Shop and Restaurant facilities AFTER US Preclearance at Dublin Airport ?

holly8

Hi .... as the post title says, what Shop and Restaurant facilities exist at Dublin airport AFTER US Preclearance at Dublin Airport?

Taking a flight from there in a few weeks with no meal plan etc on board aircraft .. as there is US restrictions on foodstuffs allowed, I will have to stock up at the airport but have no idea what is there ... TIA

Dial Hard

holly8 wrote: »

Hi .... as the post title says, what Shop and Restaurant facilities exist at Dublin airport AFTER US Preclearance at Dublin Airport?

Taking a flight from there in a few weeks with no meal plan etc on board aircraft .. as there is US restrictions on foodstuffs allowed, I will have to stock up at the airport but have no idea what is there ... TIA

There's a small bar with sandwiches, paninis etc. and the Aer Lingus lounge and that's it, AFAIK.

gumbo1

There's a small WHSmith kiosk, an Irish gift shop and a sandwich bar. There 51st and Green which is a lounge that anyone can pay to enter, there's free food and drinks and a wash room. Other than that you are best off doing your eating, drinking and shopping in the retail area before heading down to USPC.

holly8

wow .. this is what I have found ... not great, is it?
https://www.yelp.ie/biz/irish-meadows-dublin

coylemj

There isn't a total ban on taking food through US pre-clearance but you'll need to read the regulations. For example, it might be ok to bring packaged cheese and/or meats (still sealed with producer's name and details clearly visible) through and a few bread rolls. Anything in clingfilm and most exotic fruits (oranges, bananas etc.) will probably be confiscated.

billie1b

Dial Hard wrote: »

There's a small bar with sandwiches, paninis etc. and the Aer Lingus lounge and that's it, AFAIK.

Dublin Airport lounge not Aer Lingus

rawwrrrr

Hi all. Going to America for the first time at the weekend. How far in advance of the flight do you have to go to Preclearance? Trying to work out how much time as I hope to do a bit of shopping in T2 beforehand so I'm totally confused. Thanks!

Inquitus

The bets thing past US pre-clearance is the Executive lounge the 51st and Green, if you have access to that due to status or class of flight it is a lovely spot to have some breakfast, a drink alco or non alco and watch the planes arrive and depart out of the huge window overlooking the runway. If not there is very little of note to amuse yourself.

trellheim

There is however Wi-Fi and a small newsagent , and a very crowded coffee shop if you don't want to pay for 51st and Green.

I recommend arriving at Airport at least 3-3.5 hours in advance if you are leaving during the peak USPC times as the madness down below can take up to 92 mins ( well thats what it took me ) if you want to eat properly and shop , that said there's nothing worth buying really in the main terminal that you can't get better and cheaper in town anyway bar dutyfree fags and booze

Jamie2k9

rawwrrrr wrote: »

Hi all. Going to America for the first time at the weekend. How far in advance of the flight do you have to go to Preclearance? Trying to work out how much time as I hope to do a bit of shopping in T2 beforehand so I'm totally confused. Thanks!

It generally opens around 2 hours before your scheduled departure (they will announce it opening) and closes 45 minutes before.

If you are flying wit the US carriers then check in will be slow, if Aer Lingus bag drop will be quick.

I would head down around 1 hour before departure at latest.

rameire

Aerlingus say their checkin for flights to USA will open 3.5 hours before departure.
So get there 4 hours before if with Aerlingus.
Checkin, bag drop.
Go through security, buy your duty free, go through US preclearance and get into 51st and Green and chill there until 30 min before your departure.
That’s what I did this week, and was the best 35 euro I could have spent.

Wanderer2010

As already said, there is very little to do past the US Security, just a small café and a newspaper stand. If you want to pay for the Lounge that's an option if you are after food and comfort. But really, you could grab a sandwich or meal before you head to security and still only have a short wait for the flight. It never fails to amuse me how people tend to freak out when they see only one shop or a weak WiFi signal in an airport. First world problems!

JCX BXC

When you've paid such an amount of money for a flight I think it's reasonable to expect some services.

"First World Problems" - being used as an excuse to lower quality of services since 2005

PaulKK

Jamie2k9 wrote: »

I would head down around 1 hour before departure at latest.

This is pretty bad advice in my experience.

I've flown out through there approx 5 times in the last 12 months and typically it's unpredictable in terms of how long it can take.

However the absolute minimum time prior to departure I would allow would be approx 2 hours.

I've had it take between 40 mins and over 1.5 hours previously.

1 hour before departure is not enough as you will be hopefully boarding the plane 30 mins before, leaving 30 mins for pre clearance.

Put simply, a crude look at the mornings departures shows 8 flights departing within two hours to the US.

At a capacity of 300 per flight that's over 2000 people that have to get through in the same period.

Why cut things fine? Go through early, have a coffee and relax.

holly8

PaulKK wrote: »

This is pretty bad advice in my experience.

I've flown out through there approx 5 times in the last 12 months and typically it's unpredictable in terms of how long it can take.

However the absolute minimum time prior to departure I would allow would be approx 2 hours.

I've had it take between 40 mins and over 1.5 hours previously.

1 hour before departure is not enough as you will be hopefully boarding the plane 30 mins before, leaving 30 mins for pre clearance.

Put simply, a crude look at the mornings departures shows 8 flights departing within two hours to the US.

At a capacity of 300 per flight that's over 2000 people that have to get through in the same period.

Why cut things fine? Go through early, have a coffee and relax.

Yes, I'd agree with this .. we gave ourselves well over an hour to get through pre-clearance., and even though we were in the fast-track lane, it still took some time. Plus there was a trip for one of our party to Secondary. We had time for a drink and snack before we got on the plane but we didn't have lots of time to spare ... I would give it 1.5 to if (when!) going again .. why have to deal with that added stress?