No more real time Esta applications

[Damn Dirty Ape]

The change of passport after an ESTA has caught a lot of people out including my dad a number of years ago. Some people just don’t realise the esta is linked to your passport number so a new passport means a new esta. My dad managed to get his sorted at the airport but if there was a delay he would have missed his flight.

[ROO]

We are just back from WDW, great time had by all but I did have a huge meltdown the day before we left !
I was double checking everything & printing off stuff & 😱 I noticed that my esta was expired ! I still get anxiety just thinking about it, we were flying in 20hrs !
I totally freaked got my passport & opened up esta page only to see the no real time approvals, well tears were shed & I was filling it out so quick I was making mistakes it took me over half hour to fill out & pay.
Thankfully i got approval within the hour but never again will I leave it till the last minute to print off everything.
The stupid thing was I renewed DH back in December as he got new passport but I genuinely thought mine was still in date .
Always double check folks as you just never know.

[john2202]

I wouldn’t even book the holiday before I got the ESTA. Get the ESTA then book 👍👍

[Sandraoh40]

I did ours yesterday. Mine took about 15 mins and my dh defo within a couple of hours as I checked after 10 mins and not done , then checked after I came back in and all ok.

[ROO]

We go to Florida every year sometimes twice a year, mistakes happen it’s always better to double check everything in plenty of time & not at the last minute like me !

[catlady]

My dd and I did the Disney Transatlantic cruise from Dover to New York last year and on check in there were many families who hadn't done an Esta! Disney had 3-4 laptops set up and the queue to use them was quite long! 😮 They were mostly European families but it was obviously a common occurrence given the staff involved in helping and the laptops set up?

Wonder what will happen now? You can't get on the ship without it?

[PPM]

I think that nowadays a lot of folk don’t take responsibility for their actions. It’s always somebody else’s fault, be it the TA, the airline etc

I know if you go to a TA you may expect them to sort things out, but for me hanivg travelled all over the world on business and pleasure, I always check the requirements for each country myself. You may need a visa, you may need inoculations, and show certification on that etc etc. A lot of folks hand over their money and expect it all to be done for them . In lots of cases arriving at airport without an ESTA could be avoided if the customer actually reads the paperwork that comes with the tickets or holiday paperwork where it will list the ESTA as a requirement, possibly further down the page. ( which usually has “ Important, Please Read” on it.

Sorry if this is a bit blunt, and I fully expect other opinions. This is why The Dibb is so great, as it encourages good debate.

[Jessietatt13]

I did mine yesterday and it took an hour. I was impressed with this as I was worried about mine. I am one of the many Brits who have now got Dual nationality due to Brexit (British/ Irish). To further complicate matters my British passport is still in my maiden name as I have never got around to changing it (this is the one I am travelling on) Therefore I effectively have two names and two nationalities at this time and still it was a quick process.

[RickT]

Just done mine - which expired on the 25th of this month..

Took 45 mins for 3x ESTA's to be approved.