LOL Good one! Must be the same people who came up with the slogan "le monde entier est notre invite"... dans le bus. :D

Seriously though, 90% of it's the employees. There are other things (like 20 minute bus ride to a remote field in Belgium, followed by a long taxi to the actual runway), but if the employees tried to fake the slightest bit of interest in their jobs it would be a huge improvement. If I said their attitude was characterized by "n'emporte quoi" I would be paying them a HUGE compliment. Mass murderers jailed for life coming to work at ADP after 14 hours of hard physical labor would be friendlier and more helpful.

Many thanks for all the responses. It sounds like it may not be a particularly pleasant experience, but I should be able to make the connection. I'll relax a little.

Doesn't Matter How Early You Get To CDG - Only the "Short Line" Moves
 

My two experiences at CDG were exactly the same; (1) Arrived at one terminal, (2) walked briskly to another terminal, (3) waited in the "long line" (that never moved) until 30 minutes before the flight was scheduled to depart; (4) smartly dressed lady comes by and asks if anyone in the "long line" is going to XXX (fill in name of your destination); (5) show the smartly dressed young lady my boarding pass to XXX; (6) smartly dressed lady leads her flock to the "short line"; (7) make it through the short line with minutes to spare; (8) run through the shopping mall - all stores are empty because no one has time to stop; (9) get to the gate where GA says to hurry down the jet way; (10) no plane at end of jet-way, only stairs that lead to an over crowded bus; (11) get on bus and wait for another 30 minutes until the bus becomes really, really overcrowded; (12) bus leaves and eventually stops "way the heck out there" where the plane is waiting; (13) man-handle carry-ons up the stairs to the plane (zone 1 people are those that were the last ones on the bus - they are closest to the door); (14) find seat on plane, first chance to sit down for last three hours.

Two weeks ago at CDG, one of the orange coats checked my ticket and sent me to a security line. I waited in security for a sweaty hour before being told I was at the wrong checkpoint and sent to the other terminal. :mad:

Between bus/passport control/security line/terminal transfer/passport control/security line... I could not have made two hours.

I used to fly 2x a month to CDG, always with 1:55 connection time. I never missed my connection, but more than a few times I arrived at the gate after they had begun boarding...

CDs
 

One must be careful there. If one arrives at a remote area, is bussed in, and changes terminals then security, 2 hours is not enough. Best

Dl direct to dxb
 

Good Point. I have done both ways and do like a stop at CDG for a shower, drinks, and food in the AF lounge in 2E.

I did four CDG connections in a five-week span earlier this year, the first times I had ever done so (2 roundtrip award tickets, all on AF).

To add another (redundant) data point: 2 hours should be fine, but CDG is a dump. Where the option exists, AMS over CDG in a heartbeat

Is AMS better in terms of organization and helpfulness of employees? Absolutely. Should you have any great difficulty making a connection within your 2 hour time frame in CDG? Absolutely.

I would not agree on this statement. Due to late arrival of the TATL plane, my last connection from SEA to PRG was cut down from 75 to 40 minutes, involving bussing from a remote stand, immigration in 2E, changing 2E to 2D and reclearing security and I (and my whole family) made the connection, however last pax to board. If you are Elite+ and can use fasttrack, it is usually really fast.

If you know well CDG, transfers are easy and painless, but I agree that signs are sometimes confusing and don't expect anybody to help you.

Just for the record, two hours stands as the dead minimum from an international flight connecting time that I would book at CDG.

This with a working knowledge of the place and all of the "fast track" privileges that may be available.

There are just too many things that can go wrong at that place.

There toilets, and there are toilets...

It is a star compared to say, JFK, but a pain compared to AMS....

After they repaired and replaced 2E and add the S terminal things have gotten much better. Frankly CDG is easier in most ways than FRA.

Really? So many posters here have commented on the favorite statement of KLM staff, 'That is not possible,' that it is cliche.

it also largely depends on what the two terminals are you'll be using. Going from any terminal to the G terminal is a nightmare and takes the longest time.

CDG is so, so, so much better than it was after the infamous ceiling collapse, when every gate was a bus gate. Now, the majority of flights get a proper gate.

Signage can be very confusing for first-timers, but once you get the hang of it, CDG really isn't that bad, IMO. It's clean, the lounges are nice, etc. Just make sure you use the "Acces No. 1" lanes at all checkpoints. This is CDG-speak for SkyPriority.