Travel Tips

Arriving in the U.S. is always slightly unsettling, although it's much easier and more straightforward than it was, say, 30 years ago. For one thing, U.S. Customs now has a Green Channel for people who have nothing to declare. Even so, you'll find passport control considerably more thorough and more time-consuming than in Europe, for instance. Make sure you have your landing card and customs form filled out! The immigration officer you meet may not have much of a sense of humor...

The most aggravating thing about most airports in the US is that baggage carts (trolleys) are almost NEVER free!! You'll find them lined up with two wheels locked in a groove along the floor with a funny little machine at one end. You have to go there, put $1.50 - $2.50 in the slot -- or "swipe" your credit card through the slot -- in order to release one. This is a major headache if you did not have the good sense to bring some single dollar bills along with you. Forget changing money at a bank inside customs, too, because there are never any exchange windows available. And even if you do succeed in getting a trolley, there are some airports where you can't take them outside the terminal. In the terminal that KLM uses at JFK Airport in New York, you can't even get them outside customs!! But they still cost money....

<b>Trolly Update:</b>

Quite exceptionally, I have just discovered that luggage trolleys are actually free at Dulles International in Washington, D.C. This act of generosity may reflect Washington's unwillingness to appear niggardly to arriving foreign visitors. If you fly in or out of Reagan National Airport, however, you'll have to cough up $2.00 for the same cart, however.

Generally, US Customs don't give you any trouble. That said, they do use dogs and they have some of the most sophisticated security and "sniffing" devices known to man, so if your bags contain anything they shouldn't, they'll probably already know about it in advance and you'll be nabbed. Don't risk trying to bring in drugs or food products such as fresh meats, sausages, or live plants. All of these can cause you problems; drugs would probably mean your spending several years in the US. Incidentally, never note down on your customs declaration that you have gifts for people. They'll charge you duty on them!!!

Although you can't use curbside check-in on an international flight, the only thing that distinguishes one from a domestic flight is that the airline will ask to see your passport. And if you are not carrying an American passport, you'll need to give them your I-94 form (I think that's the right form number.). Otherwise, you would never know you were leaving the country because there is no passport control to go through.

Flying to and from Canada is a bit unusual. When leaving, it's like taking a domestic flight. No formalities at all. You arrive on the Canadian end and go through their Customs and Immigration just like anywhere else in the world. But when you fly back into the US, you clear American customs and immigration at the Canadian airport in question. When you arrive back in the States, you walk off the plane as if it had been a domestic American flight.... It's very strange. I have a stamp in my passport that says "U.S. Immigration -- Edmonton, Alta."

<b>Driving between the US and Canada</b>
Beyond being the longest undefended frontier in the world, it's also one of the easiest to cross -- assuming your papers are in order. When you drive in, you don't need to stop at the American border post, but you should proceed directly to the Canadian side. The reverse applies when you return. US citizens, permanent residents, and naturalized citizens as well as British nationals <i>resident in Bermuda</i> do not require passports, either.