PARIS CDG AIRPORT   Passenger Reviews and Customer opinions

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review :  23 November 2008 : by Kevin Winterborne

Customer Rating :  1/5

Just flew into CDG from Bangkok. Arrived at 7 in the morning. Had to transfer from Terminal 1 to 2A. No signs, no agents. Not even 1 flight monitor showing where my next flight was. We basically had to guess. My itinerary listed my next flight's terminal, but I don't always trust it, and as we all know is subject to change. There was one bank of monitors but it was off! We went to take a shuttle bus and were met by a very long line that extended up a very narrow staircase. We waited about 1/2 hour for the bus. Once we got on the bus we began an excruciatingly slow drive to every terminal. It took another 40 minutes to get to our terminal. The terminals are devoid of signs and the people are rude. We went to the Continental transfer desk, got our ticket then waited in another long line for security. Then we went to the gate, had to go up stairs and down the other side, around a restaurant to get to the gate. It is insane. I wanted to buy some medicine. Not one of the stores carried meds, not even aspirin. I bought a small bottle of tea for the whopping price of 4 dollars (US). At the gate everyone was laughing at the staff members - they had no idea what they were doing. The boarding was delayed, but the sign didn't indicate this. It still showed on time. No announcements, no information, but at least three checks of my passport and I was asked by three different people if anyone packed my bags for me. I will add this airport to my list of airports to avoid.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review :  19 November 2008 : by S Bryant

Customer Rating :  1/5

Arrived in after an overnight flight from West Africa in transit to the UK and made the connection - just. The airport doesn't function efficiently with poor or non-existent signs, very long queues to go through the transit security check, repeat checking of passports and tickets - one thorough check should be enough. The officials were surly; they are probably hassled themselves because of understaffing, lack of scanners and inefficient practices. On top of this the food and drink prices are extortionate to the captive clientele. CDG is probably the worst airport in Western Europe, and one of the worst in the world that I've travelled through. If other airports such as Amsterdam, Singapore and Heathrow can get these things right, why not Paris? I very rarely complain like this, I'm only writing to add my voice to many others in the hope that CDG officials read this site and seek to improve what they offer. Air France is a good airline, badly let down by their major hub airport.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review :  15 November 2008 : by K Thorne

Customer Rating :  1/5

Just had another disastrous experience flying in and out of Charles de Gaulle. This time, it was Terminal 1, which is a nightmare of spiralling layout, lack of proper signposting, and dragging or carrying luggage upwards on ramps. If possible, check in online, or at least find out which area your airline is checking in at, these are on several floors and no signs show you what, where and when. Departure gates require you to be elevated through plastic tubes, and then you continue spiralling around trying to find the satellite terminal for your gate. Leave plenty of time for getting to the satellite terminals, as these require some walking and then a swift climb on Undulating walkways. Neither when I left, nor when I came back, was the outgoing walkway operating, and so passengers had to carry their belongings up a fairly steep staircase. There are no elevators, but more importantly, also no signs or an option to call for assistance before you actually get to the staircase. In terms of customer service, it would be helpful if one staff could have stood by the stairs and offered help or at least apologized for the inconvenience.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review :  6 November 2008 : by R Russell

Customer Rating :  1/5

What a nightmare! Arrived at 9:30 for 12:30 flight to Dulles. Barely made the flight. One long line after another doing the same thing over again. Employee attitude surly at best. Have to ask a hundred different people in order to find anything. One of the most inefficient airports I have ever used. Built to impress but not to be functional. What little food was overpriced and God help you if you need a bathroom. Avoid this airport if you can.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review :  6 November 2008 : by Joe Bailey

Customer Rating :  1/5

T2 is average, T1 is an absolute shocker. T2's connections are fine. T1's are frankly ludicrous. It is dumpy, ugly, claustrophobic, gimicky, dated confusing with bad check in, bad landside facilities, worse airside facilities, Unbelievably inefficient Passport control, stupid security arrangements, and pathetic gate arrangements - I cannot think of a worse organised airport with the possible exception of LAX. CDG1 makes Heathrow look good.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review :  18 October 2008 : by O Beyr

Customer Rating :  2/5

CDG is one of the worst airports in the European Union. I have experienced this airport in most of its terminals and it is always the same horrific scene: Congestion meets disorganisation and chaos. For me it is especially hard to understand why the new terminals seem to suffer from a wrong conceptual design: Confusing signage and numbering, too small areas for security controls, mile long walks to the baggage claim, people queuing up block escalators and corridors. Make sure to plan some extra time for checking in and transfers and always keep cool!

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review :  11 October 2008 : by P Ross

Customer Rating :  2/5

Transit from 2F to 2E on a Tuesday morning. A very long walk! It was very hard to find a bathroom on the way but eventually found one. When got to 2E, had to go through security - an absolute nightmare! The line was only for half of the terminal, but was very long and extremely disorganized. One line was for first class, which seemed to work okay, but the economy line hardly moved!! There were about 120 people in line in front of me and it took almost an hour to get through the line! A supervisor came at one point and had someone reorganize the lines but it did not seem to get much better. Then someone came and directed about 20 people in front of me into the first class line and then later directed people behind me into that line!! Once arriving at the xray machine, it was more evident why the line barely moved - disinterested security employees who did not care much about organization. They would not allow you to place your items into the machine until they first re- checked your tickets (just previously checked) and then you had to point out what was yours and then they would place your tickets/passport into one of the bins and then you could walk through! Taken together with the very poor options to find something to eat in the terminal (just a convenience type place with premade sandwiches), it was a much worse transit experience than I had previously encountered (Heathrow, Munich, Amsterdam, Frankfurt). I will not transit through CDG again if I have a choice.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review :  11 October 2008 : by David Chown

Customer Rating :  2/5

I agree with descriptions that CDG falls far short of an international hub. In the first week of Oct 2008 en route Bordeaux-Malaga, we had to transfer between Terminals 2F and 2D, which is a very long walk, and the reverse on our trip back. There is allegedly a shuttle bus, but following the signs just leaves you outside the building with no further indication as to the bus-stop. Transfering Terminals takes you outside the security area, so you have to go through the lengthy security checks again, which is irritating. Although our flights were on full-size Air France and Air Europa aircraft, we had to board by buses. Since this involved leaving the bus in the rain and climbing metal stairs back into the boarding ramp from the terminal, the point was a total mystery!

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review :  7 October 2008 : by L Day

Customer Rating :  2/5

Completely diabolical. We got off the plane and then had to walk for miles and miles and miles before we finally got to the customs and immigration - which was a slow and tedious process. Departure arrived at the Terminal 2 TGV station in the afternoon - lift was not working so we had to cart our heavy suitcases up the stairs, then got lost in the airport as all signage was confusing and eventually we found their little airport train which took us to the terminal for Singapore Airlines. Upon arriving at the SIA check in desk, massive queues with no organisation as to where we were meant to be waiting - they just told everyone to stand in the middle of the airport- causing a disruption to people walking through the area. Check in finally opened - slow again, people had no idea what they were doing. After that we went through immigration to get to the actual terminal area - again no organisation as to where queue's were meant to be going. Terminal was shoddy - no ATMs at all so I was unable to do duty free shopping, only one place to eat, overpriced, little space for sitting.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 1 October 2008 : by Yevheniy Kahanovych

Customer Rating :  2/5

The main trouble of this place is that it is rather architectural landmark than functional facility. It was designed to look, not to work. Itself, it is insufficient for everything it has to provide: lack of toilets at 2F, no line management for passport control (actually fairly fast both ways using it late night), no clear idea of travel between terminals, no clear signs for buses, lack of escalators/elevators what creates bottlenecks mostly on passages between termanals. CDGVAL is a big improvement, however it is not possible to travel within airport with trolleys, as they are not allowed on the train. Connection to the city is a trouble. I couldn't find a way to buy tickets for bus and train (their ticket machines don't accept credit cards and there was a horrible queue to the ticket office), so I preferred to leave on taxi after lining up for another 20 minutes. Another big trouble there is doors leading to gates. They are not automatic. Every passenger leaving the plane should open door by hands. Wait for gate accomodation on arrival was about 25 minutes. Overall impression: disfunctional, confusing, chaotic, claustrophobic. If I go to Paris by air, there is no choice other than train, but for transit I will use other airports.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 29 September 2008 : by Richard Seltzer

Customer Rating :  1/5

It's generally easy to get in and out of CDG T1 if you're just visiting Paris. CDG T2 is another matter; frequently you have to take a bus to and from the plane. To transfer almost anywhere, you usually have to go to CDG T2. If you're coming in at T1 from a non-Schengen country like the US, you must go through immigration even if you're transferring to a flight to another non-Schengen country. You then have to take a bus ride to T2 which can take half an hour depending on traffic; there's no way to walk there from T1. CDG T2 is not one terminal; it's four separate buildings with more under construction and you can spend a half hour or more on buses transferring between T2 buildings. I find it better to just walk or, if the connection is tight, run like hell. You must know which T2 building you're going to. Otherwise , you're going to miss your connection. If you're coming into T2 and transferring to another T2 flight, I find it's often faster to go through immigration and walk to the next flight rather than take another half hour bus ride. If you're transferring between buildings, you have to go through security again so allow plenty of time for that. The old buildings A-C, and B-D are pretty easy to navigate. The new buildings E,F and soon G are immense and require endless walking. The airlines will schedule you for a one-hour or less transfer, but unless the transfer is within the same terminal and building, which you can check online, you need to allow at least 2 hours for a transfer or you'll be standing in a long line to re-ticket. The good part is that if I'm transferring at CDG, I know I'll get a good aerobic workout running and speed-walking.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 29 September 2008 : by Jennifer Walker

Customer Rating :  1/5

The addition of Terminal 'G' has only increased the torment possible at CDG. Avoid at all costs. It has been 'functioning' for 21 days now. Air France are aware of the problems. Outward was acceptable but returning evolved into a day of delay and misery. Better still avoid CDG 2 altogether.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 29 September 2008 : by Paul Gurney

Customer Rating :  3/5

Had printed copies of transfer instructions from AF website as well as written guide handed out by AF check in services. All wrong. Finally, ADP has put up excellent signage for transfers between 2E and 2F in each direction. Except for walking distance between terminals, it was a good experience in CDG. AF transfer desk personnel in 2E were friendly and helpful in attempting a seat upgrade.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 26 September 2008 : by D Rung

Customer Rating : 1/5

Never connect with another flight going through CDG unless you have three hours between flights. The bus system they have could take you over an hour just to move two or three gates to your connecting flight. Then you might find your flight very late leaving because people could not make the flight on time and you will miss your other connecting flight. If you are not connecting the airport is great - but each time we connected we missed out connecting flights.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 12 September 2008 : by R MacMahon

Customer Rating : 3/5

We had a 10.30 am departure from CDG Terminal 2A on August 31st. Check-in, passport control, and security were efficient and we were sitting in the lounge 20 minutes after arriving at the airport. Our only negative comment concerns the airport design flaw which results in arriving passengers utilizing the same corridor as passengers trying to board their departing flight. This led to multiple interruptions in the boarding process and ultimately a delayed departure.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 7 September 2008 : by Bobby Giannakopoulos

Customer Rating : 3/5

I often travel via CDG since many years and I know it's hard to find your way in this airport. Here's some tips: when you arrive in this airport, make sure to know witch "hall" A/B/C/D/E/F/G in terminal 2 you are. If you have a connecting flight, (specially if you travel with Air France or partners) make sure in wich hall your connecting flight leaves and have at least 2 hours between your flights if you arrive from outside the EU in case for a long waiting in the passeport control. It happened to loose my connect flight ones ! The last time I past via this airport, I noticed some little improvement with the signage, the blue background is more clear than the traditional grey background with the yellow letters, but still this airport needs more improvement. Apparently this service is not in the international standards that's why it's not well perceived by mostly foreign air travelers.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 6 September 2008 : by K Koerner

Customer Rating : 1/5

In my opinion, CDG is by far the worst hub in the world. The sign-posting is poor, you have to leave the transit area pretty much between all the flights and queues can be substantial. I had to pass 2 metal detector queues in transit once. If you fly within Schengen, you will end up in this very small area with almost no seats or shops or restaurants and you can not go back out. Even this heating is poor, so the terminal has outside temperature also in winter.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 29 August 2008 : by D Stevens

Customer Rating : 1/5

Terminal 2 was very disappointing. Leave plenty of time when dealing with this airport. To get out, there is no designated line for the passport control (either EU or non-EU), you basically just need to push your way through the line. The baggage carousel was not clear. The tickets for the train a very expensive, but there are buses that go to most major parts of Paris for cheaper, so take these. Departing was even worse. There are no signs of where your check-in desk is. Some you need to pass through passport control (for example BA and Air France, but some are outside (easyJet, Swiss), so its best to ask someone where yours is. The food is both very expansive and not particularly nice (as well as the fact most places shut at 7pm). In all a very disapointing experience.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 21 August 2008 : by Christophe Chouleur

Customer Rating : 3/5

I travelled on Air France to Seattle from terminal 2E which has recently reopened. The terminal looks very nice but was overcrowded and lines very slow even in l'espace affaires. The transfer from the terminal to terminal S were the lounge and boarding is fast and easy. One in terminal S signs are not very well posted and it's easy to get lost.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 31 July 2008 : by Nick Biskinis

Customer Rating : 1/5

Paris CDG has improved now that it has the inter-terminal rail link Roissyval, but it is still a poor quality airport. Seating is inadequate at several of the cramped Terminals, whilst much of the concrete infrastructure has dated badly (eg Terminal 1, 2A/B/C/D). Signage is poor, whilst public transport information is substandard at both the air terminals and also the airport coach station of Roissypole (which serves a number of area outside of Paris) For all London Heathrow's faults, it has excellent information on buses, trains and coaches. Much of Paris CDG is congested with buses and taxis trying to park along awkward angled parking stops. Terminals 2E and F are the only part of Paris CDG that are user friendly for travellers. But overall, even if Paris CDG attains the cherished goal of overtaking Heathrow as busiest airport in Europe, it badly needs to rethink its whole approach to customer service and information. Otherwise it will remain as Europe's worst major airport, and an embarrassment to France.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 29 July 2008 : by Paul Browne

Customer Rating : 4/5

Used CDG twice this month, arriving and departing at Terminal 1 and found the place fairly easy to navigate. Signage is not great especially when u arrive by TGV at Terminal 2 and need to get to your hotel at Terminal 3 late at night. Our early morning departure was a breeze as the place was very quiet.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 11 July 2008 : by M Costa

Customer Rating : 1/5

A really bad transfer point. No buses available for Schenghen connections (2D to 2F and 2F to 2D) , so I had to leave the transit area, go the public side and pass through security again after a very long walk. Moreover, the gates are very closed to each other and it is almost impossible to find a free seat. Since there are very limited and overpriced duty free shops, all I could do was to sit on the floor and stay there for 2 hours each time. Avoid it at all costs.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 7 July 2008 : by I Pramov

Customer Rating : 3/5

Had to use CDG as a transfer point when flying from MSP to SOF. Landed on 2E and had to go to 2B. After reading all the negative comments here, we were prepared for the worst. After the plane landed in what seems like the neighbouring county, we were loaded on a bus and taken to 2E. The bus did not waste any time and we got to the terminal in just few minutes. A somewhat not very motivated terminal employee in decent English pointed us to the inter-terminal bus that we needed to take to 2B. We did not even have to enter 2E, we just waited on the groung floor. The bus arrived shortly and to our delight we were the only passengers to 2B (it was Sunday morning). After another bus trip to what it seemed to be another county we arrived at 2B (only 45 minutes from touch down) and understood why so many people were posting negative comments. There are literally no places to sit! The whole terminal had only one bathroom. The plaster on the ceiling was peeling off. When our flight was called we cleared security and went to another section of the terminal that had seats but no bathrooms?! After another bus trip to our plane we were on our way to SOF. At no point of time did we have to clear immigration?! On the way back (it was Friday morning) we landed at 2B, got on the bus to the terminal, caught the inter-terminal bus (stay on ground floor folks). Again we were the only passengers to 2E, cleared security and were at the gate after only 60 minutes from touch down. 2E was very nice and modern. However, the food places are just a "little bit" overpriced - 20oz bottle of Coke for 3.80 euros!

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 3 July 2008 : by Jacques Dang

Customer Rating : 4/5

AF transfers within CDG2 have improved substantially over the past year with the opening of satellite S3 and the re-opening of 2E's main boarding pier. I recently had a very good experience when transferring from 2D to 2E, using the direct transfer bus that runs until 1:30PM. I went through immigration in 2D (no one in the queue), boarded the bus that took 5mn to reach S3, where it stopped for 1mn before going to 2E's main boarding pier, reached after another 5mn. 2mn to clear security using the fast track lane "acces numero 1". Uneventful and flawless.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 30 June 2008 : by W Wilson

Customer Rating : 1/5

It was an unpleasant surprise to find that easyJet flights had been moved from T3 to T2B. Having in the past experienced the joys of a dirty, crowded 2F courtesy of Air France, I did not appreciate having to use an even dirtier and more crowded 2B. Particularly bad is the absence of any seating in the departure area (apart from that found in the gate holding area). T3 is much better than T2, and it is certainly more bearable to be delayed there than in T2. I'm lucky: I'm young enough to be able to sit on floors in reasonable comfort, but what of elderly passengers? Are those old folk who don't normally need wheelchairs expected to stand for ages before boarding? One good point was that baggage reclaim was very quick, but overall CDG presents as bad an image of France as Heathrow does of the UK.

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 27 June 2008 : by Charles Melans

Customer Rating : 1/5

Beware of connections at Terminal 2 CDG (AF) - 2.5 hrs to get from 2E to 2F due to customs and exceedingly inadequate security infrastructure. Hint, check out the volume one floor above (AF check in and departure). Security facilities for connecting passengers often completely overwhelmed while one floor above the security infrastructure (2-3 times larger) may be completely empty during certain periods of the day! Otherwise bring lots of patience for what is sure to be a one in a lifetime (with any luck!) exercise in frustration. Made it to the gate 30 mins after departure, kudos to AF for holding the flight!

PARIS CDG AIRPORT review : 25 June 2008 : by J Béchaux

Customer Rating : 2/5

One of the worst airport. As the traffic grows, they expand it without any passenger care. I flew frequently through this airport and transfers are terrible in terminal 2 (Air France one). If you are lucky, you don't have to change pier and it is fine, but if you are not, you have to go out of the terminal, change pier, and go again through safety checks (bags, immigration) and it can be long! (and very annoying when you only have 30 minutes to transfer). However, everything is well indicated inside and staff is helpful. Fortunately, it is well served by suburban train (RER) and buses as well as TGV (offering routes everywhere in France). Try to avoid it, prefer LYS, NCE or BDX which are better even though they don't offer same destinations.