Cardiff Airport Passenger Reviews and Cardiff Airport Traveller Reports   No Star Ranking Awarded         Add your Cardiff Airport Review   Cardiff Airport Ranking     Customer Review scoring : Cardiff Airport   4 out of 10 27 reviews

	CARDIFF AIRPORT customer review :  22 April 2013 by R Derrick    (UK)
	Rating : 2/10 Queuing Cleanliness Facilities Recommended	Be aware that Cardiff airport has now introduced a £2 charge for use of the luggage trolley - a 'trolley tax'! I was absolutely furious to find this new situation upon returning last Friday. All the other passengers were equally outraged. Clearly, they want to lose yet more passengers. Next time, we'll probably fly from London.

	CARDIFF AIRPORT customer review :  30 January 2013 by Robert Edwards    (UK)
	Rating : 0/10 Queuing Cleanliness Facilities Recommended	I used to use this airport on a regular (every week) basis, changing in Amsterdam for my final destination. Over the years (last 10) this airport has become a disgrace. Starting with the primitive parking facilities - not so cheap - and security outside that would be acceptable to a US embassy - to the grotty interior, underworked and over zealous security staff inside. I now get up 2 hours earlier and drive to Heathrow. Sometimes use Bristol - it's not bad at all and far superior to Cardiff.

	CARDIFF AIRPORT customer review :  28 December 2012 by Ian Matthews    (UK)
	Rating : 1/10 Queuing Cleanliness Facilities Recommended	Despite it being the most local, we'll take Bristol or Birmingham next time. Not content with ripping people off at every opportunity (parking, drop-off fees etc.), now they charge for having those ludicrous "security" bags. However, the real problem is the menacing security theatre. Getting menaced by them has become routine upon returning to Cardiff, and it's not much fun on the way out either. Getting grilled with questions about our holiday, time away, business, money spent, purpose etc. all leading up to a full going-through of our baggage is humiliating and frightening. We are citizens returning to our own country. Someone should tell the Cardiff security this.

	CARDIFF AIRPORT customer review :  3 October 2012 by Tony Quinn    (UK)
	Rating : 8/10 Queuing Cleanliness Facilities Recommended	We recently used this airport for the first time in 25 years (moved back to Cardiff). Parking was close enough to the terminal to walk and was incredibly cheap. Check-in was no different from any other airport I have ever used and security is no worse either (always a trial anywhere). Prices at the bar and cafe were shocking (more expensive than Heathrow) but you don't have to buy. On our return we were off the plane and in the car within 20 minutes and that was after collecting bags which is pretty good in my experience. Other reviews moan about charges for Pick-up and Drop-off but most UK airports now do this and there is a free area if you wish to use it. It's a shame that there are not more flights but this might cause its own problems with congestion. I desperately want to use my local airport so I hope the management does something to attract more airlines to Cardiff. Cardiff Airport has the potential to be a first class regional hub.

	CARDIFF AIRPORT customer review :  5 September 2012 by K Creighton    (UK)
	Rating : 8/10 Queuing Cleanliness Facilities Recommended	Flew twice this Summer from Cardiff as I live locally, everything went like clockwork, but unable to check in online, and airport looking very run down. What must visitors to the only airport in Wales think.

	CARDIFF AIRPORT customer review :  4 September 2012 by R Davies    (UK)
	Rating : 2/10 Queuing Cleanliness Facilities Recommended	This has to win the prize as the worst airport in the world. You are charged a £1 to drop off which is not even outside the terminal, they have gone crazy in the name of security. You can park outside Heathrow terminals and get out of the car with bags etc and free of charge. The check in desks are abysmal and slow considering they hardly have any flights going through and the security area is painfully slow, rude and inefficient. They had a nice flight to Zurich flying out of the airport the last few months and I now see that they have lost that to Bristol.

	CARDIFF AIRPORT customer review :  15 August 2012 by A Gough    (UK)
	Rating : 2/10 Queuing Cleanliness Facilities Recommended	We haven't flown from Cardiff Airport for over 3 years despite it being our closest and most convenient airport as we live in west Wales - we decided to give both Cardiff and Vueling airlines a chance as we usually fly from Bristol (far more choice of flights and usually half the price). We arrived 3 hours before our flight and due to horrendous service at check-in and awful service through security check we only just got through to departures with 5 mins to go - disaster of an airport, really needs to sort itself out. We will not be returning to Cardiff and we have just booked our October half term flights with Ryanair from Bristol. They seem to be ripping any remaining customers they have left off for every penny they can! As they are now charging to drop off near the airport - this is a total disgrace we have 2 young children and we need to get them out as close to airport as possible together with cases while I park at the overpriced car park - but here in Cardiff I now have to pay a pound just to drop off my wife and kids.

	CARDIFF AIRPORT customer review :  2 July 2012 by T Buckley    (UK)
	Rating : 2/10 Queuing Cleanliness Facilities Recommended	Since BMI baby has left this airport it has become far to expensive to use the airport, from now on all our holidays will be from Bristol or Birmingham. I personally can not see this airport lasting much longer and the management are closing this airport by out pricing its use to the working class people, I have just priced a return flight for September this year from Cardiff to Alicante Spain and it comes to £149.00 from Cardiff and the same flight from Bristol is £46.00.

	CARDIFF AIRPORT customer review :  30 January 2012 by S Smith    (UK)
	Rating : 6/10 Queuing Cleanliness Facilities Recommended	Incredibly small airport, which has it's good and bad points. No queues at check-in and security are always welcome. However major shortage in places to eat needs to be addressed. Waiting areas were clean, as were the toilets - both before and after security. Ground staff were very helpful and friendly. Better advice on how to reach the city centre wouldn't go wrong however!

Cardiff Airport customer review :  10 June 2011 by Paul Richards   (Australia)

Customer Rating :  2/5

Queuing

Cleanliness

Facilities

Avoid this ironically-named airport, especially if you're not a local and especially if you're using it to arrive. If you've found and survived one of the limited flights, followed by a long wait and an over-the-top interrogation at passport control (which seems to be standard for non- Europeans), then comes the punch - you're in the middle of nowhere and you won't get any help. It's hard to believe that an airport like this still exists.

Cardiff Airport customer review : 18 October 2010 by Ian Arnold

Customer Rating : 3/5

I fly from this airport regularly to NCL and although it has very basic faciilities it's very quick to get through check in/security and onto the plane. I only use the coffee shop and it's always open when I pass through. Shame there is only a limited range of scheduled services from the airport though.

Cardiff Airport customer review : 17 May 2010 by Ian Hume

Customer Rating : 2/5

It's going downhill even further. The shuttle bus to the newly-built link railway station is being retired from the end of May, leaving pax without a car to a disorganised bus service. And guess what? The only hand scanner for self-printed (online) checkin documents was out of order again today. Unsuspecting travellers thus had to return downstairs to the departures hall, queue up at checkin lines, often waiting up to 20 mins for a card boarding pass., I suggest that regular travellers send in their spare change to the Airport Manager so the Airport Appeal for a Second Scanner Fund can buy a secondhand backup reader from a more efficient airport. That said, staff here are fine and often a bit frustrated at the inefficiencies from management.

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 26 March 2010 : by G Powell

Customer Rating : 2/5

Cardiff is a typical small airport which has traditionally been principally for charter flights. Over the years I have seen its custom fall away as charter customers switch to Bristol and Birmingham, both of which offer far better service. Cardiff has tried to reinvent itself as an 'International class' airport but it is never going to compete with the likes of Birmingham and that has failed miserably. Because of security restrictions the roof is never open and the upper floor rarely accessible. The building has all the charm of a Communist era building with few external windows. Compared with Bristol it is very claustrophobic. The land side facilities are minimal. The only positive side is the helpful disabled facilities and support that is offered.

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 14 October 2009 : by Peter Hodson

Customer Rating : 3/5

Cardiff Airport has strengths and weaknesses. It is small so you can easily get from one area to another without too much difficulty. It has a pleasant Executive Lounge, and a small range of shops. Retrieval of baggage is fairly painless and staff are fairly friendly. However, the airport is still set in the 1960's and the major re-construction work to make it a 2000's generation airport has not taken place. The limited choice of flights, the supporting services of bars, restaurants and car park all create the impression of an airport with limited ambition and initiative. Earlier comments about drop off and pick up remain issues to a certain extent (the logic of having a security barrier at which you are simply waved through without any check seems a particularly useless feature).

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 5 July 2009 : by Anthony Matthews

Customer Rating : 4/5

Semi derelict, dirty? Not sure how anyone could describe the airport as this - unless they have some sort of an agenda. I use the airport 3 or 4 times a year and find it perfectly acceptable for what I need. Not perfect, but then again what airport is? Last week, after flying from Edinburgh, I disembarked, paid for the car parking (not pre-booked) and was out of the airport within 15 mins. What is the problem with that?

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 27 February 2009 : by S Ford

Customer Rating : 1/5

Have used Cardiff airport a few times but only due to flight price, rather use Bristol even at a higher cost. Staff are friendly but the airport is semi-derelict, dirty and the building work never seems to finish and the benefits cannot be seen. Car parking is expensive and the shuttle bus almost non-existant, even access by road is difficult. Do'nt believe their claims about being accessible by train.

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 18 February 2009 : by T Rogers

Customer Rating : 3/5

I've never really had much problem when flying out of/into Cardiff. The security system needs looking at - passengers standing in queues for over an hour in high season - I witnessed a lady passing out as a result of standing in a non airconditioned room for over an hour. There is only one taxi rank outside the airport, but there are local firms that you can ring for a taxi. £27 to Cardiff city (as a previous writer stated) is actually a good price - Cardiff Airport is actually around 12 miles away from the outskirts of the City. I agree that the airport needs to up its standards dramatically to compete as an international airport, but it is getting better.

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 2 February 2009 : by Justin Williams

Customer Rating : 1/5

Had the misfortune of using Cardiff last week! Arrived early for a check in at 6pm and had a couple of drinks in landside bar, imagine our surprise when at 4pm we were told that the bar is closing and that the only bar facility was Airside! We were unable to go airside as check- in for our flight was not till 6pm. We then went to restaurant landside to get a hot meal - the airport closes landside it would appear at 4pm even for food! Once again, the response was go Airside! Cardiff airport claim to be an international airport - act like one and have a full service available landside.

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 30 November 2008 : by Jonathan Grimes

Customer Rating : 1/5

Travelled out and back the same day to Dublin on Aer Arann. Getting dropped off at the airport requires running the gauntlet of the security staff on the approach road - twice we had to stop and tell them we needed to drive to the airport to drop-off. Security seems a bit over the top - especially as they merely waved us on - didn't check the car, ask to see my ticket etc... Checked in on-line so avoided the queues - amazed how many security staff are employed. Arrival back later that evening was very different. The airport is no longer allowing cars to pick-up from outside the terminal - instead cars now have to enter the unlit short stay car park down the road from the terminal building and wait for passengers to find them. Not so easy when its dark and raining. After leaving a very chaotic terminal building I had a difficult time trying to find my lift home. The car park being used is unpaved with mud and gravel underfoot - not sure how anyone would manage with a luggage trolley. It requires a walk along the airport road for a couple of hundred yards. Once I had found my lift (could only do this by means of a mobile phone and directions) it took about 10 minutes to exit the car park as cars were not following any type of one way system - reason - no arrows painted on the gravel. I have no idea what the management of this airport are doing here - the airport is a disgrace to Wales (and the UK for that matter) and I would be ashamed of welcoming any visitor into Wales via this airport.

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 6 November 2008 : by Joe Bailey

Customer Rating : 2/5

Really worn and shabby, but it is small and one can get through quickly which is definitely good, but not a great advertisement for the capital of Wales. There is a lot of room for improvement. It compares poorly to Bristol which is pretty average. The road system between the airport and the city is like something out of another era. This airport really is a bit of throw back in all senses, and this a for a city with the millenium stadium.

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 12 September 2008 : by Martyn Lloyd

Customer Rating : 3/5

I have never found getting to the airport a problem. The road access is fine - much better than Bristol. However the passport control system on arrival back into Cardiff is a nightmare - the only airport I have known to take so long is Plodiv in Bulgaria!

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 3 September 2008 : by Anna Inglis

Customer Rating : 3/5

It's tatty when compared to the likes of Bristol International Airport, both in terms of number of destinations you can fly to as well as overall look and feel, and the food options are low quality and over priced. On the plus side, it's easy to get to by car but public transport options are severely limited and it's a nightmare if you are reliant on a taxi and your flight arrives at the same time as a load of others (expect big queues!) Definitely not a place with the customer at it's heart.

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 19 August 2008 : by Roger Rees

Customer Rating : 3/5

Can't understand the fuss with poor road access. Cardiff is much easier to get to than most UK airports. I regularly fly KLM to Schiphol, then to Shanghai. CIA is shabby and run-down, catering facilities very mediocre, but fortunately I don't need to use them as I drive my own car and find I can get from the place very easily. I have never encountered traffic problems. I understand taxi and public transport provision is poor.

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 24 June 2008 : by B Murphy

Customer Rating : 1/5

Have flown from Cardiff airport several times in the past 12 years. Little has changed however - the airport is in dire need of a complete make-over. Not the cleanest of places, decor old, and overall looks more like a bus station. Going through customs coming from an Amsterdam flight also can seem a little nerve-wrecking - many folks are pulled over and usually customs officers with sniffer dogs come over to you, I assume sniffing for drugs. This can be a little intimidating, with a dog sniffing all over your luggage and person! Outside there is only one taxi company, and they can charge 27 pounds sterling for a trip to downtown Cardiff. In contrast if you take a taxi from Cardiff to the airport with another taxi company, it will be considerably less! One final note - recently it took me 40 minutes in the morning to get through security leaving Cardiff! In summary, although this can be a useful airport to link with Schiphol in Amsterdam, in reality it is way below standard and I'm surprised Welsh Tourism and local business do not push for better standards and service. Bristol airport is much nicer!

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 22 May 2008 : by L Cadwallader

Customer Rating : 3/5

Didn't personally fly from Cardiff, but we took my daughter and a friend there as they were going on a day's educational visit to Auschwitz. Access was well signposted and the separation of "drop- offs" and "pick-ups" seemed to work quite well. We were pleasantly surprised at being able to drop off the girls right outside the terminal building without any fuss. Picking them up late at night was less straightforward as they seemed to take ages coming through to the Arrivals area after the plane had landed, even though none on their flight had hold luggage to collect. The delay was at passport control as three flights arrived within about 20 minutes of each other. By the time the girls came through, the queue for car parking payment at one end of the arrivals area virtually joined the queue at the other end for the (one?) ticket validating machine. Some people obviously got fed up waiting in one or other of these queues, so there was a snarl up by the exits from the car park while people left their cars to pay at the "box" nearby and others with tickets ready (but time running out) fuming because the exits were blocked. More pay / validation points are needed. As to the airport itself, my daughter (used to Liverpool & Manchester) described it as "sweet"!

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 5 May 2008 : by Ian Hume

Customer Rating : 2/5

When will this minor provincial airport realise it should have aspirations? As previous posts show, public transport is poor, especially late and early in the day. And it must be one of the few European airports that does not have a taxi rank and where very long waits in a tiny taxi shed are common. The interior is dreary, and the up, down, turn round, down, up of the maze-like entrance from incoming flights is hardly an 'international arrival' experience. I use it because it is close to home, but every journey brings another example of lack of customer focus and management grip. The other morning I was travelling with light hand luggage only, and had printed-off my boarding card from the web. Thus I went straight upstairs to security. "The scanner's not working, you'll have to go back downstairs to check in and get a regular boarding card". That I did, queuing up patiently. Then upstairs again, where a different member of staff remarked "sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't". I asked if she could get a supervisor to put up a prominent notice at the foot of the stairs when their only scanner went out of order like this - just so that pax didn't have to go up the stairs only to have to go down again and then up again. This appeared to be a revolutionary idea for Cardiff. Perhaps they can't source a notice board and marker pen - and I'm sure they haven't thought of having two scanners have they? They certainly haven't trained their staff to be resourceful and pro-active.

CARDIFF AIRPORT review : 30 April 2008 : by Bob Alexander

Customer Rating : 2/5

We flew into Cardiff airport on Thursday 24th April intending to get public transport to central Cardiff. We missed the two buses that could have got us there (one direct and one via a rail connection) as they left the stand within a couple of minutes of each other and then we had to wait an hour for the next to arrive although one was scheduled to have arrived after about 45 minutes, it did turn up but having dropped passengers off it drove away without picking up the waiting passengers. This was at 5pm so hardly an off-peak period!! We returned to the airport on Monday 28th April to fly to Malaga. It took us an hour to check in with bmibaby, although there were only about a dozen people in the queue ahead of us. When we got to the desk we were a kilo overweight so we removed a bag of magazines from our suitcase and put it in our cabin bag which was almost empty. This put us below 20 kilos but the girl did not seem too happy at what we had done and insisted that we put the cabin bag in a measuring cradle, even though it was a regulation size airline cabin bag. It fitted easily, needless to say. Was she resentful at not being able to charge us excess baggage? We have travelled dozens of times all over the world with that bag and never been asked to prove its measurements before. Then it was the turn of the security check into departures. One desk open, a large queue of people and further delays. We and others expressed our annoyance at the fact that there were 11 other security staff just hanging about chatting to each other. To add further insult to passengers some 'staff' who had been waiting to clear security were called forward and given priority over paying customers! The general facilities of the airport seem good but clearly there is a major management problem which causes problems for passengers and probably results in loss of revenue for airport shops/cafes etc. as passengers spend so much time in queues they have little time left for anything else.