E is now connected to the rest of the airport (except terminal F'ed) airside.

If only people would read the

Great guide, thanks!
One query............is there an expedited security line @ PHL for G*/NEXUS members?

There are lines for *G/elites at B (I think), C, and D/E, but they are not always open. I don't think there are *G/elite lines at A-West or F, but security lines are never very long there.

Arriving on UA at PHL, likely in Terminal D, and changing to a US Air to San Juan, likely in Terminal A. Would that require going through security again?

No. Just a long walk.

I am trying to book an Amtrak train from PHL to DC for a Tuesday morning next month after a flight from TLV arriving at 5:20AM. I was wondering how long I should allow to get through customs and get to 30th St Station via Septa. I was thinking 2.5-3 hours should be fine. Is that correct thinking?

That sounds about right if all goes as it should.

Bobette

As you are probably aware, the Septa train runs every 30 minutes from (in your case), below Terminal A-East to 30th Street Station and Center City. The time to 30th Street Station is a mere 20 minutes. The TLV flight arrives at a time when there are very few (if any) other international arrivals so you should be out of customs/immigration in less than 1 hour. The walk from the Arrivals Hall to the Train should be no more than 10 minutes. If you've never been to the Amtrak 30th Street Station, it is a very large and quite comfortable place to spend an hour - although I'm not certain if many food court vendors are open before 8AM.

I've made it in under an hour - by sitting at the front of the plane, sprinting through the airport, having no checked baggage, not getting stopped at customs, and having the plane arrive on time or a little early.

30th Street Station is indeed a very comfortable place to spend an hour or several - there's a Costa and an Au Bon Pain (with soup, which is always nice), and a bunch of other food sources (Chinese, salads, smoothies), a post office, free wi-fi throughout the station, and plenty of places to sit.

Personally, because US Airways *can* on occasion go haywire (I've been on a couple of flights that were diverted for refuelling when asked to hold), I prefer not to buy my onward train ticket until I arrive at 30th Street. That also means that if I get there earlier than expected I can get an earlier train. But I'm usually going to NYC or Harrisburg, and there are many trains to both of those. You may not be so lucky.

wg

Because AMTRAK fare buckets are fairly simple, the earlier you buy your ticket, the cheaper it is. As long as you dont pick it up, you can fully refund it, and even after picking it up, you can apply its value to another ticket. There is one glitch where you can get hit with a 10% fee or soemthing, other FT threads will give more detail. I'd buy your ticket asap and not pick it up till you reach the station. Wrost comes to worst, if you're delayed, ccall fromt he airport and reticket on a later train -- the worst hting that happens is you have to pay the difference between your fare and the walk up fare, which is the fare you'd pay if you ... walked up... anyway.

The title says it all. If my US domestic flight is leaving out of an A gate (Terminal A), can I check in at Terminal A? Or do I still have to go to the Terminal B-C counters for domestic check-in?

You can checkin at any of the US Airways counters - terminals A, B, C or F.

Good to know. Thanks.

And that begs the question: is it ever advantageous to check in at Terminal A for flights out of B-C to avoid long security lines at B and C?

Depending on the time of your flight, I usually walk over the D after check-in if the line in B/C is long. I usually breeze right through D because I can use the "elite" line. There were a few times when the "elite" line was closed in B/C, but open in D.

LAX