Toulouse Airport

I travel through TLS once a week on average both domestic and international. Ok as a regional airport. On the plus side it has been modernised a lot more information and security gates are much improved and faster though passport control can be a bit hit and miss. Shuttle to P5/P6 parking works fine though does drop you at the international end of the building so you have a bit of a trek to get to domestic. On the minus side the facilities aren't up to much the non-Schengen flights involve a pointless walk to the other end of the building and back for arrivals and departures ditto the customs hall. Although you get 15 minutes free wifi it often isn't working. Couldn't call using Toulouse airport a pleasure but the vast majority of the time it works fine.

I travel through TLS 1 or 2 times a month and it gets worse each time I visit. The last time I went through was on a Friday afternoon flying from the new Hall D. Luckily I pre-empted the queues. The security queue was it's normal 15 minutes and once cleared passport check queue was around 30 minutes with several people nearby getting more and more irate at the pace of the queue this while half a dozen airport staff and border police sauntered past with blissful ignorance as just 2 colleagues manned the 4 strangely designed bottleneck passport check points. Once at the gate (with no time to spare due to queues) there was as per usual nothing there bar a shop selling toblerones. On return I tightened up my laces and prepared for the hike from the gate to passport check point and then onwards to arrivals. This takes roughly 6-7 minutes and if you're elderly longer. I can understand this length of walk at a major international airport but at a brand new designed terminal in little old Toulouse it makes no sense whatsoever. In addition on disembarkation from the aircraft you are welcomed by concrete dust and a general building site scene as not all boarding areas have been completed. With all the above said the new Hall D is a nice looking building but clearly at the cost of it's efficiency when compared to the older terminals in Toulouse.

The new building work on this airport is clearly not completed but my recent experience here has not been good. Check-in (EasyJet) was chaotic with staff appearing to shut down desks without explanation. Security was a complete melee taking about 30mins to get through - and if your bag is stopped expect to wait another 10 mins. My advice would be to allow an additional hour if you don't want to risk missing a flight particularly if you are checking in a bag. On the arrivals side all facilities also seem to close down early we were waiting for someone to arrive on Friday night just after 10 pm and there appeared to be nothing open.

I have used this airport about two dozen times in the past 10 years. It's reasonably compact and efficient and immensely better than the huge mess that CDG is. The airport is clean not too old and although low French standards of customer service apply I found people generally more helpful than in Paris. Security is cleared rapidly must faster than checking in with easyjet. It usually takes 10-15 minutes when scarcely crowded but more like 30-45 mins when crowded which does not often happen in my experience. My son's stroller does not fit in the X- Ray machine which although annoying the first time is a good excuse to go to a no-queue special size security screening. However this has to be authorized by the air line company and if they don't you will lose a large amount of time (queue for nothing go back to check in...) This is the only airport where I flew with the stroller (LHR DXB CDG LGW) where it has been an issue. I have never experienced a delay greater than 10 mins through border control and customs because most flights are within the EC and there are few non EU citizens. On the bad side. The airport is not so far from the city but the Taxi cartel has been successful in preventing the arrival of the tram line. Your only link to the city (except Taxis) is through a bus which only goes to a few places like the railroad station. Count 1hr to get there. Duty free shops are very limited in choice. The new "Hall D" and gates that were recently opened are far away and expect a long walk. These are mostly used by budget airlines.

I've only ever used this airport once when skiing in Andorra some years ago but the memory of the appalling rudeness of the staff lives with me still! Arrived at the airport with plenty of time to check in before our flight but spent most of this time waiting for the staff at the check in desk who were 'on their break' to serve us. When we eventually got ourselves checked in we made our way to the departure lounge where the facilities were non existent. The France - Ireland rugby game was on the same day but the television in the departure lounge was showing figure skating asked one of the airport staff if they could change the channel to the six nations received a string of expletives in return. There was a perspex box for airport users to deposit their thoughts on the airport facilities and staff but needless to say there was not paper or pens provided we could how ever read the comments that previous visitors had left they were uniformly negative. Have used Barcelona airport ever since when going skiing in the Pyrenees would recommend others do the same.

Not overly impressed with the set up at Toulouse Blagnac. Arrived on BA from LHR more or less at the same time as 2 flights from North Africa - very few frontier police on duty which caused a lengthy queue. No clear signage as to where our bags were. For the return we used the lounge which was well staffed and stocked but it is small and not air conditioned. Security was a strange affair with people queuing with the trays and sliding them along "cafeteria style". There is ample retail at this airport

Terribly disappointed by the new terminal Hall D which sadly leaves a very poor impression for Touluose. Check-in still in Hall C. Long queues and then having to join another long queue for security in Hall D itself then miles to passport control and then again long distance to actual departure gates - will be interesting to see the stats for delayed departures. Airport website talks about getting from car park to seat on aircraft "in the blink of an eye". Can't imagine what blinks that slowly! Can't imagine who designed it nor how they were allowed to build it. Arrival at it is just as bad. Signposting dreadful then armed service staff at passport control and again long distances from one part to the next. Come on Toulouse you can do much better than this.

I have used TLS many times. It is compact. Nevertheless staff and services seem to consider clients as having to be happy to be able to "use" their services. Check in often chaotic and unfriendly. Signposting confusing for "non habitués": check in zone "C" but you have to pass through zone "B" to go to the gate. Mentioning this to staff: "nous savons que ce n'est pas logique". Catering services are the worst ever seen. At the upstairs café with view you have to sit in the right chairs if not waiters refuse to walk 20 metres more to serve you. They say: "you have to respect the rules". As if clients have to adapt to them and not the opposite way. It is not possible for me to avoid this airport. But it is an example of client- unfriendliness.

Absolute nightmare at evening rush hour - security queues coming right out into the check-in area. Usual French standards of customer service - non-existent. Better than CDG but that's not saying much.

TLS is compact but easy to use. Once through security UK and Ireland flights have their own area with a few gates at one end of the terminal where there is one (reasonably good) duty free shop and a small basic cafe. BA also have a business lounge in this area. Other intra-Europe flights have a larger area of gates but again a fairly limited selection of shops and places to eat and drink. Prices are absolutely fine by airport standards (3 Euro for a coffee). On arrival baggage from within the EU arrives on Carousels 1-4 while luggage originating at airports outside the EU appears on carousel 5 which you access through a set of security doors. For those arriving from the Uk and Ireland simply walk past carousel 5 through customs out into the main arrivals area where your bags will be on carousels 1-4.