EES role out

daveyjp

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82051304#Comment_82051304

And my daughter is just back from Kos. The queues on arrival to clear passport control and to check in on return and clear security were still lengthy with no EES system being used. As always its not the system, its the resources (or lack of) which cause queues.

silvercar

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82057017#Comment_82057017

When leaving we had long queues to check in and security was reasonably busy, but the passport check was very quick.

michael1234

Unfortunately we've already booked an expensive holiday to Spain. Had we known about the various queue times we would have definitely looked more closely at Greece due to its welcoming attitude and shorter queues. Oh well next year….

NoodleDoodleMan

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82070509#Comment_82070509

Which airport - and do you need to register for EES on arrival ?

Anecdotal reports suggest that Palma is relatively straightforward - local management (or the lack thereof) has a role in different airports.

michael1234

Reus and Barcelona (different family members).

NoodleDoodleMan

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/advice/best-and-worst-airports-ees-border-chaos/

Various factors come into play - for example the number of incoming flights from non EU countries - when a bunch of UK flights arrive close together then that has an effect on queues for Brit tourists.

Good luck.

la531983

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82070509#Comment_82070509

Greece doesnt always mean shorter queues btw. Some of the island airports are still woefully inadequate if a number of UK flights land within a short space of time, Corfu being one such example.

TELLIT01

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82071458#Comment_82071458

The small island airports with large numbers of visitors is one of the reasons Greece has introduced the rule about UK travellers. I haven't been to Corfu for many years, but visit Crete annually. There are reports that they only have 5 EES machines in arrivals. That truly would be chaos if a few flights arrived at the same time.

la531983

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82072508#Comment_82072508

Indeed, but even them binning it off is still going to lead to long queues regardless.

pattycake

We returned yesterday from Lanzarote, our third visit this year. We were on the Dreamliner so a big plane but it was an early flight and we were the only arrival. We were able to go straight to the e-gates for passport as we had registered in the previous 3 months so quick and straightforward.

On the way home yesterday, once through security, we went to Gate 6 and scanned passports. No queue although the airport was busy. The problems arose when we were boarding. Again the Dreamliner so a lot of passengers. We had to queue to use the exit machines at the gate. There were only 4 machines and most people hadn’t a clue what they were doing. Passport in the wrong way etc and little help from the one official who was watching proceedings. Boarding commenced in plenty of time but it took so long, we missed our slot and eventually an hour delay.

The whole thing doesn’t seem to make any sense and is very frustrating.