Beauvais Airport

Terrible - will not use this airport ever again no matter how cheap the flight! Our flight was at 3pm and we were at the airport before 1.15pm but nearly missed it. They do not seem to be able to cope and why do they have to check your passport 4 times before you even get on the plane. No queues just people herded together for 1 man to take 5 minutes to look at each passport with no regard to the mounting mass of people or that flights were waiting to take off. Chaos and stressed out passengers. It was a relief to get home and this is not what you need after a lovely holiday in Paris. Be warned too because the shuttle buses only operate at set times. We got to the collection point for 12 noon to be told that there would not be another bus until 1.15pm which would mean we and a load of other passengers who arrived at the same time and after us would not make it for our flights. Had to share a taxi to the airport with other passengers and it cost every passenger EU35 and no refund if you had bought a return ticket for the shuttle. You are not told this when you buy the return ticket and you miss the signs when you arrive as you head across the car park to get the metro or train to your destination. A lot of unhappy people so don't get caught out with the shuttle bus.

There is now a second terminal which has eased the overcrowding. It's a very short walk from the long-term car park which is great - except that the cost of parking for my next trip is treble the air fare. Still no bus to Beauvais from Rouen hardly surprising since I've only been lobbying for one for nine years. You know how things move in France - Rouen tourism office says 'we have enough tourists we don't need a bus to Beauvais' (an hour away!) The cost of Beauvais parking is now driving me back to flying Aer Lingus from CDG when possible which is more cheaply accessible by train + bus.

The wait area for check in seemed more like a cafeteria with dirty iron chairs than an airport. Maybe I'm spoiled because I'm used to airports having wifi decent and enough places to sit and a heating system? It was freezing. When we could finally check in and proceed to security people were so crowded together into the unorganized mob inching toward the boarding pass checker I could feel breath on my head. It took 40 minutes to get through security - only 3 lanes were open to accommodate the herd of cattle pushing and standing uncomfortably close to each other. The other side of security was not much better with no place to plug in a laptop and only one cafe and a duty free store. Flight was delayed an hour and a half. No tunnels to get into the plane so we were freezing waiting in the line. Hugely uncomfortable. Return trip to Beauvais was more bearable because we were just passing through but my luggage came onto the conveyor belt soaked through from the rain.

Used to be a great airport - even had the free parking that makes so many French airports a joy - but now Beauvais is a victim of its own success. Chaotically overcrowded expensive confrontational and stressful. The staff do their best but the overcrowding simply frazzles everyone. Parking often costs more than airfare. There's still no bus to Rouen Dieppe or anywhere bar Paris. Seating is inadequate and even with the new extension + pre-printed boarding cards the check-in queues are a nightmare. Rows with Ryanair over baggage are never- ending and it's not uncommon to see passengers in tears. I've started to use CDG in preference - getting there is cheaper than parking at Beauvais for any trip of more than a few days' duration and Aer Lingus is a far more restful option than Ryanair. Sad to say all this - used to love using this airport but now dread it. Wonder if management cares about passenger comments?

Beauvais was utter chaos when I travelled from there to Dublin. We arrived 2 and a half hours before departure and still almost missed the flight. Security were so slow it seemed like it was intentional. Why do the bag checkers need to look at everyone's passport when its already been checked by immigration. Loads of people missed the flight. Chaos.

From Beauvais Airport you can take one of the shuttle buses to Paris. The journey takes between 45 minutes and an hour depending on traffic. If you arrive on a busy day make sure you have your ticket bought before you land or you might have to wait for a later bus. To get to Disney it can take up to 3 hours!Take an airport transfer service.

This once great little airport has outgrown itself. When there were just 2 or 3 flights a day this airport was a pleasure to use. The problem is that there are now many flights and further expansion is planned. This would be fine if the facilities were developed in parallel. I arrived one hour before my flight having checked-in online to find the car parks at near saturation point. A helpful attendant invited me to leave my car at the end of a row but outside a normal parking space. In the terminal there was a very long queue to go through passport control & security. This was because insufficient staff were on duty for the number of passengers. This is inexcusable as surely the authorities must know the number of passengers expected beforehand. it also represents a loss for the airport as many passengers - myself included no longer had time to visit the shops. Although at the airport one hour before the flight I only boarded 10 minutes before departure due to these inadequacies. The other major problem at this airport is access. If your destination/departure point is Paris there's no problem. If it's anywhere else there is virtually no other choice than to use a car and be subjected to the monopolistic practices of using the airport car parks. There is a bus to Beauvais but its infrequency is as good as to render it useless. This airport needs to invest fast in additional parking quicker security and larger departure lounges. The bus service to Beauvais needs to be increased to at least one bus per hour to allow the surrounding communities to benefit from what is after all Beauvais airport rather than Paris airport.

We travelled to Paris from Dublin I use a wheelchair and this was my first time to travel in a plane as you can imagine I was very apprehensive on how I would manage. I have only commendation for the staff at Beauvais Airport and for the staff on the airport bus they were fantastic from the moment we came of the plane they were there to help my husband and I and when we got to the bus the guys there were just as helpful I would say from them all I got 5 star treatment. The bus was great the driver and staff made sure that I was able to get on the bus and that I was comfortable on both journeys to and from the airport. I would have no hesitation in flying to Beauvais Airport or using the airport bus.

Do not go there when there are more than 5 flights going out in any one hour as there are only 4 gates. Departure Hall is a health and safety case. The volumes of passengers and the airport at peak times are incompatible with even the most basic service levels or safety. Surely these places have to undergo some basic inspections and approval. As for the bus to and from Port Maillot. They take only a little longer than some of the transfers to Orly or CDG though frequency can be an issue. They work fine but are best booked on line. Here's the rub if you save on the Ryaniar flight consider the cost together with the bus fare you may find flying with another carrier to Orly and CDG cheaper all told!

A mixed experience. Fog meant that we didn't use BVA inbound the flight was diverted to Lille. On our return we utilised the connecting bus service which worked well though there was an argument about our tickets which we hadn't used when we arrived due to the diversion. Best idea is to purchase them at the time - you don't save anything by buying them online and could be lumbered with them if your plans have to change. Our flight departed at 22:50. Unfortunately four other flights were also departing at round about the same time and Beauvais struggled to cope. The space available airside is limited and staff struggled to inject some order into those passing through security and passport control. The other side was just a seething mass of humanity with people sat on the floor or milling about waiting for their flight to be called. There was a duty free shop and a cafe but these could not provide respite from the hundreds of passengers awaiting departure. If you are lucky enough to be there at a less busy time I am sure that Beauvais will be a perfectly good little airport but it certainly could do with some sort of expansion to cope with increasing demand.