I'm going to be flying home to nz from germany next year and i have to choose between 2 hours at LA or 7 hours at San Francisco, which is better? I've heard that in LA they don't let you leave a room if you aren't entering the states which i don't plan to do for either LA or San Francisco, i have to change airlines as well if that affects anything? I would rather stop for longer if it means i can have a shower and/or a sleep somewhere but if I can't then i'd rather have as short a stint locked in a room as possible, does anyone know what the procedure is for people in international transit in San Francisco and whether I can do stuff?
thanks heaps!
2007-11-21 08:00:22 · 5 answers · asked by Fi 1 in Travel ➔ United States ➔ San Francisco
what I mean is before customs are you able to walk around and eat etc like at singapore?
2007-11-21 08:05:14 · update #1
I checked entry requirements for the USA based on all possible combinations of your citizenship/residency since you didn't specify (New Zealand citizen. NZ citizen with German residency, and German citizen) and you do not need a visa to enter or transit the United States, despite what the first person answered. So you can enter the United States without a visa and don't need to stay in an in-transit area as long as you have a Machine-readable passport.
The in-transit program and TWOV programs were suspended by US Customs and Border Protection and so all entry requirements to transit the USA must be as if your final destination is the United States. You will be admitted into the United States and are free to do whatever you want as long as you:
hold a machine-readable passport (MRP); and
- holds a passport, if issued (or has been extended):
a. on or after October 26, 2005 but prior to October 26,
2006, containing digital photograph or integrated chip
with information from the data page; or
b. on or after October 26, 2006, containing integrated chip
with information from the data page...
So what you need to decide is do you want to stay at LAX and eat or whatever (you should arrive and depart from the Bradley Terminal), or do you want 7 hours in San Francisco and take the BART subway from the airport and sightsee, besides showering and sleeping that you said.
2007-11-23 05:39:41 · answer #1 · answered by DRL 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
You better ask your travel agent or do some online research for your destinations. If I were to answer your question, I would answer in a biased perspective by saying "San Francisco is better" because "its the one I always go to" and "the ones all my friends prefer to go to." That probably doesn't help at all, but my point is ask a travel agent. They have the best information for traveling.
2007-11-21 16:04:22 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
There's nothing to do at SFO...Especially if you need to stay within the security gates.
As much as I don't like LAX, I think you'd be better off with the short layover.
2007-11-21 16:15:58 · answer #3 · answered by abfabmom1 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
No airport in the US will let you wander around inside the terminal if you are not entering the US with a valid visa. You will not get past customs.
2007-11-21 16:02:49 · answer #4 · answered by Answerguy 2 · 0⤊ 4⤋
If you're into hot gay guys, do SFO (San Francisco)... we're everywhere. If you're into hot str8 actor wannabe's do LAX (Los Angeles). SFO tends to be pretty chilly and LAX is usually pretty sunny and warm.
2007-11-21 17:28:24 · answer #5 · answered by ►solo 6 · 0⤊ 5⤋