Basel Mulhouse Airport

We found this airport dismal with inefficient security staff. Who were also surly and rude. Will not fly there again.

Its not such a big airport and not so busy. I fly every year from Basel to Venice in autumn with easyJet and its always good. The security check is very fast. The terminal is very clean and the seat options are big. The best in the terminal is the Lounge its one of the best lounge worldwide and the architecture is great.

Most disappointing airport in Europe I have used. Despite it being quite busy there were only two lines for security so this took us an age to get through. However the biggest disappointment was the lack of facilities after security (we were in gates 22-32). After passport control on the part of the airport we were in there were no shops and just one very expensive place selling a small selection of food. At the very minimum I would expect a couple of shops including somewhere to but a drink at a soft drink at a reasonable price (there were vending machines and that was it)!

Beware the surly Swissport employees who are not so nice and usually not so helpful. I travel to and from this airport frequently and have never had a nice encounter with a Swissport employee. Furthermore at times the security check for BSL can be incredibly long and slow. If there is a line be prepared to wait up to 30 minutes. For such a small airport it seems counter intuitive to have such long queues for security.

Using Basel airport with British Airways. The airport is situated in France and run by French staff most of which are impolite or not bothered to say the least do not speak any foreign language (i.e. German or English - bearing in mind that they work on the Swiss side of the airport and should at least have some rudimentary understanding that they may have to converse in German at Basel or the lingua franca which is English and not French) and have a 'cannot do' attitude to customers. The security staff simply do not understand that BA's Club Europe is Business Class and try to refuse entry to fast track. This is even more surprising given that only Turkish Airlines Swiss Lufthansa Air France and BA operate from and to Basel as proper international airlines and surely it cannot be that hard to learn their business class products. This has been happening for the last three - four months now. The airport facilities are extremely poor. The duty free shopping offers prices anyone can get on the high street and the food & beverage facilities are not clean extremely expensive for what they offer and offer very limited choice. The public toilets are dirty beyond belief.

Basel is a compact airport where you don't get lost or have to walk for miles to the departure gate. Luggage is delivered quickly. Hire cars are available close to the terminal. The trip to Basel city can take as little as 15 minutes by taxi or a bit longer by public bus.

Small compact airport run in a lazy manner. At busy times its not unusual to wait 45 minutes or more to check-in at the Swiss desks due to limited staff. There is almost no use of jet ways (despite there being plenty on the apron) and anyone with walking difficulties will be frustrated by the poor gate design which fails to consider access (lots of stairs) and the attitude of indifferent staff who meet requests for assistance with shrugged shoulders. There is an extremely limited choice of duty free shops and cafe's in the airport. Getting to and from the airport is via the number 50 bus which runs at regular intervals to the city or by taxi which are among the most expensive in the world - more than double the rates of London cabs.

Basel-Mulhouse is a pleasant and convenient airport. Luggage delivery usually quick. Baggage claim area has two distinct exits - to France and to Switzerland. On the Swiss side very helpful and friendly public transportation desk. Bus line 50 connects the airport to Basel central station every 10 mins - reliable service at CHF5.80 one-way travel time around 20 mins. On the French side more limited service - no direct connection to Mulhouse: a shuttle bus brings you first to Saint-Louis railway station from there you can catch a regional train to Mulhouse. Upon departure check-in at the self-service machines hassle-free. No queue at security but staff prefers speaking French than English. In the public area large terrace with nice views on the apron. The restaurant on the Swiss side is truly delicious with decent prices; but I would rather avoid the bistro on the French side - gloomy with only basic food. Boarding gates are lacking proper airconditioning so that it can quickly become very warm there. French domestic flights are cheaper when entering MLH Mulhouse as destination - on the opposite international flights are cheaper with BSL Basel as destination.

Looks/feels like an oversized airport & if you're in hurry not so fine to see advertisement or something like that on the flight info screens. Transfer here is absolute very easy if you already know your way. A very clean airport with a lots of well-priced shop & nice cafes. Take a try instead of Zurich here if you don't like crowded ones. Well worth.

Excellent airport although it seems rather under-utilised (or unnecessarily big if you prefer). Arrival with LH was easy and pleasant with quick baggage and laid-back passport control. Departing a few days later with BA was the same although I wouldn't fancy going through security if the airport was very busy - few channels and slightly officious French staff with little or no English. Maybe we were just unlucky. Anyhow it was no more than a small blip on an otherwise good experience.