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Berlin Schonefeld Airport Passenger Reviews and Traveller Reports
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BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 10 December 2012 by P Miller (UK) |
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Rating : 1/10 |  |
Queuing |  |
Cleanliness |  |
Facilities | |
Recommended |  |
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This is quite possibly the worst airport I have ever experienced. It's built for another era and certainly cannot
cope with the level of traffic passing through it these days. Wen you arrive, before you can even get to
check-in, you have to queue to put all your luggage (hold and cabin) through a scanner - there were just two
machines, but even one of those was not operational. Then you choose: if you have bags to check, then join
that queue; if not, then go straight to the absurdly long line (I estimated 150 people in front of us) to have
your boarding pass checked - by just one person. Then it's the second security check. Then you're through!
But wait, you're going to London so there's another queue in a sterile corridor for passport control (one
person again) before you get to your gate where your passport is checked again. This whole process took just
over 1 hour - at 0600. Sorry EasyJet, but I'm never coming here again.
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BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 1 November 2012 by A Watson (UK) |
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Rating : 1/10 | |
Queuing | |
Cleanliness | |
Facilities | |
Recommended | |
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I have travelled around the world and flown in and out of some pretty shoddy airports, but this takes the
cake! Its obvious that all the money has been ploughed into Brandenburg and that no maintenance will be
carried out this place. Even the "Executive Lounge" is a small box upstairs. nothing special at all. An
uncomfortable experience not to be repeated.
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BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 30 October 2012 by D Stanton (UK) |
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Rating : 0/10 |  |
Queuing | |
Cleanliness | |
Facilities | |
Recommended | |
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One of the worst airports in Europe I have had to use. Overcrowded, lack of seating, dirty, toilets disgusting
both in arrival and departure areas. In the arrival terminal, the train ticket machines were not working so to
get train tickets you have to queue at a stand with only one overworked person serving. Facilities throughout
totally inadequate. If you do and you get the train into Berlin, the train doesn't get any better. The one that
we were on was dirty and had seen better days. We liked Berlin but wouldn't travel through this airport
again.
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BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 18 October 2012 by J Howard (UK) |
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Rating : 0/10 | |
Queuing | |
Cleanliness | |
Facilities |  |
Recommended | |
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I have vowed never to fly to this airport again! Hardly any seating for people once you're through Security -
this really is unacceptable as most of the space is given over to retail rather than to the comfort of the
passengers. As a previous reviewer said, it must be hell on earth if you're delayed! Noisy, cramped,
uncomfortable!
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BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 6 August 2012 by A Conway (Ireland) |
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Rating : 3/10 |  |
Queuing |  |
Cleanliness | |
Facilities | |
Recommended | |
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Travelled through it last night and each time (as a frequent flyer) it amazes me how cramped, inefficient and
inadequate this airport is. Inadequate seating - people sitting on stairs and on the floor, whereas most wall
space is offered to retail. Security could be more efficient and organised. I would really hate to be in this
airport in the event of a delay! Toilets were also broken - they were being repaired when I went in to use
them maintenance please on an ongoing basis would sort this out.
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BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 20 June 2012 by Howard Barker (UK) |
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Rating : 6/10 |  |
Queuing |  |
Cleanliness | |
Facilities | |
Recommended |  |
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Had expected to arrive at the new Brandenburg International airport on its fourth day open, however it didn't
so Schonefeld is still in use. It is small enough so no long walks. Facilities are limited. Passport check
quick and bags waiting. Departing from Terminal B there is virtually no seating after security, unacceptable,
and not enough at the gates. Passport control is just before the departure gate so a queue blocking the
corridor, you don't know whether to wait here or if your departure gate is further. There is also the lengthy
walk to the station and no longer a bus shuttle. Overall fit for purpose, there are many much worse but I
look forward to Brandenburg.
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BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 20 June 2012 by T Zulan (Germany) |
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Rating : 1/10 | |
Queuing | |
Cleanliness | |
Facilities | |
Recommended | |
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This is by far the worst German Airport I have ever travelled through. There is not enough waiting room to
wait for the check-in to open. The queue for security is not sufficient. The actual terminals are announced
only when boarding begins. There is not enough waiting room. Boarding is actually a two stage process,
where there is not enough space to queue, and not enough room while you wait to walk to your plane. The
airport completely lacks any useful concept of how to handle a significant amount of people. I'm not talking
of a minor capacity issue during peak times. I'm talking about 20 seats for 200 people who have to wait
hours! In addition to these fundamental issues, the airport is dirty everywhere. It's ugly. The food options (at
least outside of security) are terrible. Yet you have to walk though (not besides) duty-free shops. At least
the staff weren't unfriendly, but not especially helpful or friendly either. BTW: They told me to be there 2:30
hrs before take-off, the checking actually only opens 2:00 hours before.
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BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 29 September 2011 by N von Massow (UK)
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Customer Rating : 1/5 |
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 | Queuing |
 | Cleanliness |
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Nowhere to sit before departure after security because all space is dedicated to retail. People were sitting on the
floors, in hallways, staircases etc. Using Schönefeld approx 3x per year and it's the same situation each time. Staff
are rude at Security. Making an already unpleasant experience even more uncomfortable.
BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 26 October 2010 by F Odds (UK)
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Customer Rating : 3/5 |
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| Queuing |
 | Cleanliness |
| Facilities |
This small airport is intended to become the sole airport serving Berlin, as part of new
Berlin Brandenburg International development plan. At present it serves only the cut-price,
cattle-herding airlines. For a modest operation it really isn't as bad as some reviews here
make out. The arrivals hall was compact, and it was easy to find the sort of things you need
on arrival - bank machines, travel information and so on. Departing through Schonefeld my
flight was delayed by 5 hours, which offered a lot of opportunity to experience the airport!
It lacked enough seating landside to cope with two seriously delayed flights, but there were
reasonable facilities otherwise: indeed the best restaurant offered an excellent breakfast
buffet for €11. Airside, once again, there was insufficient seating (the airport is
designed as a shopping mall with optional access to aeroplanes, in the currently fashionable
style). The seating shortage was particularly unreasonable at the departure gates, where
people know they need to assemble en masse if they're flying with an airline that offers no
seat allocations. Being able to sit and rest before the stampede for the steps is announced
is an important component of the 'low cost' (it really isn't any more) flying experience.
BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 30 January 2010 : by S Erich
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Customer Rating : 2/5 |  |
Slow, slower, the slowest - you have plenty of time after arrival to go to the toilet or make
a few phone calls prior to your luggage finally arriving in the baggage claims area - airport
is uninspiring with below average food outlets. Access via public transport is lousy and in
order to make more money they moved the airport from the B-zone to the C-zone in the public
transportation map. So now you pay more for your ticket but have less trains running due to
the S-Bahn in Berlin having technical difficulties. Also late at night and especially on
weekends you find lots of young drunken people and hooligans on these trains - no safety staff
there. Taxis cost a lot, especially if you need to go to city center west or the north. TXL is
much better with public transport. SXF is only advised if someone with a car gets you there or
picks you up!
BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 11
March 2009 : by M Dixon
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Customer Rating : 3/5 |  |
Airport fine arrival and departure very quick and efficient. Transport to city centre in terms
of cost and efficiency puts British airports to shame. The whole thing is best described as
cheap and cheerful set up for budget airlines where you don't expect passengers to be sat in
restaurants and browsing round designer shops for hours. Found all the staff polite and
helpful.
BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 23 February 2009 : by C Nedo
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Customer Rating : 2/5 | |
Schönefeld (SXF) is annoying. First it's far away from the city, staff are unfriendly.
Security whistles at people to come over here, rude if you don't speak German, very inflexible
concerning something out of their rule-set (e.g. I had the liquids in two plastic bags within
each other - so one plastic bag stuffed into the other. the outer one was regular size. that
was not possible - "only one plastic bag allowed"). Processes are sometimes idiotic at the
airport. Walks are very long and with lots of stairs up and down. food is relatively
expensive.
BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 1
December 2008 : by Charles Scott
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Customer Rating : 3/5 | |
Flew into SXF from GLA on easyjet, going in long line at immigration, seemed the computer was
running slow, fair walk after immigration to baggage claim , part of it in a cold passageway , open
to the outside, baggage waiting when we got to baggage claim. As previously stated very little
seating landside in terminal A, some in the snack bar near the check in area, interestingly hold
baggage is xrayed before you get to the check in desks. Through security fairly quick given the
large number of staff manning the scanners. Lagre duty free shop, a small bookstall, and another
shop selling souvenirs, confectionary, wine and foodstuffs - and about 10 or so seats, though a few
more seats in the Kilkenny Pub, which oddly you have to pass through to get to Easyjet gates.
BERLIN SCHONEFELD AIRPORT customer review : 18 September 2008 : by Daniel Sachse
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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 customer review : 5
September 2008 : by David Griffiths
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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 customer review : 2
September 2008 : by Darren McCormac
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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 customer review : 29 April 2008 : by N Fitzgerald
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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.
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