I've heard so many bad things about taking a transatlantic flight and using CDG as a "hub" to transit elsewhere that I've basically eliminated CDG from my options.
But then I thought maybe I should ask some FFT's -- Frequent France travelers.
Just how bad is CDG for connecting to flights to Nice or Milano or Genova? (Fast train is out of the question. I have health problems.)
Would you book a transtalantic flight from the US that required a change of planes (and transfer of luggage) in CDG? (My final destination is northern Italy).
CDG is probably no better nor worse than any other hub airport. Worse if is your first experience, gets better as you learn the ropes.
In my opinion
Coming transoceanic to Europe you should leave yourself 3 hours to make a connection. Sounds long but the time will pass.
1 Your first flight could be late.
2 Terminals can be very spread out. Long time to get there, especially when you are learning the layout.
3 If you transfer your baggage or not, the "authorities" could be having a bad day and clearing customs may take longer than expected.
4. Baggage guys have bad days too. The longer you give them the better the chances that your bags will arrive with you, rather than tailing after you.
5 But most importantly, your stress and anxiety level will begin now and last well past your arrival at your final abode if you have worried about a short connection. This is not the way to begin a vacation.
Relax, refresh yourself upon arrival, locate where you are going, window shop, get a meal or a drink, stretch your legs, enjoy each others company.
The time will pass before you know it.
Prepare by searching the airport's web page for a map, get an idea what gates your airlines normally use, figure out where customs is and where you need to check in.
CDG is a nightmare if you are not prepared. Just be prepared and you will do fine. If all else fails, just sit on the floor and weep. Someone will be along to help you in the near term.
On my recent trip to France from Australia I purposely avoided Heathrow as I believed it to be ghastly (which it usually is!!) so I flew into CDG and transferred to Marseilles. I allowed three hours but honestly I was at the domestic terminal within an hour. I didn't need to pick up bags though, they were being sent on automatically to Marseilles. The thing I found the hardest was the total lack of signage. And the fact to get to the bus/transfer to domestic one had to go through a NO ENTRY sign to get to the lower level. No-one appeared to really know what was happening, lots of other passengers all looking at each other "Is this really what we have to do" etc, they was an offical at the lower level who seemed to have a modicum of understanding but it was a bit of a bun fight I have to tell you.
I had equally but different trouble on the return journey ie going from domestic to international. It is a bizarre airport that's is for sure. Take your time, expect to wander around aimlessly and eventually you will find the right place to be!!!! You certainly wouldn't want to be rushing anywhere, it would be the end of you!!!
Not all hubs are equal. Schipol is colossal and efficient and - if I may use such a strange word on airports - pleasant. I can't decided which is worse, heathrow or CDG. It must depend on where one was last. A wait in CDG seems more unpleasant for one unforgivable fact: the food is so bad. If I had only known that little part of France as an airport transiter instead of one living in, and loving, Paris, I would never but never believe that the country cared about cuisine at all.
CdG's unorganized ways are something else. More than once friends couldn't find anyone working at the detax counter at different times of the day. The strangest thing is that a few years ago my husband and I - like everyone else - were wandering around taking chances on unmarked escalators and lifts and we took a lift that landed us out to the unrestricted part of the airprot without going through customs !
Hi, May I say that my wife and I flew into CDG on our way from Australia and the flight was a little late along with our baggage to the carousel. So late in fact that our arranged pick up left after the normal "we will wait up to one hour for you" had passed. The airport with its hubs and signage is confusing but I recon with a lot of practice and patience I might get the hang of CDG. We later travelled to Slovenia and it worked a lot better. May be we were luck All the best to you when you next try Dunnydo
We agree that CDG is a least favorite airport. However our experiences have varied depending on what airline you're flying. Flying Air France in a out of CDG (as we did directly from Chicago and then on to Nice) has been fine. The infrastructure for Air France was no problem. However, flying in and out on American was a different story - fewer desks, less support, longer lines. I wonder if others would agree Linda
Posts: 641 | Location: Outlying area of Chicago | Registered: 15 September 2004
We fly into, out of, or through CDG a couple times a year. It's a big, very busy airport. I confess that we give it a break because it's France.
We connected through CDG actually earlier today. We had an 8 am Air France flight from Marseille that arrived on time at CDG, Terminal 2D, at 9:30 am. I was a little worried because we had only 1 hour and 15 minutes for our connection to Detroit, out of Terminal 2E. Also it was snowing a little (!) in Marseille when we left this morning, so we weren't sure about the weather.
We followed the signs to Terminal 2E, went downstairs, then through a passport check, and boarded a jam-packed bus that traveled a very convoluted route, dropping off people at two different points for 2E gates. Once in 2E we went through another security check, this time screening our carryon luggage. We were at our gate at 10:15, with half an hour to spare-- time to use the restroom, buy a few snacks, and board leisurely. We did not have to ride another bus to our plane, which often it seems we have to do.
(Of course now here we are at the Detroit airport, where we expected a long layover and now our flight has been delayed another two hours!)
After having used it several times, Loie and I would agree it depends entirely what airline you're using.
Terminal 2 (the big main one) is devoted to Air France. If you're using Air France exclusively, CDG is no worse than any other major hub that's struggling with more passengers than it has capacity for, and jury rigged security procedures not imagined when it was built. Which is pretty much all the major airports these days.
If you're using an airline that's going to require you to go through other terminals, the place can be a crazy maze with incredibly long treks, no baggage carts, bad bus service and nonexistent staff. But we've always negotiated it and so far haven't actually missed a connection. Do make sure to pack a day or two's worth of underwear and toiletries in your carryon. Misrouted luggage is common if connecting through CDG, even if on Air France.
Thanks! Bucky "Trying To Slow Down" Edgett
Posts: 708 | Location: Maryland | Registered: 24 April 2006
I don't know why CDG has such a lousy reputation. I've never had a bad experience there. Ever. And I've been flying in and out of there frequently for nearly 25 years. The new terminals 2E and 2F are spacious and lovely (architecture-wise). The food is relatively expensive, but that's the way it is at every airport I've ever been in.
I mean, compared to Rome? or Athens? or even Heathrow? And don't even mention LAX or JFK! I could list anecdotes about each of those airports.
I suppose in the end the reputation is based on individual anecdotes. If you were unlucky enough to get stranded during a strike, or if your baggage got lost, or if the security folks pulled you aside and body-searched you (before locking you up in a bare room for several hours), you'll rag on whichever airport that happened at, for example.
Posts: 471 | Location: Bayeux, France | Registered: 01 December 2001
We were there two days ago and were shocked to realize after we went through security that there are no WCs after that. I had to go back through security to use the washroom and then go through security once again. Seemed a little primitive to me!
We usually fly United and come in to Terminal 1. We used to loath the bus to Terminal 2 but with the new tram, transferring between Terminal 1 and the train station was a breeze.
There certainly are restrooms after security in terminal 1. And in 2, which is much more modern, well, that's hard to believe. It could certainly happen if you were in an area that was still under construction, but otherwise...
Reminds me of O'Hare in Chicago, though. When I was there in Nov. 2006, there was no food available after you went through security to the gate area. Well, not exactly -- some sandwich carts showed up after a while, with exorbitant prices. You could see the restaurants on the other side of the security gates, but I was afraid that if I went back out it might take an hour or two to pass through security a second time.
It was in Terminal 2B......gate 29 I believe. Other people were complaining too. One lady was traveling on her own so she had to haul her suitcase back through security to use the washroom. There was definitely no food services once you pass into there either.
There were no washrooms at all there. The lady in security told me to go backwards through security and then re-enter. It states on your boarding pass that to fly, you must pass through security within 30 minutes of your flight. That could have created a problem technically. In the end it really wasn't a big deal, just a little strange we thought.
It depends on the airline and its location in the airport, but one of the most frustrating things about CDG is that they have put security right at the end of the journey, ie after the shops and restaurants and, in some cases, as has been mentioned, the washrooms. It causes a bottleneck and you have the choice of going straight through and waiting at the departure gate with no shopping, washrooms or coffee, or going through after you have done these things and risking being held up and missing the plane, or having to shout to be given priority.
This has become a greater problem since security was tightened up, so why on earth have they decided to use the same system at the new terminal 2? The Easyjet terminal (2B) is the very worst as they have so many flights going, all bottlenecking at security. In addition, the walk through another terminal to reach 2B is interminable. In theory there is a navette but I was unable to find it. This walk would be impossible for anyone elderly or with reduced mobility, also baggage with wheels is essential or you'll end up with back pain.
One improvement is the free rail transit between 1 and 2, and 1 and the RER, which is much better than the old navette system.
It is also true that the food at the airport is atrocious and overpriced. Because of the location of security you can't even buy water to take on the plane in some cases (not terminal 1, but it's overpriced). Why don't the French realise what bad PR this is? It doesn't matter how many Michelin starred restaurants you have in town, if the airport food is bad and a rip-off people will leave with a very negative impression. The same is true of trade salons - I recently had to spend two days at Maison et Objet at the Villepinte exhibition centre where they were charging about €7 for a sandwich that consisted mainly of bread, and pasta salad that literally had one sun-dried tomato as its non-starch content. A chance to maintain France's reputation as a nation that cares about food was turned into a miserable affair that would actually leave you malnourished if you did not bring your own lunch. I advise anyone attending one of these salons to find the nearest Monop' to their hotel and purchase lunch for the following day.
We're flying out of terminal 3 at CDG tomorrow. Can anyone relate recent experience re. security-check time, locations of bathrooms, etc.? We're not sure when we should plan to arrive for our 11:30 am flight to Calgary/Vancouver on Zoom airlines.
The bad news is that Terminal 3 is rudimentary (relative to other CDG terminals, think of the difference between a two-and-a-half star hotel and camping out).
The good news is that No. 3 is small. You may be dismayed, but you won't be confused.
Three hours before the flight is, as ever, the best advice - which I rarely follow, despite one bump and a close brush with another in the last year. Two, two-and-a-half or three, these won't be the best hours of your vacation. Buck up, pack the books in the side pockets of your carry-ons - or paper and pen so you can work on your trip report - and have a good breakfast before you leave for the airport.
