BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT review : 18 September 2008 : by Daniel Sachse

Customer Rating : 3/5

Good and cheap public transport connections (Regional trains, metro "S-Bahn" and busses, all at regular fare), easy to navigate, helpful staff. Contra: Both check-in and arrival are rather small and become very crowded in rush times. Way too few seating arrangements. Terminals lack all elegance, the atmosphere is that of a bus station or your average IKEA. All in all, the airport is cheap in all it's good and bad respects but serves its task efficiently.

BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT review : 5 September 2008 : by David Griffiths

Customer Rating : 3/5

A slightly odd experience but much better than some of the other comments on this site led me to expect. Anyone who is looking for the facilities you find at major German Airports like HAM or CGN (let alone MUC) is in for a serious disappointment but take SFX for what it is - a former communist airfield smartened up to deal predominantly with low cost airlines - and it really isn't bad at all. Seating is definitely an issue both in the Terminal A lounge area and at the departure gates. Like some of the other reviewers I wouldn't fancy being delayed here. On the other hand I found the security and airline staff friendly and efficient although unfortunately the same cannot be said for the passport control officers who were checking outbound passengers at the entrance to Gate 65 when I departed. For access to central Berlin it's better to use the faster RB/RE trains rather than the S Bahn - the cost is the same but there are far fewer stops and it's only 20 minutes to Alexanderplatz or 30 minutes to the Hbf.

BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT review : 2 September 2008 : by Darren McCormac

Customer Rating : 4/5

I use SXF regularly and it does what an airport is meant to do and no more. It's relatively efficient, though passenger comfort levels could be increased so that the airside section can cope with delays and cancellations. A tip for the train station - there are two BVG and one DB ticket machines in the main terminal, and there are at least two further machines on the S-Bahn platforms in addition to the machines in the walkway.

BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT review : 29 April 2008 : by N Fitzgerald

Customer Rating : 4/5

Considering his airport is now handling more flights than it did during the DDR days it copes very well. The staff - many ex-Interflug employees - are very polite and friendly. Although the walk to the S-Bahn is lengthy and requires a few sets of stairs and uncovered portions, at least it has an efficient and convenient link to the centre of Berlin - obviously a throwback to the old days when public transportation was actually encouraged. Having said that, the car park provides ample parking and is a great place to pick-up and return rental cars. My only disappointment is that the history of the airport - and especially Interflug is no where to be seen, I really hope this may be considered in the design of the new BBI.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Iain Leitch

15 April 2008   Customer Rating :

A pleasant experience helped no doubt by on time arrival and return departure with hand luggage only. On arrival, plenty of ticket machines for train in terminal / train station - only snag was that they ran out of change quickly and, if you didn't fiddle quickly to get the exact money, then they refused to issue a ticket - keep the coins handy. Glad to read about ticket validation machines (simple punch stamp) on this forum; not obvious on the platform unless you know that you are looking for them. Coming back (Saturday afternoon), plenty of departures but nothing dramatic at security in terms of queue and staff were friendly. Previous comments about lack of seating in corridors and then again at gates supported. Delays are always a pain but I could see how one here could be worse than most if and when it happened, and you were already at the gate.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by T Neuhaus

27 March 2008   Customer Rating :

Interesting experience as the airport has some very positive and some very negative aspects. Firstly, no queue at check-in, no queue at security at all. Staff quite friendly at both. In other words, departure could be very smooth. On the other hand, as other people have pointed out, the airside lounge after security is really lacking- while it is fairly light and offers a few shops / food outlets, it does not have anywhere near enough seating. The gate areas, too, can get very crowded and once you pass through passport control (very slowly!) there aren't even any toilets. The toilets just behind security, incidentally, were filthy, without any toilet paper and no cleaners in sight. Also, the airside area does not have any cash machines at all so if you want to purchase something you will need to have enough cash on you already or a card that is accepted by the outlets. As for the train links to the city centre: they aren't too frequent and the S-Bahn takes quite a while (going through the not-so-nice suburbs), but the arrangement is just about adequate given that the airport is never actually that busy compared with most other capital cities.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Carole Tait

14 March 2008   Customer Rating :

I used this airport for my first trip to Berlin on March 2nd. I found it was better than expected, very well sign-posted and the enquiry desk staff were very helpful. I didn't know which rail ticket to buy from the machine or how to 'validate your ticket' but having English speaking staff with great patience solved everything. It could be improved by more seating if possible, but otherwise it's just fine by me.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by B Cowan

12 March 2008   Customer Rating :

I've used this Airport a number of times in recent years. My main complaint is the lack of seating on the 1st floor level, in fact apart from the cafe there is nowhere to sit. As for public transport I think the service in excellent. You can buy a 1/2/3/4 day Welcome card at the newsagents on the ground floor as soon as you enter land-side, you can then either take the free shuttle to the rail station from just outside the terminal building or walk along the covered walkway which is only a 3/4 minute walk. The AirportExpress service runs every 30mins to the heart of Berlin. Overall all services at this small Airport are acceptable bearing in mind that a new Terminal building and car parks and an additional run-way are being built along side the existing Airport complex and will replace the other 2 Berlin Airports in 2011.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by M Hermann

12 March 2008   Customer Rating :

The only good thing about SXF, that I can think about, is it's train station which is serviced by regional trains, a few national trains and the S-Bahn. So you can get to the city centre quite fast and quite comfortably (approx 30 min) and thus avoid high taxi fares. In order to get to the train station, you will have to walk a couple of minutes. However, I can't understand people complaining about the distance from the terminal to the train station. Compared to other international airports, the station is actually quite close. Now, the pitfalls. Immigration officers at SXF work at an amazingly slow pace when checking (EU) passports upon arrival and seem to enjoy working even slower in the late evening hours, when all the budget airlines come in at once. Baggage reclaim is absolutely overcrowded when two or more planes arrive at the same time. This is true for the whole airport, which is small and cramped and has been extended without any sense for functionality. Especially the lack of seating at the gates and queing in narrow corridors is annoying. Overall, this does not feel like an airport.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by A MacPherson

24 December 2007   Customer Rating :

The good points about this airport are the cheap and frequent train link to central Berlin (once you negotiate the ticket machines!) and the way it is split up into different screening/checkin areas and has passport control at the gates, so there are no huge queues at central checkpoints supposed to serve all passengers. The bad points, having departed again from the A area on the 22nd, are a hopeless lack of airside seating, and spartan 'lounges' at the gates themselves - it's worth going as soon as the gate is (eventually) announced in order to get a seat and avoid a queue at the passport desk, but the downside of that is being left in the lounge area to wait with absolutely no information about delays and no access to something as simple as a toilet while hanging about. These two gripes go for every time I have used this airport. New this time were the obnoxious security staff at the screening point - like the man who was having a conversation with his colleagues while screening me and shouting 'hello' as if I was a moron when I didn't put my foot where expected for checking. Also, there used to be a free shuttle bus between the train station and terminal, saving a ten-minute walk in the freezing cold, but it wasn't signposted this time - does that mean it has stopped? As an airport experience at a major city this could be really very good, but let down by the lack of information and seating, and security staff. The good points (accessibility, speed of passenger processing) are very, very good; the bad (dreadful waiting areas and lack of information, and on this instance some of the staff) were very bad - so it gets a 3 from me.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Rob Wating

6 September 2007   Customer Rating :

No queue at immigration, less than a 5 minute wait for luggage at the carousel and straight out of the main doors. Previous comments about it been a long walk to the train station, iIts a brisk 3 min walk or slow 6 min. Once at the station all of the machines have an English button and when I was there gave change. If I remember it was less than 3 Euros for the 25 minute journey - a bargain when compared with the £15 for Stansted Express! There are machines in the underpass, plus some on the platforms. All in all from the door of the plane opening to me been sat down on a train to the city centre was less than 20 minutes.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by K Armstrong

31 July 2007   Customer Rating :

I expected better at a German airport. What an inefficient and uncomfortable place to fly through. Arrival was fine but departure was a different story. First there was a huge and disorganised queue before check-in to scan hold luggage. This meant crowds of peope were often blocking the tops of the escalators, potentially dangeorous I thought. Then followed another long wait to actually check-in, then another to get through the security at the departure gate. All told we spent about 1 hour queuing from arrival at the airport to clearing security. Just as well we arrived with plenty of time, but not too much because after security there is nothing to do. Unless I missed something all there was was a smallish duty free shop, cafe and bookshop (no books/mags in English). There were hardly any seats either. Disappointing experience. I like Berlin but not this airport.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Deryck Fay

17 July 2007   Customer Rating :

Have flown through SXF a few times in the past years and found it unremarkable. The facilities are limited but it's easy to get through. As others have noted the main shortcomIng is the train station. It's a long walk from the terminal and on my last trip there were long queues for the 3 ticket machines in the station underpass. After 20 minutes queuing we found that the machine would not give change or take coins and refused our Visa, MC or Maestro. It appeared that the only way to get it to print a ticket was if the total was equal to a round number of banknotes! Having already missed 2 Regional trains and not wishing to spend the entire day in grim underpass negotiating the other machines, we decided to ake our chances and pay on the train and made our way to the S-Bahn platform to find 2 machines without any queues... So much for Germany efficiency: it was like being back at home in Ireland!

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by David Allan

13 July 2007   Customer Rating :

Recently used SXF for flights from MAN/back to GLA. I echo the comments by Janne Petersson below - there is very little to do once you pass through security, and there are also NO smoking areas after security, so if you are a smoker, go outside for a cigarette before passing through security. Interestingly, we were delayed for more than an hour when it started to rain just prior to boarding - as the airport authorities refused to let anyone embark/disembark while it rained! At one point, there were five easyJet aircraft parked in a row, waiting for the rain to stop so they could disgorge their passenger loads.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Janne Petersson

7 June 2007   Customer Rating :

I can´t understand the negative comments about problems obtaining railway tickets at Schönefeld: In the arrivals hall there are ticket machines for both DB (German Railways) and BVG (city transit authority) tickets and passes, and there are also ATMs so you can obtain Euro banknotes for buying your tickets (remember Germany does not seem to be just as extremely "creditcardified" as the UK or Scandinavia, so you may wish to carry a few Euro banknotes also for making other small purchases e.g. a beer or a soda.) Some other advice: Be prepared to wait in line, but don´t check-in earlier than you have to: Once you have passed security there is absolutely nothing to do. There are not many seats either, so if your aircraft goes tech you may have to stand for a long time while waiting. Well, there are a two shops and a Burger King restaurant airside but that´s almost all. If you want something else to eat, there is just one small café. The staff there were not very friendly and there was a big fly walking around on the sandwiches. It seems that SXF is nowadays mostly used by LCCs like EasyJet, Germanwings et al and that may explain the lack of facilities. SXF somehow reminded me of M.R. Stefanik Airport in Bratislava, Slovakia, but BTS is much nicer and usually also much less crowded than SXF.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by R Hopkins

17 May 2007   Customer Rating :

The problem with this airport is not the airport itself, but getting tickets into the centre in the evening when the station is basically closed. The 'Tickets' signs are irrelevant when the ticket hall is closed and the only visible ticket machine doesn't take international cards. Go straight to the platform and get tickets there. Arrival was ridiculously slow because of the passport scrutiny. Of course they've got to be checked, but how slow? This is the EU! Once through, there was no luggage delay. Departure check-in was the fastest anywhere. Food at 'Cindy's' was reasonably priced and a super-fresh salad was available late in the evening. The airport was spotless and being continuously cleaned while we were there. Security was quick but the real downer was the queue for passport checks. I couldn't believe this could be so slow, but it became clear that any non-white had to have their passports scrutinised much more carefully and slowly. This looked like overt discrimination. When there's been no check-in delay, this queue came as a surprise. Overall this is a modern and efficient airport. Just sort out passport control!

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by G Morgan

13 May 2007   Customer Rating :

I dont understand the (moans and groans) regarding this compact, friendly, easy airport. Its got everything you really need before departing especially now that they have a restaurant that sell nice snacks at a fair price, and coffee etc. Getting from airport to the centre of Berlin is easy,2 00yd walk to the railway station, a nice beer in one of the stalls before boarding the train for the centre - all for 2.10 euros and took 20min.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Rob Stephens

29 January 2007   Customer Rating : n/a

I live in Berlin and it only takes half an hour to get from the station to the centre of Berlin (add up to 15 mins for Charlottenburg depending on exactly where you want to go). The trick is to take the Regional Bahn and not the S-Bahn - this means going a couple of platforms past the S- Bahn. Other than that, I would recommend spending as little time as possible in the place - there's absolutely nothing to do. The comments about echoes of the DDR are spot on. Oh, and a word of warning - they charge you 50 cents for a clear plastic bag if you need one.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Ellen Cornelissen

27 December 2006

Berlin Schönefeld is a pain. I do not know how the previous writer comes to 30 minutes to Berlin? It took me 1,5 hours to get from Schönefeld to Charlottenburg by public transport and let´s be honest, not everybody can afford a taxi that distance. It´s a small airport and despite this smallness it takes ages to get your luggage. Let´s stick to the current setup (Tegel for business planes, Tempelhof for city hoppers and Schönefeld for the holiday charters) and everybody will be very happy. Schönefeld still reminds me of the former GDR, both in the people working there and the service provided.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by C Fischer

10 December 2006

Perfectly functional and fast airport, as it is. A good extension of the current facility would do, instead of the dinosaur BBI-project. Berliners always complain SXF were too far away from the city, which is nonsense. 30min on the train or 30 Euro on the cab get you almost everywhere.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by M Talbot

25 November 2006

SXF is a good small airport. After leaving the aircraft, it took about 10 minutes to go through customs and our cases were already waiting. Walked to the S-Bahn/train station via the undercover walkway. Couldn't see a ticket office (as mentioned in other comments below) but in addition to the 2 automatic ticket machines, there are more ticket machines on the platforms. However, departing from SXF was slightly uncomfortable, but not at all too bad. After a quick check in and the normal security searches, the only real issue is the departures serious lack of seating. Considering the amount of flights departing at certain times of the day, something should be done to address this. Otherwise, a nice airport with good links to Berlin centre.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Richard Farnsworth

27 October 2006

I agree with most of the previous comments. The S Bahn 9 takes you into the city centre in 20 minutes. Buy a 3 Euro ticket. By taxi it's 30 Euro. The covered walkway is on the far left as you come out of the terminal, not well signposted. In terminal A the cafe and lounge as you go in is much better than the one airside after going through customs. After checking in the bags I wait there until the boarding sign comes on. The duty free is expensive.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Tim Hiles

27 October 2006

We found the security and check in process easy and pain-free, but from thereon it was dreadful - there was totally inadequate seating in the departure 'lounge' area with very poor refreshment facilities and the toilets were nothing short of disgusting, with full urinals (no flush motors working) and only one tap operating to wash hands. There is adequate room to place more seats (although this would only reduce the lack of seating problem, rather than solve it) and to have no toilet attendants in an area that has well over 1000 passengers passing through each evening is appalling management. There was no priority boarding (this may be an Airline failure rather than the Airport?). Sadly this experience left us all with a bad taste of Berlin and of Germany in general, which we had otherwise found a great place to visit.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Alan Robertson

27 October 2006

Airport is fine but I agree with some of the negative comments regarding tickets for the train station. I've been twice and had no idea that there was a ticket office. The 2 working ticket machines available were very busy due to the fact that most tourists could not work them particularly well and this made for a frustrating wait. In addition I didn't see anything obvious about validating tickets before going on to the train, so many people knew nothing about this until it was pointed out by the ticket inspector on the train and risking a EUR 40 fine. Not a great welcome if you come across an inspector lacking in common sense and decency, of which I'm sure there are many!!

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Andrew Coogans

19 October 2006

SXF has an odd feeling to it, a bit temporary (which I suppose it is, given the new Brandenburg airport being under construction) and remote. Good connections to the city though. Easyjet check in was a little chaotic and security very thorough and "by the book". Real lack of seating in the boarding gates though. In common with many airports showed "boarding" on the screens before the aircraft had even arrived! I understand the reasons for this but it is only the airports which are losing out on passenger spending if they rush to stand at a boarding gate 30 minutes before the plane even pulls up outside.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Kevin Penfold

22 August 2006

Nice airport. Very organised. Actually got the Easy jet lines working as they should, no queue jumping here ! The Burger King in departures was great, little seating though . Friendly and helpful staff. Duty Free shop good, overall, a very nice small airport.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by David Allan

24 July 2006

Actually a very clean, modern and efficient small airport, with good transport links to both S Bahn and Airport Express. My one complaint would be the chaotic "all flights" easyJet check-in system, which is just a free-for-all. Immigration officers are a bit dour/unwelcoming (shades of Soviet Bloc there!) and walking to the departure gate involves lots of climbing up and down staircases - pity any physically challenged passengers.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Raffael Kubalek

26 February 2006

The new so called "automatic check-in" at this airport is not very efficient since you still have to go to a counter after having printed your boarding pass and your luggage straps. They check your passport at least four times and to go through security takes awfully long. So i would recommend anyone to arrive there early. Otherwise the airport itself isn't that bad, public transport is good. And they have some acceptable shops and restaurant, although everything is a bit small.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Carolyn Russell

26 February 2006

SXF has a poor airport building, however it is connected to the city very well. It is easier to get into Berlin than it is from TXL using the airportexpress and s-bahn, there is a bus connecting you to the station for these services. The airport itself is a different matter, I used Terminal B on easyjet and was unable to find a seat anywhere, even in the food court. The whitewashed walls make the place feel like a prison and there is one fast food restaurant, one cafe and one duty-free shop. That's it. I hope Berlin Brandenburg International comes soon!

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by John Doe

14 January 2006

In recent years Schönefeld has become the main hub for low cost carriers like Easyjet and Germanwings but also serves as basis for flights to a number of holiday destinations, including intercontinental ones to i.e. Dominican Republic. Facilities have been upgraded over the years to deal with the increasing amount of holiday and charter flights but it's obvious that it isn't built for eternity either... some day it will (hopefully) be replaced by the new Berlin-Brandenburg International and it shows. While it has 4 terminals meanwhile it still feels somewhat provisionary. Everything is small and narrow and may leave claustrophobic feelings in certain areas as there's simple not enough space in any of the 4 'buildings'. The security procedures need getting used to as well - there's a first luggage screening already before the departure area and a second one at the check-in counter (which by the way are upstairs(!) in Terminal A). It's also one of those airports where you can still experience a walk across the tarmac upon arrival.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by C Hesse

3 January 2006

Berlin's lowcost European gateway. (TXL serving as major airport with transatlantic services by Delta and Continental). Considering it is one of Europe's fastest growing airports, it deals with the rise in passenger figures well. New terminal D just opened in Dec 05, further room to expand. Decent shops on site and good rail link.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Darren McCormac

14 December 2005

Mark Burtenshaw claims that public transport links to SXF are bad. Well, when I flew from there, in August 2005, there was a train station with express and suburban links to Berlin, having me in the middle of the City in 40 minutes. The airport express is even quicker, and SXF is one of only two or three airports in Germany to have a station. John Oram claims that the ticket machines are "incomprehensible" - well if I managed it, they couldn't be that bad. No worse than UK ticket machines.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Mark Burtenshaw

13 September 2005

Schönefeld airport does not seem to have kept pace with the changes brought by re-unification and the rise of low cost airlines. It is a poor introduction to Germany's capital city (though to be fair, plans are in the pipe line to improve and expand the airport to bring it up to Frankfurt / Stuttgart standards). As previous contributors have mentioned, public transport connections to the airport are lousy, and the facilities no more than adequate. Getting to and from your plane involves a long, confusing walk up/ down stairs, round corners, along endless corridors, and the cramped departure lounges are not air conditioned, which means in Berlin's hot summer, they can be like saunas. The worst aspect for me though, and I don't know if this is typical of all German airports but certainly is not of other European cities that I have flown to, is passport control (again, mentioned by previous contributors). Whether entering or leaving Germany, it involves an unsmiling official subjecting you and your passport to elaborate scrutiny, as though they suspect you of being on Interpol's wanted list; long, slow moving queues are inevitable.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by John Oram

12 May 2005

SXF has more than a little of its East German past showing through. As noted by Thilo Tetzlaff, the immigration officers are surly and slow. Facilities are only adequate. A covered walkway to the station is under construction - about ten years late so the otherwise manageable walk was in the rain. A warning - if you follow the signs as you must really as you can not easily cross the road outside the station, you will miss the ticket office. For that you need to go up the ramp on the other side of the subway (underpass). Then you will need to go down again and up again to reach the trains. The ticket machines are all but incomprehensible even in English unless you already understand the ticket system. The alternative - on the day I was there - was a truly appalling ticket office where a depressed middle aged woman was giving information - at great length - as well as selling tickets. These two functions should never be mixed. Additionally she did not speak a word of English. I speak German but others were not so lucky.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport review by Thilo Tetzlaff

21 March 2005

SXF serves charter, budget and some East European airlines. Facilities are not bad, but the airport staff makes the worst of it. The grumpiest immigration officers and insufficient baggage management (3 flights on 1 belt) in addition with a rather opaque connection to the public transport (which is actually easy) help to make arrivals unpleasant. On departure you will suffer a lack of seats in the lounge. However, things are improving, which unfortunately involves permanent refurbishment.