Paris - Charles de Gaulle (CDG) > Reviews > Hang your head in shame CDG

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Advantages:	Errrr   .   .   .  none
Disadvantages:	It's horrific

Recommend to potential buyers:

no

Full review

This is quite honestly the worst airport I have ever flied into or out of, or transitted.

The very new bits (terminal 2F and the late great terminal 2E) are in general fine, well organised and large and airy.

However, the parts that aren't brand new are just a nightmare. There is vitually no signage, and that which does exist is woefully inadequate. If you are in terminal 1 (the round cupcake one), you could walk round and round the cupcake in big circles following the 'sign' for the bus stop, and never actually leave the airport.

In the rest of terminal 2, there are several sets f check-in desks, all just numbered and not differentiated from each other, so you can be standing looking at a screen saying check in ar desk 54, which may be right in front of you, but this is not the right desk 54!! Horrible.

I have found staff there (even staff working for nonCDG airlines eg. a BA checkin person) to be rude, unhelpful and extremely band-mannered. On explaining my confusion with not knowing which desk 54 to go to, I was greeted with exasperation and shouted at.

There is also a bizarre system (never seen this before) where you have to go through security with all your luggage (on a trolley fully loaded queueing around those ropes and posts) before checking in, which is a horrendous bottleneck.

I have found the terminals to be filthy and sometimes even smelly!

The best aspect of this airport is the shuttle bus which takes you straight to the train station for connections. It's very efficient (as long as you can find it in the first place) and announcements are in several languages. In addition, the RER connection to Paris is frequent and reliable.

I've used this airport well over 20 times and dread it every time.