Mike Jacoubowsky

It's taken forever in the past for me as well! But I was especially curious about how close it was going to be to the estimated baggage arrival time on the monitors, and it was spot-on. I'll go back over the photos and make sure I didn't screw up the time I listed though.

jasonp622

I landed last Saturday on the iad-cdg flight and my bags were out in 10 minutes, I suppose I had good luck or good times, we landed at 640, a little early

ctbarron

I wanted to post data points on “departing CDG to IAD on UA in Y with no status.” My first flight actually got cancelled so I got to do it twice. And thanks to Mike Jacoubowsky for all of the advice! My apologies if I use some incorrect terms below.

Day 1: left Trocadéro area at 9 AM via cab for the 12:25 departure. We got to CDG Terminal 1 at about 9:35 – very fast, even the cab driver remarked about how little traffic there was. For some reason I had “premier access” on my boarding pass (mixed cabin award tickets, maybe because I flew over to CDG in first?), so I got to check in at the premier desk. Maybe 5 minutes. No Access 1 passes. We then proceeded to passport control. There was a moderate line that did not move for the first 10 minutes or so we waited. Then they opened some other line and everything moved very quickly. Maybe 15-20 minutes total. Screening (x-ray, etc) at the gate was another 5-10 minutes, not bad. We got to our gate a bit before 10:30 AM, so less than an hour from arriving at the airport to the gate. I thought this was pretty good.

Day 2: left Madeleine area at 8 AM via cab for a re-scheduled 12:00 departure. We got to CDG at about 8:55 AM. Traffic was fine until we got off the last highway exit for CDG. We then proceeded to crawl for about 15 minutes to get dropped off at T1. No premier access this time, so I waited in the economy line. It was a solid 45 minutes. Passport control was actually better this time – maybe 10 minutes with a lot of lanes open. Screening at the gates had almost no lines – just a couple of minutes. We got to our gate a little after 10 AM, so maybe 1:15 from arrival to gate. Again, I didn’t think this was bad. On both days the crush at gate screening was around 10:15-10:30 AM, right before the ORD and a Qatar flight were departing.

Overall I found the UA staff at CDG to be mostly pleasant and competent, if a little slow. I also didn’t find the airport, despite all of the snaking around, to be that bad. Maybe I am just used to IAD. Note our luggage came out about 30 minutes after we landed at CDG, in line with what the monitors indicated. Contrast this to the 1 hour and 10 minutes we waited upon arrival at IAD.

I’ll also put in a plug for calling UA’s French call center. I had to do this to get some stuff straightened out after the cancellation and they were very helpful and efficient (although a bit brusque) – WAY better than what I get from the US.

Mike Jacoubowsky

Prepare for the worst, and hope for the best. You got best! ^

Obviously there's great variability in how things go down, likely because there are very limited light options and if a single flight is cancelled, think what ensues. Even if a flight is running late and people are trying to book a different option to make their mainland (US) connections. And yet you had exactly that experience... cancelled flight... and despite that, it all went well. You live right!

To tell you the honest truth, when I fly out of a different airport, I sorta miss CDG. Everything but the final gate area, which can often be too hot, too humid, always run-down looking and no outlets.

olouie

Taking BF CDG to ORD tomorrow. I already got my boarding passes and don't have any check in luggage. Should I still allow 2.5+ hours before my flight time?

UA-NYC

Only if you want to spend 2 hours at a very mediocre lounge and/or spartan boarding gate

1k-all-the-way

No...90 minutes should do, just make sure you got to check n counter anyway to get your Access pass there, which will give you passport and security fast track.....It's usually about 45 minutes to an hour for me with Access pass...

olouie

Thanks! Great tip about the access pass at checkin counter.

Mike Jacoubowsky

How are you getting there? Traffic variability can change your arrival time pretty significantly. The 90 minutes that some believe to be safe can quickly become shorter, and if it happens to become 59 minutes and 30 seconds like it did for me once, they might not let you on your flight (which is what happened to me... I had to re-route through AMS and spend the night there).

By the way, if you do end up with extra time, the lounge isn't that bad. Nicer than any UC I've been to anyway.

olouie

Taking the roissybus. I plan on leaving Paris opera around 7:30 which should leave plenty of time before the 11:15 departure. Fingers crossed.

JVPhoto

2 years ago I was down to the seconds with getting my bag check-in because of getting stuck on a street in the Marais boxed in my a delivery van and then a little traffic outside of the city. Since then whenever I am going to CDG I give myself more than enough time. I'd rather be bored for an extra 45 min in the airport then sweating bullets and dealing with issues.

nikolastojsin

Even with unpredictable traffic, that should be plenty of time - and Mike's opinion on the lounge is spot on, IMHO (it is OK).

However, CDG Terminal 1 at night is a unique experience - it really does look like a flying saucer from a low budget sci-fi movie from the 1960s, outside and (even more so) inside... so a walk around might be fun, if that is your cup of tea...

olouie

Too bad times are all in the AM :-) will have to come back at night one day

james darren

Hi all,

I have an Easyjet flight from Croatia which lands at Paris CDG Terminal 2D and need to transfer to United Airlines in Terminal 1 for my flight to the U.S. The flights are on separate tickets.

I understand I need to go through border control & then take the train to Terminal 1. I have no baggage to collect, just carry on. I am also flying business on United.

I have approx 95 minutes between flights. I know this is not a lot of time, but is it possible if everything goes smoothly?

Thanks...

mduell

The MCT would be 2h on a single ticket (which obviously you can't do with U2 and UA), so I would say it will be a challenge.