okay so i literally just landed at boston logan and wow what an experience connecting here can be, its kinda wild especially if you arent ready for it so i wanted to throw out some thoughts and advice for anyone else who has a layover here because honestly you gotta be prepared or youll just be stressed out and nobody wants that when theyre traveling, right? its not like lax or jfk where everything feels more consolidated, boston logan has its own special charm, lets just say that, and it involves a lot of walking and maybe some bus rides.
The connection game plan
first things first you need to know which terminals youre going to be in because logan is basically a bunch of different buildings, almost like mini airports connected by roads and tunnels and shuttle buses and its not always super intuitive, like you might land in terminal a and your next flight is in terminal c which sounds close but it can be a trek and you cant just walk through a secure connector like some other airports so you really need to figure out your itinerary and look at the terminal map before you even land, its honestly the best advice i can give you.
Do you have enough time?
this is probably the biggest question and the one that will make or break your connection here, honestly. if you have anything less than two hours, especially if youre changing terminals or coming from an international flight, you are pushing it big time, like seriously pushing it. i would recomended at least two and a half hours, maybe even three, just to be safe because delays happen, security lines can be insane, and those terminal shuttles, while mostly reliable, can take a while and dont always come as frequently as youd hope, especially during off-peak hours and you dont want to be sprinting across an airport just to miss your next flight and be stuck, its not fun at all.
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the baggage hassle: okay so if you checked a bag, this is super important.
- if youre flying internationally into boston and then connecting to a domestic flight, you will almost certainly have to collect your checked bags after customs and then recheck them for your next flight, which adds a huge chunk of time to your layover and you have to account for that process, its a mandatory step.
- if youre flying domestic to domestic and staying with the same airline or partner airlines on a single ticket, your bags will usually be checked through to your final destination so you dont have to worry about them, which is a massive relief and saves stress.
- but if youre on separate tickets or different airlines that arent partners, even domestic, you might have to collect and recheck your bags too so always double check your baggage tags when you check in to be sure its going all the way.
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do you have to clear security all over again? oh boy, this is another big one here at logan.
- if you have to change terminals, like from a to c or e to b, you will almost definitely have to go through security again, which is why those minimum connection times are so crucial because you cant just walk between all the terminals airside.
- there are some pedestrian walkways that connect some terminals post-security, like between terminal b and c, but they are specific and you need to know about them and sometimes it feels faster just to go landside and take the bus and re-clear security depending on where you are.
- if youre staying in the same terminal for your connection, then no, you usually dont have to clear security again, youre already airside and youre good to go, which is the easiest scenario by far and what you hope for.
- having tsa precheck or clear helps immensely here, its a lifesaver if you have to re-clear because those lines can get long fast, especially peak travel times.
so basically, my big takeaway from connecting at boston logan is plan ahead, give yourself way more time than you think you need, and dont assume anything about baggage or security, always confirm it before your trip and when you check in. its not the worst airport but its definitely one where being prepared makes a world of difference between a smooth connection and a total nightmare and nobody wants a total nightmare when theyre just trying to get somewhere, right? safe travels everyone, hopefully this helps someone.