Toronto, Canada (YYZ)

Advantages: clean, good security
Disadvantages: long queues at immigration, customs, security and baggage claim, not much shopping or dining

...are planning a trip to Toronto, you will encounter Toronto Pearson International Airport, also known as Lester B. Pearson International Airport or YYZ. The airport now consists of three terminals. Established in 1939, this airport is located approximately 20 miles from downtown Toronto and is ranked at number 28 amongst the world's busiest airports, handling nearly 30 million passengers in 2005. But is the airport really equipped to please all these ...
...British Airways means that you will be arriving at and departing from Terminal 3, which was built in 1989 to offset traffic from Terminals 1 and 2. As you disembark from your airplane, you will be asked to have your passports ready for inspection, as immigration officers will meet you at the end of the gangway before entering the terminal. We found the process to be very slow, as immigration officials are quite thorough in their approach, often ... Read review

Advantages: Quickly through Candian immigration & customs
Disadvantages: Far too much walking!

Recently I had the misfortune to fly into Pearson International Airport on a trip from Glasgow to Atlanta. Nothing wrong with the flight, or indeed with the view on the way in (Toronto looks like a beautiful city from the air, just on the edge of Lake Ontario). The airport itself is pretty grim, with lots of concrete in evidence. However I had been told about this, and even warned that there was lots of walking to do, but trust me you cannot prepare ...
...upon landing it seemed okay. Canadian immigration was very swift in processing us, and once we survived the bun-fight to get our bags customs was okay too. We then deposited the bags and started walking as the shuttle buses to terminal 2 were not in evidence. We walked and walked and walked. By the time we got through American immigration and customs it had been an hour and a half since we landed. My girlfriend was exhausted and desperately needed ... Read review

Advantages: Good food.
Disadvantages: No order in the gates, people weren't very helpful and my legs got tired.

I first stepped foot into the Toronto airport on my way to Edmonton. I was talking to a guy beside me, also heading to Edmonton, and he was telling me how terribly confusing it was to try and find your way around this airport. Well, let me tell you, I wasn't about to take his word for it. No, I thought I could figure it out no problem. First I stepped out from my gate and asked the nearest person where my gate was. He stared down at my ticket, stared ...
...I think I had realized that he had no clue at all before he did because after a few half sentences and a couple scratches of the head. He handed me my ticket and walked off. It was about at this time that I thought I would start walking and hopefully make some sort of sense out of the gate order. Well, this was definitely my first mistake. I walked around for about 45 minutes until I had realized that there was no sort of order at all! Enough was ... Read review

Advantages: Rats love it!
Disadvantages: Old, dangerous, depressing, bad design, no services, dirty, rude staff, Satan as a neighbour

Few airports can offer a more depressing or unpleasant experience than Pearson International (YYZ) in Mississauga, near Toronto. But arriving at the airport is like Russian Roulette - fly into Terminal 3 and enjoy a world-class terminal; fly into Terminal 2 and you can survive on an old badly-designed building that has been rebuilt to some improvement; but fly into Terminal 1 and say goodbye to all that is right with the world. Terminal 1 was a disaster ...
...the parking gagrage on the TOP of the Terminal. This has essentially turned the guest areas into prisoner of the concrete garage above, as it crumbles on the cars - many of its floors are closed and near collapse, and concrete often falls right onto parked vehicles, with rusty rebar poking out everywhere. A trip in the 1960's death-trap elevators takes you to the Terminal below (if they work). Arriving in Terminal One means you will have to traverse ... Read review

Advantages: Big, Shiny, New
Disadvantages: Rail link between terminals incomplete; Some flights still leave from old T2

Ignore those pre-2004 reviews -- they describe a state of affairs that simply doesn't exist anymore. I have been flying in and out of Pearson for years, and the new Terminal 1 makes all the difference in the world. Though a portion of it is still under construction, most Air Canada flights (and those of its Star Alliance partners) now use the new terminal. It is well laid out, architecturally impressive, and features attractive dining and shopping. ...
...CDG. With its sweeping ceiling in the main concourse, I prefer to think of it as a modern version of Dulles International in Washington. Users of other carriers, particularly discounters and carriers from countries with few connections to Canada, will typically land at Terminal 3, which was built in the early 1990s and is still quite attractive and serviceable. There is a hotel attached directly to this terminal for those who want to sleep in until ... Read review