OmahaUnitedMM

Arriving to India is a problem from International flight to domestic flight. While Mumbai has a nice lounge in International for departing domestic to International. When you arrive and collect your bags and go through customs and recheck your bags to Hyderbad your options are limited. You can sit in the international lobby area near where the bus takes you to the domestic terminal, you can board the bus and kill time at the Domesic Terminal. This is a secure bus so you can enter the terminal domestic terminal early vs walking in off the street. Note Jet is where bus drops off, if connecting on AI you go through terminal and take a strange 5 minute or so walk down dark streets to the next Terminal for AI. Neither is great although with AI now in star you might have some options with a small AI lounge at the domestic airport. Both terminals have a few snack shops open all night. For a 430am flight not sure it is worth going to a hotel but that option does exist. I kill 4-5 hours at the domestic terminal every trip to BLR via Mumbai.
Have a safe trip, the Mumbai shuffle is just part of the adventure.

emcampbe

There is no arrival lounge in Mumbai - since you will be connecting to a domestic segment, you'll clear customs after arriving from EWR and collect baggage, and have to re-check it prior to your next flight.

International and domestic flights at BOM are still in different terminals (with very few exceptions - mostly a few flights that have one flight number continuing into an international destination like AI 341 BOM-MAA-SIN).

If you are flying business on the domestic portion, you should have access to whatever lounge your carrier uses at the domestic terminal prior to that flight. Note (if you've never flown within India before) that you will need to show a copy of your itinerary along with a piece of photo ID (passport is best if you don't have an Indian type of Id) to security at the door before they will allow you into the terminal - they check this pretty well (this will be required for your return as well, both in HYD and BOM if you are doing the reverse route. Either have a printed or electronic copy ready (some say you need paper, but I have never had an issue showing an email confirmation or PDF on my phone).

Also note that domestic security in India is quite different than international security - you can bring liquids through and will not need to remove them from your bag - and after going through the metal detector will also be wanded no matter what. You also won't need any ID after checking in - but will need a tag for each piece of carry on luggage that you will get at the check in desk, it will be stamped once it clears security and that stamp will be checked before you can leave the security area and again after having your BP scanned at the gate.

IAHUArunner

Any preference in connecting to domestic through Bombay? Jet vs AI..Does AI Gets you Lounge access for domestic? (EWR to Bom then 9 hour layover )

emcampbe

AI is part of *A, 9W is not. So AI in any class will get you access to their lounge if you are *G though I've never been inside, so can't comment. Buying business on either will also get it. AI will also give you PQM, though the lowest fares will only get 50%.

I've only flown AI and Indigo domestic, so also cant comment on 9W though consensus in the India airlines forum is they have gone quite downhill over the years. I was scheduled to fly them earlier this week, but had to cancel and AI was better for the day I rebooked.

Honestly, for the short duration of pretty much any domestic flight, I tend to book pretty much based on price schedule. AI/Jet (mainline - not JetLite) will give you food (free - it's actually usually pretty decent on AI, but will be Indian food, obviously - veg/non-veg options) and IndiGo/SpiceJet/GoAir will sell it. More difficult to book tickets on the last 3 if you don't have an Indian-based credit/debit card sometimes, and need to do it through their site or an Indian-based OTA, but Indigo in particular tends to have a much more frequent schedule between major centers, IME, so I've flown them most. For < 2 hours in the air, it doesn't really bother me either way who I pick.

sapguy

Thanks everyone for your insight and advices.

So I will overnight in Mumbai at the Grand Hyatt and will take a 7PM flight to Hyderabad the next day on JETKONNECT (first time flying these guys) in Biz Class so I guess I will have access to their lounge in the domestic terminal.

Travel to India sure is interesting and also bizarre

aindfan

That's the best way to do it, as far as I'm concerned. I did the same thing last year (JFK-FRA-DEL overnight until 5PM DEL-HYD on the outbound and 7AM HYD-BOM full day until 11PM BOM-EWR on the return) and had a great day visinting some tourist highlights in both cities. I'd highly recommend this to you as well.

UALFLYER1

At the end of the day guys, connecting in BOM from INT to DOM or the other way around is stupid. Try to avoid as much as possible. It is the dumbest thing.

frequentjohn

At least for now. In the fall, the domestics terminal will move to the new terminal in BOM to facilitate the connections. At that time, it will be easier to transfer domestically from the International flights.

oliver2002

Not really. I did it in June, and its pretty smooth now: you turn left just after clearing customs (before the doors to the public), hand your luggage to AI or 9W/S2 collect your boarding pass, so thru a new set of security, walk to the bus and get dropped in the T1 luggage claim. Take a turn and you walk into the domestic departure hall. The AI lounge in T1 is before security, the 9W after security. Neither have showers et al. I would compare it to ORD T5 to T1 transfers.

skidooman

Domestic to International is hellish. The lines for the bus can exceed 90 minutes, sometimes 140 minutes ain't enough either.

All of this to get through stupid security to get to a bus going nowhere faster, to finally be dumped, city-side, at the international terminal, and having to go through security once again.

Completely inefficient.

At least, in Delhi, if flying low cost, you get outside, catch the bus, get to T3. Still not that efficient, but way, way ahead of Mumbai.

emcampbe

I thought that the new domestic part of T2 wasn't opening until sometime next year?

Whatever the public date is, especially more than a few days in advance, it should be taken with the largest grain of salt. This is India - I love some things here - but expecting things to happen on schedule will usually disappoint. I'll believe the new domestic terminal opening date once it actually happens.

UALFLYER1

you must have caught the shuttle bus on time. I have waited for an hour for the bus sometimes. In fact, I am from BOM originally and debated leaving the terminal in taxi and then coming on the other side. I guarantee sometimes that is probably faster.

oliver2002

Yep, lived in BOM for six years and know it well. I was surprised how easy the T2-T1 transfer went. I had a plan B in hand, didn't need it.

otterbob

Glad to hear the Mumbai transfer experience may be improving soon. I started taking EK on this route (JFK-DXB-HYD) for this reason, after LH discontinued their service from FRA -- EK is not uncommonly less expensive in J, and the transfer in BOM (with or without an overnight) quickly became tiresome.

sapguy

I will be taking JetKonnect between BOM and HYD and then JetAirways between BLR and BOM, as connection to EWR in BOM.

The JetAirways/JetKonnect website indicated that United is a partner and the UA website sells these flights as part of the UA itinerary. But I found no mention of JetAirways being a member of Star Alliance

What status and privileges do I have on this airline as a 1K? Do they have lounges?

Also, the BOM-HYD segment is marked as Business on my ticket - is that the same as Premiere? Thanks in advance