Mumbai Airport

This is the third time I have been to India and in the past I found the international customs and immigration staff to be utterly rude and obnoxious but this time they have out-done themselves by displaying impossibly rude behavior. They have no courtesy and don't respect families travelling together. Children are expected to go through procedures without parents and moreover parents are expected to go through boarding gates while children are still waiting in queues. My last visit and departure on Christmas Day was the worse I have experienced. I doubt I will return to India soon. I sincerely hope the airport staff can be trained in manners and courtesy. Much can be accomplished with a smile and simple etiquette.

Used airport for flights to Hyderabad Delhi and Goa. Check in facilities are limited because of the size. Long lines for some airlines. Security tends to have long queues especially for the Jet and Indigo gates. Gates for Air India used by other airlines in terminal 1A is better. Selection of shops and places to eat is better. Taxi queues tend to take time. Still crowded and needs to be bigger.

A tale of two halves. Arrival was complete and utter chaos. Long lines at immigration and baggage took ages to arrive not helped by the constant breaking down of the belt. Novice travellers must find this process so upsetting. Departure on the other hand was a breeze. Immigration was fully manned staff pleasant security the same. If only they could improve the arrivals then it would be a bearable airport.

I used it twice: first as a transit passenger on the domestic terminal. It's too small and overcrowded and do not expect to have the information on TV screens about gate confirmation and status of your flight as everywhere else in the world. Then the following early morning International departure. This is a mess especially the luggage/boarding card inspection which is painfully inadequate (only 1 machine working at a time when a lot of western-bound flights are leaving) terribly inefficient. My computer bag with exactly the same content had been going through fluently at Ahemadabad and Pune here I had to empty everything including the electrical chords and it went 3 times into the single machine no wonder we waited 1.5 hours. They seem to have a problem with the metal detector too everybody going through it at least twice. Avoid if you can.

I'm a regular flyer through Mumbai airport. I do this trip 4 times a year. The Indian system is a pain but it's very clever and simple. No stamp on your hand baggage and you cannot board the aircraft until it's been screened. Also only allowing people with their names on the manifest to enter the building whilst not completely foolproof adds to the layer of security. I have never found the staff rude or unhelpful. Anyway I wish our people at Heathrow were a little sharper.

Badly organized airport which for me also receives the prize of dirtiest airport. Access to airport is bad security up on entering airport terminal badly organized. Check in can be fast depending on airline and if you can check in using priority status. Passport control upon arrival and departure is slow. Security checking area much too small and slow. Lounge I used was overcrowded dirty and food served very poor quality. Duty free available. Lets hope for much improvement.

BKK-BOM-LHR on 11th September with Jet Airways security-inspection of baggage continues to be slow and unfriendly here far worse than Delhi! It is unacceptable that your wallets/passports/money can be out-of- your-sight for up to 10 minutes while you wait to be allowed to go through the people-scanner which doesn't seem to be working since they then frisk you thoroughly again! Saying good-evening or smiling at the security-people is a complete waste of time they simply don't want to be there and will blank you. Time for some people-skills training. Once you reach the departure-lounge it's hot and dirty if this is the transit-experience at an international-airport then it doesn't recommend the country itself as a place I'd ever want to visit.

Mumbai airport has improved considerably. Immigration was quick and customs was a breeze. The baggage arrived quickly. The domestic terminal was remarkably clean and facilities were fine however the domestic terminals are far superior. However the authorities need to lift standards to global level.

Very bad experience! Landed at the airport at 11pm and did not get through security until 2.30 am. Different lines for men and woman so my husband was done an 1 hr before I was. Cutting in line by many people lead to more delays. People working there had no idea what they were doing. Clean it up organize the lines and train staff correctly! I would not recommend this airport.

Couple of flights taken out of Mumbai in the last few months. Spicejet early morning flight to Kochi was out of terminal 1B. Terrible queues at Spicejet counters. Security check even longer. Got there very early but only got to departure gate with 5 minutes to go for boarding. Other flight on Jet to Ahmedabad also from terminal B. Also early morning. Jet check in fast and efficient. Flight was parked at terminal 1A so much better security and much nicer terminal. All flights on time.