Paris Charles De Gaulle Airport Arrivals (CDG)

Charles de Gaulle Airport is nearby the city of Paris, famous for attractions such as the Eiffel Tower and Disneyland Paris that are visited by millions of tourists every year. The airport is an important gateway for both tourists and business professionals, and is one of the largest airports in the world, with over 58 million passengers per annum. Charles de Gaulle is also the busiest airport in France, and is commonly referred to as the Roissy Airport, due to its location alongside Roissy-en-France. The official code of the airport is CDG. Passengers on Charles de Gaulle arrival flights will find all the facilities they require within the large terminal buildings, and can leave the airport by several modes of transport as well.

Passengers will arrive in one of three terminals, referred to as Terminal 1, Terminal 2 and Terminal 3. In Terminal 1, the baggage reclaim areas and facilities are located on the fifth level. Passengers will also exit the airport at this level, to find connections with buses and taxis for transport to their next destination. The third and fourth floors are used for departure proceedings, while the second floor offers numerous shops and restaurants. The upper floors of this building are dedicated to administration offices of the airport and airline companies. Terminal 1 is the largest building of Charles de Gaulle Airport, and was the first to be constructed. Its unique design has also attracted the interest of many movie producers in the past. It can be described as an ‘octopus’ shape, with a central circular building, and seven satellites for arrivals and departures by various airline carriers.

Terminal 2 is another very large building on the airport’s grounds, and consists of multiple sub-terminals, referred to as 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D, 2E, 2F and 2G, which is the latest addition to this part of the airport. 2G is also separate from the other terminals. The terminals are all connected by underground or above ground-level passageways, and moving walkways assist passengers with longer distances. Terminal 2 is the home of Air France, an airline company for which the airport is a major hub. Since its various extensions, many other airline companies use this building as well. Passengers on charter or low-cost airline carriers will arrive at Terminal 3, which is a simpler building of just a single hall. The Roissypole centre is also found nearby, with shops, restaurants, offices and various hotels, convenient for arriving passengers on transfer flights who need to stay over for the night. Hotels nearby include the Hilton Paris Charles de Gaulle, the Sheraton CDG Paris Airport Hotel and the Sofitel Roissy Charles de Gaulle Aeroport.

Nowadays, at many airports in France, arriving passengers can more easily cross the border, by using the PARAFE program. The wording of PARAFE stands for Automated Fast Track Crossing at External Borders. This is a fairly new service at many airports, and is free of charge and instant upon registration. Passengers will simply insert their passport into the terminal according to the onscreen instructions, enter the airlock gate and place their finger on the scanner to exit, and cross the border. Passengers clear of passport control and all customs procedures can then make their way to the baggage reclaim area, to collect their baggage. Within the airport arrival areas, offices of the airline companies will be able to provide assistance should your baggage have been misplaced or damaged. Any lost or damaged luggage items should be immediately reported to the relevant authorities.

Facilities at the airport are extensive, and for those with some time to spare, many top-class restaurants, bars, cafés and shops can be enjoyed in the public areas of the airport. There are also many travel agents and tour operators available, general information and tourist information services and the Charles de Gaulle Airport car rental companies in the arrival areas. Car hire is offered by all the internationally known car rental companies, such as Hertz, Avis, Sixt, National, Alamo, Europcar, Budget, Easycar and Auto Europa. If a transfer to another terminal building is required, passengers will use the CDGVAL automated light rail transport system. The CDGVAL also links the terminals to the remote long-term parking areas and the railway stations of the airport.

Passengers who are ready to leave the airport can collect their vehicles from the car parking lots, or are able to make use of the various forms of public transport options, which include by bus, train and taxi. At the airport, there are a couple of railway stations, including a TGV station for trains that take passengers to other cities in France. The RER B train services available from any of the RER stations travel to Paris in just forty minutes. The bus services are the Roissybus travelling to the Paris Opéra Station, the 350 Bus to Gare de l’Est, the 351 Bus to Paris Nation, and the Les Cars Air France buses, which take passengers to the centre of Paris, the Paris Orly Airport and to the railway stations of Gare de Lyon and Gare Montparnasse. A night bus service is also available, and is known as the Noctilien Night Bus, while others travel to Disneyland Paris. Taxi ranks can be found outside the arrival areas of each terminal building.

Arriving passengers who have decided to rent a car can reach Paris by the A1 motorway, in about forty-five minutes, depending on traffic conditions. Many other areas nearby are also well worth exploration, and are easily accessed by road. Details for Charles de Gaulle arrivals can be found online, or from the information desks within the terminals.