Toronto Pearson Airport

[jkhastings]

Hello all.
My wife and 2 young kids are going from UK to Indianapolis on Air Canada. They are connecting through Toronto Pearson Terminal 1. I am wondering if any members have experience with connecting through this airport and terminal. I've looked on the Pearson website. It says once you land, you clear Canadian customs and walk to your connecting gate (provided you luggage is tagged to final dest). Two thing make me curious....why do you not have to pick up your bags, then place them onto a connecting flights belt, like in Terminal 3? Is Terminal 1 special in some way? Secondly, do you clear Canadian customs on arrival into Toronto (as a transit passenger), then clear US customs on arrival in Indianapolis?

Only asking as it will be very late at night and the kids will be having meltdowns. Oh, and the wife wants all the info before she lands or else!!

Jonathan

 

[ChrisFlyer]

I have transited Toronto T1, but was travelling Montreal-Chicago via Toronto as opposed to arriving from abroad. Although our bags were tagged to Chicago, we first had to enter the 'USA departures' area (look for signs pointing to the 'F gates', which is where all US flights depart from - they don't have logical signs pointing to 'USA flights'). The agent checked our boarding passes, and we then entered a holding room with a baggage conveyer belt to collect our checked baggage. You then clear USA passport control and Customs in Toronto (you complete the USA passenger card either in the baggage waiting area or on the first plane/at the first airport, as it needs to be completed before arriving at the Customs desks). When the passport checks have been completed you will receive a USA entry stamp in your passport and also onto the boarding pass of your US-bound flight. Once you're all clear, you head to the very left of the next room to deposit your checked baggage on the conveyer belt (there may have been a belt on the very right also), and then clear security.

And that's it! On arrival in the US you are simply treated as though you'd arrived from a domestic flight, and can walk straight out of the terminal. The process from collecting our bags to reaching the US departure gates took about 40 minutes. If you have plenty of time between flights, Air Canada also sells single lounge entry passes for about $40CAD, which are valid at your origin airport and also for lounge access at any transit stops (you'll get "G6" printed in the 'remarks/observations' section on your boarding pass) if you do choose to purchase.

As to your specific question re: T3->T1, my assumption would be that you don't collect your bags in T3, but rather at the USA conveyer belt in T1 as I described, but I'll let someone else respond that has done such a transit. Otherwise, just give Air Canada a call, and I'm sure they'll provide all the information you need.