later flights and I am not going to get a visa for a 7 hour visit. Thanks for reporting that all of the lounges are outside security so now I can abandon that idea. Soooooo, I will just grin and bear it inside the secure area.
#9
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: India
Programs: Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium, IHG Plat, HH Gold, Trident Plat, DL Diamond, AI Maharajah
Posts: 29,673
check-in counters will open about 4 hours before your flight so you won't have to spend too much time outside....
#10
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: SAT / MAA / BOM
Programs: CO Plat; UA 1K; EK Gold
Posts: 5,110
There are no lounges in the transit hold area. all lounges are pre security at DEL. I am not sure what is the situation at the new T3 but very likely w/o a visa you will be in a transit holding area with bare facilities. suggest either getting a visa or taking a later flt to del.
basically as rsh913 is pointing out, OP will be in the transit area, where there are no lounges, etc.
I am not sure if this is a good way to spend 7 hours.
#11
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: India
Programs: Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium, IHG Plat, HH Gold, Trident Plat, DL Diamond, AI Maharajah
Posts: 29,673
if you have a lounge pass then they let you go into the lounge....all the lounges are after immigration so this is not a problem....
#12
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: ORD
Posts: 746
Well the OP is transiting at DEL. She does not have a visa for India and will *not* do immigration in Delhi. She will not be in the post immigration pre security check area but the transit area which is a holding area between arrivals and depatures. It is not worth spending 7 odd hours there. Nothing much except duty free shops etc. No lounges to my knowledge. But this can change in the as yet unopened T3.
#13
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: SAT / MAA / BOM
Programs: CO Plat; UA 1K; EK Gold
Posts: 5,110
Well the OP is transiting at DEL. She does not have a visa for India and will *not* do immigration in Delhi. She will not be in the post immigration pre security check area but the transit area which is a holding area between arrivals and depatures. It is not worth spending 7 odd hours there. Nothing much except duty free shops etc. No lounges to my knowledge. But this can change in the as yet unopened T3.
#14
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: India
Programs: Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium, IHG Plat, HH Gold, Trident Plat, DL Diamond, AI Maharajah
Posts: 29,673
Well the OP is transiting at DEL. She does not have a visa for India and will *not* do immigration in Delhi. She will not be in the post immigration pre security check area but the transit area which is a holding area between arrivals and depatures. It is not worth spending 7 odd hours there. Nothing much except duty free shops etc. No lounges to my knowledge. But this can change in the as yet unopened T3.
once the op gets off the place from her first flight, she will be directed to the transit area....once she is in the transit area, she can go to the helpdesk & let them know she wants to use the lounge....
since the lounges are after the immigration area, they will allow her to go to the lounge....if the lounges were before the immigration area then they would not have allowed her to go since she does not have a visa....
the transit area & lounges are seperated by the area where you go through security....once you contact the helpdesk in the transit area they will help you get out of the security area so that you can enter the lounges....
is that explaination better????
#15
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: SAT / MAA / BOM
Programs: CO Plat; UA 1K; EK Gold
Posts: 5,110
ok....let me try to explain this again....
once the op gets off the place from her first flight, she will be directed to the transit area....once she is in the transit area, she can go to the helpdesk & let them know she wants to use the lounge....
since the lounges are after the immigration area, they will allow her to go to the lounge....if the lounges were before the immigration area then they would not have allowed her to go since she does not have a visa....
the transit area & lounges are seperated by the area where you go through security....once you contact the helpdesk in the transit area they will help you get out of the security area so that you can enter the lounges....
is that explaination better????
once the op gets off the place from her first flight, she will be directed to the transit area....once she is in the transit area, she can go to the helpdesk & let them know she wants to use the lounge....
since the lounges are after the immigration area, they will allow her to go to the lounge....if the lounges were before the immigration area then they would not have allowed her to go since she does not have a visa....
the transit area & lounges are seperated by the area where you go through security....once you contact the helpdesk in the transit area they will help you get out of the security area so that you can enter the lounges....
is that explaination better????
I imagined this is what you were talking about. But I could not understand if someone would be let outside that "security check" area. I guess you can ask some of the airline staff to take you past security.
On the couple occassions when there have been problems and someone wanted to leave the secure area...i observed they were told that their boarding passes will be canceled. Although I never understood how "security" can "cancel" any boarding pass.