PARIS ORLY AIRPORT review : 6 November 2008 : by Joe Bailey
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Customer Rating : 3/5 |  |
Quirky. It is straight out of the 1970s, but found it quite good. Very tired looking but pretty
efficient. Well connected, signage a bit flaky, but overall and average to good experience. A
physical overhaul of the decor would not be a bad idea.
Paris Orly Airport review by Alain Decau
3 June 2008 Customer Rating : 
Old-fashioned but efficient airport. Check-in quick and easy. Quick delivery of the luggage (15mn
after arrival). Easy access to the public transport (Air France coaches). Good selection of shops
and restaurants. Less prestigious airport than Paris-CDG but much more convenient.
Paris Orly Airport review by Mark Evans
26 March 2008 Customer Rating : 
This is the civilised Paris airport, and superior on almost every count to CDG. Easy layout to
negotiate and a quick and well-marked exit to the city is available. Good quality landside
restaurant, but the quality of the facilities airside drops off markedly. Unkempt lavatories,
security facilities a bit of a squeeze (though I did not encounter any major delay getting through
and staff were polite), and gate area seating is cramped.
Paris Orly Airport review by Marcel Frueh
21 August 2007 Customer Rating : 
This is the first time I used Orly airport. Honestly, I was a bit worried to find an easy/fast way wo
the airport with public transport first, but in the end in turned out to be the right decision taking
the Metro to "Denfert-Rochereau" station and the changing to the "Orlybus", which takes just about 20
min. to the terminals and costs only €6.10 (tickets can be purchased next to the bus stop at the
counter or vending machine; the bus tickets is included in the "Paris Visite" pass for zones 1-5!) -
really an easy & cheap way to get to this airport! However, the airport was less pleasant - very old
building and facilities (I guess from the 60s!), NO easy/quick check-in counters or machines if you're
(like me) travelling with hand baggage only, basically no facilities except some VERY expensive shops,
bakeries & vending machines (one bottle 0.5L of water costs €2.50 at the vending machine, small
cappuccino at the bakery for €3.80!) and a small, old prayer room. AnnouNcements were basically non-
existant, if at all - in French only. Bathrooms were much too small and not really clean. Security
check was a joke: staff hardly speaks English (the first thing they asked me was if I can speak
French!!!), they neither looked at the x-ray screens nor checked my bag for liquids (I DID carry a
couple of small bottles, one was actually a sun spray which had more than 100ml - but they didn't
care) nor they checked my body for weapons etc.
Paris Orly Airport review by Paul Jacobsen
8 May 2007 Customer Rating : n/a
Interestingly many low-cost airlines are now using Orly airport. Its
biggest advantage vs CDG is the close location to Paris city centre.
Here are two cheap transportation alternatives, if you are heading for
Paris southern "arrondissements". The cheapest but also the most time-
consuming alternative is to take bus no. 183 to "Porte de Choisy" where
you can connect with the Metro line no. 7. The bus ticket costs around
2€. The faster alternative, costing 5.60€, is the so-called Jetbus to
"Villejuif" whre you can also connect with Metro no.7. Departing Orly
from boarding area D, do not be fooled by the vending machines placed
just after security. They sell a 0,5l water at 2.50€, the same would
cost 2.10€ at the shops located just before the boarding gates!
Paris Orly Airport review by Dave Jaros
24 March 2007 Customer Rating : n/a
Used this airport for first time - arrival on South Terminal, the very
end next to reconstruction site (Hall G). This is pretty old fashion
airport, so do not expect jetways, fontains or wifi hotspots, but fairly
enough for easy transport means and connections. Swift immigration, no
checked baggage so headed for the Orlyval train in 10 mins after
landing. The only point is one (!) counter for train tickets - fairly
too few to manage todays traffic at the peak times (there are another
two ticket machines accepting banknotes or credit cards as well).
Departing on Thursday mid-evening, easy navigation to the check-in
though you have to slalom between some queues sometimes. Two counters
for an 737 flight just okay, staff friendly and working fast. Reaching
the departure hall is a matter of walking steps up and down (due to the
reconstruction), first you can reach understaffed passport control (3
out of 8 counters open), security just before the respective hall (was
forced to remove my belt, on the other side nobody cared the liquids in
my x-rayed bag). This may be a stuck point so beware you slower movers
and take some 30 mins to reach the G hall. Tried to buy some drink
before security to take with but shops did not offer the security pack
(I wonder if they would when purchasing a bottle of wine or scotch?).
Airside there was just one small snack bar and one delights shop there.
A lack of seating for a full plane pax load waiting at the gate. A bit
chaotic gate staff changed by PA the gate number, their english was from
terrible (rather a nose sounds than words) to non-existent (only French
announcement for passengers to another international destinations).
Considering sometimes crowded RER train to the city (ok, it was a peak
time with many commuters) but easy access by the Orlyval than, I would
not hesitate to choose this place for short routes and transfer. A
different experience, more relaxed, experience to the CDG and retro back
to the old times.
Paris Orly Airport review by Bradley Montag
19 January 2007
This was my first time passing through Orly airport on my way to Venice and I must say that the
airport facilities are basic and the airport itself is outdated and has a depressing feel to it. The
signage was not so fantastic and the waiting area was very cramped. The security was very slow with
all this upheaval over the liquids.
Paris Orly Airport review by Louise Doherty
27 December 2006
Nice old fashioned looking airport but the bars and cafes are a rip off
and duty free shop minimal, leave going through security till last
minute. Beware of unscrupulous employees here, I bought a bottle of coke
for 4.50 euro which is bad enough in itself, but I gave in 10 and only
got 50 cents change.
Paris Orly Airport review by Farouk Mogheth
2 November 2006
Paris Orly
Since the mid-1970s all my flights to and from Paris had utilized CDG.
This month I flew into ORY for the first time in nearly four decades.
Memory had not deceived me. ORY is vastly superiot to CDG. Luggage
arrives more quickly; it's easier to get from place to place; and the
amenities -- from shops and restaurants to taxi stand -- are all at
least as good and certainly more convenient.
Paris Orly Airport review by Tim Pithers
13 March 2006
Orly is the better of the two Parisian airports, with a much more lively
and dynamic atmosphere. It has a much better passenger flow than CDG T1
and finding one's way around is relatively simple. There is a good
selection of restaurants/bars/cafés landside. Checkin areas are
relatively clearly marked and it is a fast process to departures for
domestic flights. Security and passport control for international
flights can be arduous due to staffing levels. What's good about Orly is
that each checkin desk leads to its corresponding gate number meaning a
short walk. If you've got time to spend at Orly, leave security until
just before departure because there is nothing to do airside.
Paris Orly Airport review by Brian Murphy
18 February 2006
Recently flew from Orly to Fort-de-France in Martinique with Air France.
Although the airport itself has an old feel to it, it still has
character, and real French character, unlike Paris CDG! The main
comment I have however refers to the state of the chairs in the Air
France business lounge - most of them are filthy! I am amazed that Air
France has not addressed this - it gave a very bad impression on an
otherwise nice lounge. One other comment - if you are going from Paris
CDG to Orly at 8.00 am in the morning, by the Air France bus, be
prepared for a very, very crawl in traffic! The morning I took the bus,
it took almost 2 and 1/2 hours to get to Orly. Hence, passengers going
to Orly at this hour of the morning should look at perhaps the train
option! In addition, these AF buses often are very stuffy, when they
have the heat on in winter, so you may arrive in Orly somewhat fatigued!
Paris Orly Airport review by James Taylor
21 October 2005
Used the West Terminal last weekend. Hot tip of the decade - after
check-in, don't go through to the departure lounge until the last
minute. There's a shop selling chocolate, and a "dire" bar called "Tip
Top Tapas" if you please, and that's it. On the check-in side there are
countless bars and restaurants and newspaper shops. I asked, and was
allowed, to return through the departure gate twice, so I guess it must
be a common question. All announcements were in French only (I was
flying Iberia - Spanish would have been useful); flight was delayed two
and a half hours and the Orly staff were useless. For me, very much an
"airport of last resort".
Paris Orly Airport review by Michael Newport
16
August 2005
Orly south is a sad terminal, inadequate for modern day usage. Queuing (or not) for
Corsairs flights is a mess. It took about 1 hour to load the 747 (after a 5 hour
delay), passengers standing on the stairs as the holding room was far too small.
Boarding is then via a bus trip around the airport.
Paris Orly Airport review by Javier Urra
28
April 2005
There is one thing incredible from Orly. Baggage claim is accessible to anyone!!! I've never found
something similar all around the world. I mean, more clearly, anyone who
reaches Orly can directly
goes to a baggage belt and take you bag without any problem! Imagine when you are arrived, you
follow the signals and you discover yourself in the medium of the check in area!!! You feel you have
missed the baggage claim - no, it's there! Well, in some words, horrible airport, old fashioned.
However, I use it only if I have to make a direct flight (for example Paris Madrid) and I
don't check
in baggage. Connection to Paris is not good either. Orly needs a RER stop (commuter paris train) and
not the expensive and wasting-time "Orlyval"
Paris Orly Airport review by Peter Dowling
18
June 2004
Just a further comment on ORY's convenience and transfers between CDG.
I was at Orly in late May 2004 and found it to be quite light and airy
with good shops, but also a little overcrowded, with insufficient
seating in the public areas prior to the departure lounges. As for
connections to CDG, it couldn't be easier. The light rail ("monorail")
takes you directly to the Antony RER train station where you catch a
direct train to CDG airport. The whole journey can easily take less
than a hour.
Paris Orly Airport review by M Devor
25 December 2003
It is old and the age shows, but the airport is thousands times more
practical than CDG. It is more spacious, more room for counters, shops, and other facilities.
Schengen screwed up the South terminal, dividing the airside into segments with long walks out to
the Schengen flights. Before it was all one big airside area which was great for connections. They
also have a fantastic observation deck with big windows and anti-terrorism protected, but the views
are good. The French Gov't came out with a rule that Orly would only be used for short haul, CDG for both
short and long haul and hence, many carriers, including AA, were kicked out of Orly and sent to CDG.
I can't imagine what they were thinking. Orly is closer to Paris, it is easier to use, and is more practical.
They need more hotels as the Hilton, a good hotel, is the only one on site (that I know of).
I like the monorail between the South and West terminals. CDG would do well to have something
similar. Also, they need a direct rail link between Orly and CDG. Taking the bus is bad when Paris
traffic can be so awful.
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