Hello Flight-Report community,
welcome to my return leg of a short trip to Paris for a week-end there. I was lucky enough to avoid the train as once again they were on strike during my stay in the French capital. It was a real mess with no metro, almost no RER and only a few buses a few hours a day.
I had also bad luck for my return to CDG. My RER (1 every 30min) was cancelled. I took a train to Aulnay and had to wait there more than 40min as the next train was late.
Flight routing
- 1
- 2AF1608 - ecpnomy - Paris CDG –> Stuttgart - EMbraer E-170
Finally I reached the CDG train station, had then to walk 5 to 10min to the terminal 2F to catch the bus to 2G. With the walk to Gare du Nord I've needed more than 2 hours to reach the checkin desk at T2G.
Here is the exit to take the bus to 2G from 2F.
I had one bag to check in. There was a short queue at the SkyPriority checkin desks.
Also the security gate was almost empty but may peple were directed to the SkyPriority lane implying a few minutes wait for the priority passengers :(
A view of the terminal 2G waiting area. Gates are announced around 30min before departure.
My way brings me to the other side of the big waiting room, to the AirFrance lounge.
Classic entry with a desk and 2 automatic machines with a boarding pass reader which is not the most convenient to use.
I have limited views of this lounge. It has been reported several times on FR - even on the english side. For dinner there is a salad bar (with VERY limited salad option), bacon (what for???), cheese and one or two warm options between quiche, potatoes tarte, or croque monsieur. Yes there are better lounges for that…
My choice, a piece of quiche, a piece of potatoes tarte and… bacon for someone who'll recognize it^^
Some cheese with that.
A few views of the lounge, one again completely full at 8pm before the last departures of the day.
Even the wine option is a pretty cheap one - the proposed Champagne is a pretty cheap one.
Snacks all day round
A take a glass just for the corporate pic on FR :)
Tonight flight
The AF and KL app inform the passengers before the info is displayed in the terminal. Strange enough one app tells me the info in ENglish, the other one in German, the language configured on my phone….
The gate area has only limited space. Waiting there is not convenient, you have to stand. Boarding was written on time but started only 15min before schedule departure. No announcement was made.
Tonight aircraft, one of the 15 E170 in the fleet.
Still branded HOP!
Door shot
Pitch shot, fully sufficient.
Our neighbor
Take care was made completely in the dark.
Take off to the West which means on the left side a nice view of Paris, starting with the surroundings of the airport.
Paris in front of you… I was right above the illuminated engine which is not good for the smartphone pics.
U-turn above the Seine in the north west of Paris.
And CDG from the sky. The round terminal is the famous T1.
The offer is good and much better than KLM at the same time. Instead of just crackers we received a small vegi sandwich.
And the crew tonight even offered a second choice as their were sandwiches left :)
Landing was on time. We parked next to these CSA Czech AIrlines A319 operating in wet lease for Eurowings. CSA completely disappeared and this is a pity as this airline was offering very good service back in the 2000s.
Disembarking through jet bridge
And waiting some 5min to my bag.
I then cached my SBahn which was working fine on this side of the border ^^
While flying with KL (Skyteam) is the most convenient way for me (due to Amsterdam being my home airport), I have yet to discover a Skyteam lounge that is ''impressive''. While flying wise it is sufficient to say, it seems that Skyteam really does not invest in their lounges like Star Alliance does... Thanks for sharing!
I really like the furniture, the colors of the AF lounge at 2G but the offer lays beyond for a flagship lounge at home airport.
Hi AirBerlin, thanks for the report!
I'll echo what ThomasDutch said about SkyTeam lounges, unless you count the La Premiere Lounge at CDG.
This looks like a fine enough short European hop.