"clear up your act"
Linda Jones (United Kingdom)
Not Verified | One of the passengers in the group I was travelling with, lost her suitcase on arrival at Catania. We found our way to Lost Property to be faced with a woman behind a glass screen. On the glass screen was some form of map with an arrow pointing to 'REVIEW' which I was told was in the area of Car Park 5. The woman behind the glass screen was obviously extremely annoyed with a contorted angry expression on her face, clenched fists, and actually screaming REVIEW over and over and over again. What was the purpose of that to a non Italian speaker? Not only was it unhelpful but it gave an impression that TOURISTS ARE NOT WELCOME HERE! Catania - clear up your act!
Experience At Airport | Arrival Only |
Date Visit | October 2023 |
Type Of Traveller | Solo Leisure |
Queuing Times | 12345 |
Terminal Cleanliness | 12345 |
Terminal Signs | 12345 |
Food Beverages | N/A |
Airport Staff | 12345 |
Recommended | no |
"thoroughly demeaning experience"
Linda Jones (United Kingdom)
Not Verified | What a way to end a wonderful holiday! Arrived at Catania Airport for my return flight to the UK to find all public places in the departure lounge packed full of passengers. Seating areas were packed - all seats taken and every table used as a seat. So the only available place to sit was the floor - most of which was also crowded with people. My flight was delayed by two hours, and I spent much of that time on the floor in the departure lounge. Eventually I went through to the boarding gate hoping to find a seat in there - the same issue there - so on the floor again. What a thoroughly demeaning experience this was! Having paid what I thought was a pretty high price for my flight, to be treated like an animal at the airport has left me with a very poor impression of this country! NOT TO BE REPEATED!
Experience At Airport | Departure Only |
Date Visit | October 2023 |
Type Of Traveller | Solo Leisure |
Queuing Times | 12345 |
Terminal Cleanliness | 12345 |
Terminal Seating | 12345 |
Terminal Signs | 12345 |
Food Beverages | 12345 |
Airport Shopping | 12345 |
Wifi Connectivity | 12345 |
Airport Staff | 12345 |
Recommended | no |
"A very stressful experience"
Sarah Humphreys (Italy)
Not Verified | Appalling! There was a problem caused by fires near the airport, so the airport was closed for 2 hours. However there was no information available whatsoever and passengers were left crammed into the gates with no idea what was going on and there was very little seating (about 10 seats at the gate) and so an elderly lady was forced to sit on an air conditioner. We eventually got information that the flight was delayed but with no departure time. We eventually got onto the plane 3 hours late, after a totally chaotic boarding experience-people crammed everywhere and lots of shouting and arguing. We then sat on the plane for another hour and the pilot announced "the airport is in confusion". Obviously this situation was unusual but it would have helped if we'd been informed what was going on. Security is quite efficient but once you get through the airport is a disaster. There is very little seating anywhere so people sit on the floor, on the steps etc so it's very difficult to move around. There are only 2 or 3 working displays with information and no (or very few) announcements. The whole place is boiling, chaotic and disorganised and also dirty. The toilets are slightly better in some areas of departures but there are only 2 cubicles for ladies downstairs and arrivals is even worse-20 minute queues for the ladies! Overall this place needs reorganising! A very stressful experience.
Experience At Airport | Departure Only |
Date Visit | September 2023 |
Type Of Traveller | Couple Leisure |
Queuing Times | 12345 |
Terminal Cleanliness | 12345 |
Terminal Seating | 12345 |
Terminal Signs | 12345 |
Food Beverages | 12345 |
Airport Shopping | 12345 |
Wifi Connectivity | 12345 |
Airport Staff | 12345 |
Recommended | no |
"crowded, no seating, no charging, no water"
Simon Moxley (United Kingdom)
Not Verified | Possibly the worse European airport I have even flown from - crowded, no seating, no charging, no water, no AC - really lamentable. Check in process was reasonable, as was security but once airside there's nowhere to sit, most people opted for the floor.
Experience At Airport | Departure Only |
Date Visit | September 2023 |
Type Of Traveller | Couple Leisure |
Queuing Times | 12345 |
Terminal Cleanliness | 12345 |
Terminal Seating | 12345 |
Terminal Signs | 12345 |
Food Beverages | 12345 |
Airport Shopping | 12345 |
Wifi Connectivity | 12345 |
Airport Staff | 12345 |
Recommended | no |
"Terminal A, what a dump"
C Irving (United Kingdom)
✅ Trip Verified | The general state of the Airport is poor but Terminal A, what a dump, gates 19 to 22 are a shambles, poorly functioning air conditioning, not enough seating so people sprawled everywhere and tiny and few departure boards. Outside the roads are dug up and I had to walk in front of buses to get from the car drop-off to Terminal A. Rubbish It doesn't take much to get things right but this was like a scene of refugees fleeing a war zone.
Experience At Airport | Departure Only |
Date Visit | September 2023 |
Type Of Traveller | Solo Leisure |
Queuing Times | 12345 |
Terminal Cleanliness | 12345 |
Terminal Seating | 12345 |
Terminal Signs | 12345 |
Food Beverages | 12345 |
Airport Shopping | 12345 |
Wifi Connectivity | 12345 |
Recommended | no |
"poor signage and long queues"
H Oliver (United Kingdom)
✅ Trip Verified | We visited the day after the airport was closed due to an Etna eruption, which may have explained some of the disruption. There was a very long queue for security, where 4 of the 10 or so kiosks were open. Passport control was very chaotic, with poor signage and long queues. Very few places to sit for gates 19-22.
Experience At Airport | Departure Only |
Date Visit | August 2023 |
Type Of Traveller | Family Leisure |
Queuing Times | 12345 |
Terminal Cleanliness | 12345 |
Terminal Seating | 12345 |
Terminal Signs | 12345 |
Food Beverages | N/A |
Airport Shopping | 12345 |
Wifi Connectivity | 12345 |
Airport Staff | 12345 |
Recommended | no |
"rather short distances at this airport"
5 reviews Joern Andre Horaczek (Germany)
✅ Trip Verified | The airport is located on the outskirts of Catania and can be reached easily by car, bus or train. It is not very large, but can get busy in the holiday season and on weekends. Arrival: I like the rather short distances at this airport. It didn’t take more than four mins from plane to immigration and baggage belt. Even if arriving at an outside position, it won’t be more than 5-10 mins max from disembarking the plane to baggage belt. Immigration can sometimes take a bit depending where the plane is arriving from. Within the EU, there are no passport checks. Baggage can take a long time (I once waited nearly an hour) but is usually coming out within a few minutes. Departure: The checkin can sometimes take quite a long time (this is Italy!) Security control is usually surprisingly fast and efficient. Inside security, there are several restaurants and shops but in general there is not much room and it gets rather crowded when several planes leave around the same time. Boarding can sometimes be a bit stressful as everybody tries to be first but this depends on how the airline manages the boarding process .
Experience At Airport | Arrival and Departure |
Date Visit | May 2023 |
Type Of Traveller | Couple Leisure |
Queuing Times | 12345 |
Terminal Cleanliness | 12345 |
Terminal Seating | 12345 |
Terminal Signs | 12345 |
Food Beverages | 12345 |
Airport Shopping | 12345 |
Airport Staff | 12345 |
Recommended | yes |
"Crowded and tight airport"
Eurenice Sirna Barbosa (Brazil)
✅ Trip Verified | Crowded and tight airport. Real challenging to find a seat. Very little dining options. Impossible to connect to wifi. Disappointed with the whole structure.
Experience At Airport | Departure Only |
Date Visit | May 2023 |
Type Of Traveller | Family Leisure |
Queuing Times | 12345 |
Terminal Cleanliness | 12345 |
Terminal Seating | 12345 |
Terminal Signs | 12345 |
Food Beverages | 12345 |
Airport Shopping | 12345 |
Wifi Connectivity | 12345 |
Recommended | no |
"I was impressed with arrival"
A Ahmed (United Kingdom)
✅ Trip Verified | I have to say I was impressed with arrival from a BA flight to Catania. Passport control is done via e-gates even for British Passport Holders, reviewed from a distance by border police which makes it a lot quicker than each person going up to a desk one by one. You still have to go to the desk at the end for your stamp (was actually forgotten by the border police in my case, but I proactively went to get it after my partner reminded me). Baggage was off fairly quick on to the belt. Local inexpensive city bus to the city. Wifi works, and easy access with no silly sign-up process. Very smooth and easy arrival - puts Palermo to a massive shame as the capital of the island!
Experience At Airport | Arrival Only |
Date Visit | April 2023 |
Type Of Traveller | Couple Leisure |
Queuing Times | 12345 |
Terminal Cleanliness | 12345 |
Terminal Signs | 12345 |
Food Beverages | N/A |
Wifi Connectivity | 12345 |
Recommended | yes |
"rude, unprofessional and unhelpful"
Jelena Glišić (Serbia)
✅ Trip Verified | I've seen a fair share of airports but this one is by far the worst. Not because of the shops or whatever but because of the staff and their system and operations. Absolutely atrocious. Never have I encountered staff so rude, unprofessional and unhelpful. After denying us boarding for a flight we arrived in time for they did nothing but sneer at us and shoo us away to buy new tickets. Then the rest of the staff weren't any more helpful nor did they want to be. Their English is absolutely terrible. And the airport doesn't even have functional WiFi. And now they're not answering the emails we've sent which goes to prove their customer service isn't any better than the ones working at the airport.
Experience At Airport | Arrival and Departure |
Date Visit | May 2023 |
Type Of Traveller | Solo Leisure |
Queuing Times | 12345 |
Terminal Cleanliness | 12345 |
Terminal Seating | 12345 |
Terminal Signs | 12345 |
Food Beverages | 12345 |
Airport Shopping | 12345 |
Wifi Connectivity | 12345 |
Airport Staff | 12345 |
Recommended | no |