Direct or Indirect via Dublin

[oO-Gemma-Oo]

I can't decide whether to stick to my initial flight and clear immigration in Dublin or whether to change to direct, the direct flight price is now roughly the same as indirect and there are no fees to pay to change it. Is clearing immigration in Dublin a big advantage?

[LOU LOU DISNEY]

Originally Posted by oO-Gemma-Oo

I can't decide whether to stick to my initial flight and clear immigration in Dublin or whether to change to direct, the direct flight price is now roughly the same as indirect and there are no fees to pay to change it. Is clearing immigration in Dublin a big advantage?

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I definitely think so. Arriving at the other end picking up baggage & off you go is a wonderful feeling! I’ve never had to queue longer than about 20 mins in Dublin immigration & find the officers are very pleasant & chat to you.
Saying that I’m only 1.5 hours away from Dublin airport so will always be my first choice if the price is right!

[loldis]

It's nice to have immigration out of the way early on so you're not standing in the queues after a long flight, but it takes longer overall. For me going from Gatwick in winter, I'd rather take the direct leaving at 1pm than have to be there for the 8:30am Dublin flight. Land at MCO at the same time, so unless immigration takes over 4 hours, the direct is faster door to door. I might feel differently if I didn't live so close to Gatwick and would have to overnight here anyway.

Specifically at the moment as well, I really only want to keep track of one country's Covid requirements and deal with one set of airport officials. So I'd paid more for a direct.

[oO-Gemma-Oo]

Thank you, we have to travel down for the initial flight so doing that the night before and flight home is direct, I just can’t decide what to do.

[ncmurray]

Im not sure where you are, but a direct flight home is a big bonus, especially if you consider the stopover on the return flight in Dublin.

I think the pre-clearance in Dublin is a fantastic advantage, but you must weigh it up against everything else.

Personally, I would go direct and drive to the airport the night before and get a direct flight nearer to your home, if that is possible.

[shelle]

We're booked MAN>DUB>MCO and like you the direct Manchester to Orlando is now a similar price.

We've considered changing but have decided to stick with it. These flights were really cheap and if it turns out to be a decent flight then we will feel comfortable booking this route in the future to save money.

I also really like the thought of getting off the plane at MCO and not having to take our bags on the monorail!

[lynne6705]

I am looking at flights now going via Dublin, is 1 hour 50 mins enough time for a change over or is longer needed?

[Warkman58]

Our first choice is Dublin, we either go from Birmingham the night/day before and stay in Dublin, or train down to Heathrow and stay overnight.
Always better to clear US customs at Dublin, as normally, direct flights to MCO arrive pretty much at the same tine, hence huge immigration queues.

[VS075]

You'll spend longer going via DUB than you will in immigration at MCO so direct all the way for me. Especially for the flight back, direct is always a win.

[duchy]

Originally Posted by lynne6705

I am looking at flights now going via Dublin, is 1 hour 50 mins enough time for a change over or is longer needed?

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I’d not leave any connection onto a international once a day flight that tight. Even on one ticket, certainly not on seperate ones.
No longer needed for what reason do you mean ?