ORD experience

[biaobiao 40]

i would like to ask who have RECENT experiece having ORD as point of entry?

thank you. I will be travelling with a toddler. I want to be prepared as much as possible.

[Lila93 2]

I arrived on January 8th and had ORD as my point of entry.

It was super easy and smooth, it only took about 3 minutes and I didn't even have to go to secondary. It was no different than arriving as a tourist. So no worries, I'm sure you'll be fine.

[biaobiao 40]

thank you. i do hope everything will be okay

[Greenbaum 12,259]

thank you. i do hope everything will be okay

It's nice that you "hope" that everything will be okay but in reality it's you who is ultimately in control of your trip. Take control now and make plans and be sure to try and anticipate what could go wrong that you can control. Here are some things to consider. Since I don't know the age of your toddler some stuff will apply and others may not.

So, the first place to check is what others have experienced with traveling through Chicago as their POE. http://www.visajourney.com/reviews/poereviews.php?poe=Chicago

When you call to book the tickets let them know you have an infant and need a bassinet. They usually reserve bulkhead in the center row of seats for passengers flying with children under 2 years of age. You see, there are four little grommet-like snaps on the center bulkhead wall that allow for two collapsible basinets to be snapped into the wall giving parents lap-relief for the majority of the flight.

More information on this topic here: http://wherenextwithmeg.com/2010/10/21/traveling-with-a-tiny-the-family-row/

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/299146-best-place-to-sit-on-a-plane-with-an-infant-and-a-4-yrs-old/

http://www.allfreekidscrafts.com/Travel-Activities-for-Kids/?gclid=COaZ6eSuqMUCFUk8gQod7TMAxg

http://www.lapkidz.com/

http://www.pampers.com/diapers/real-mom-baby-travel-advice?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Pampers_Search_Lifestyle.New%20Mom_BMM&utm_term=+traveling%20+with%20+a%20+toddler&utm_content=sBOv2PENe|dc_+traveling%20+with%20+a%20+toddler_b_49516404595

[Unico 1]

Travel light since you are bringing a toddler with you.

[biaobiao 40]

Thank you for links greenbaum.

Thank you unico. I will travel light and less luggage. We will do the shopping after arrival in the US.

My daughter is 3yrs old.

Trust me I am doing a lot of hoping, preparing and Praying as well. I have waited for this for years. I just wanted to know the experience.

Some say that passing through ord, they waited for hours for immigration and customs. Others say its quick and easy... I know there are no guarrantees as to how busy the airport is.

I am bracing for worst case scenario but HOPING and PRAYING it will be easy.

[ChicagoSarah 127]

Thank you for links greenbaum.

Thank you unico. I will travel light and less luggage. We will do the shopping after arrival in the US.

My daughter is 3yrs old.

Trust me I am doing a lot of hoping, preparing and Praying as well. I have waited for this for years. I just wanted to know the experience.

Some say that passing through ord, they waited for hours for immigration and customs. Others say its quick and easy... I know there are no guarrantees as to how busy the airport is.

I am bracing for worst case scenario but HOPING and PRAYING it will be easy.

ORD is a busy airport. Choose off-peak times if you want to try and avoid it. Mid-week/midday will likely be less busy than a Thursday/Friday/Saturday.

ORD is also constantly changing their customs/immigration process. Over the last year or two it has seen quite an overhaul. But the good news is that because it's a busy airport, they're familiar with processing immigrants on K-1 and CR-1/IR-1 (and all the others).

I'm not as familiar with the CR-1 process at POE. The previous poster who entered in January also entered on a K-1, so I believe your process will be slightly different.

Either way, prepare as best you can, and ORD tends to at least know what they're doing and be pretty nice to people coming through.

Good luck!