All change at Lyon Airport

[andyh4]

Just a heads up to those that use Lyon St. Exupery airport, that the new terminal is now in operation. BA and EasyJet are in the new hall 1B. Flybe remains in the old terminal 1 - now 1A.

Hall 1B is a good 5-10 minutes walk from the main terminals and further in walking distance than the old terminal 3 tent that EasyJet used to use.

EDIT: and just to say there is no local parking to 1B apart from drop off. So it is a substantial parking fee to help a passenger through to air-side.

When I used it last weekend (Flybe flight), the security procedures were clearly still being optimised and there were significant delays. Don't leave your arrival to the last minute.

BA (I think the acronym perhaps says it all, but if they are your only option........) sorry, British Airways bag drop remains the catastrophe that it was in the old terminal - allow an hour from gate opening to actually handing over a bag. It is quicker (by as much as 30 minutes) to turn up without a boarding card than print out your boarding card at home and try to let them handle your bags for onward shipment to your destination (you hope).

The new departure lounge is very glitzy and set up to relieve you of your disposable income. I did not check for bargains and I doubt there are many.

Finding your gate seems to be relatively easy and is well signed.

[idun]

Pleased you posted this andyh4 as I had been wondering about using St Exupery and had decided that at the moment I would not manage it, and now I know I wouldn't with these changes.

A ten minute walk for some is now about a 20 minute one at least for me at the moment. Do they not have any of those flat escalator type flat whisk you along thingys. I would be OK on them.

I loathe the place, never found staff that were other than rude and in spite of it's relatively small size hard to navigate. You sound as if you are used to it, but I am not.

I know people who do not like Cointrin, but I do, a lot, next best Chambery Airport, but that is not doing lots of it's flights anymore.

[alittlebitfrench]

I agree with Idun.

When I lived in Lyon a decade or so ago I flew in and out many times with 'Go'. Remember Go ??

Yes, the airport was a dump with rude staff that hated their job. Has it got better ? Not my preferred choice of airport to fly in and out of.

I preferred Saint-Étienne–Bouthéon to get back to the UK.

I was interviewed on telly there by France 3 when Ryanair started flying into the airport. They did not understand a word I was saying.

[idun]

Well I would not say that about, St Exupery I don't think it is  a dump, in fact I found it rather smart, everything else I cannot stand about it.........Just look at parts of Roissy, now they are are a 1970's nightmare, what a dump that is.

Never flown from St Etienne, in spite of it being called Lyon Airport by some airlines, it was too far away and too hard to get to.

[andyh4]

I think that once the work is completed the walk will be shorter (maybe 2-3 minutes) - but no obvious signs of any travellators so it will be a walk. Hopefully the work currently being done will provide parking close to the new terminal.

Yes I have used Lyon a lot - until I retired probably once a week on average. I pretty much agree with ALBF, that as a building it had little to commend itself - it is at least now moderately attractive, but as you both say, the staff need to have some human interaction training.

For me there was really only a choice between Lyon and Marseille (which was no better than Lyon on facilities and staff). St Etienne would have been great if only I had ever needed to fly with a loco to Istanbul or Porto - and I never did. Not sure who uses it these days.

Grenoble seems to be limited to ski season flights to anywhere I would want to go to and Avignon is limited to Jet2 schedules and destinations.

Roissy - well also not good, but I would have put it better than either Lyon or Marseille until the Lyon upgrade.

[idun]

I had problems last twice I used Roissy.

Once the check ins were not working and they would not/could not check anyone else in, so there were three or was it five of us on the flight, plus the crew ofcourse.

Second occasion, the screens were not working and I nearly missed my flight, how others knew that they had to get to the gate, I have no idea.

And  that terminal I had to use,  looked like a grubby set from a 70's spy thriller......... just not nice.

I know it would cost more by train, but would not Cointrin be an option

for you andy, direct trains surely from the Rhone Valley and then a very

quick ride also by train to Cointrin  from Cornavin station.

edit,

First time I used Satolas, as it was then called and VERY easy for this anglaise to say, was in 1981 and it was OK. Nothing special, nothing to criticise either.

I remember, would be about 20 years ago, and I had to  pick my son up and the new parking and the building were a bloody nightmare and I avoid the place, then they changed the name to put me off even more. And the trains, in spite of the fanciest of gares, so few actually stop. Madness not being able to catch a train at Aix les Bains or Chambery and not get there without going into Lyon first.

[andyh4]

Cointrin is the best part of 300km (3hrs 30) away compared with Lyon at 150km (2 hours 10) and Marseille at 240km (3 hours), so is not really a good option.

I agree about St. Exupery railway station - even though at one stage I used it regularly to take one of the very few trains to Valence. Beautiful building but awful services.

The airport publicity booklet made much of the integrated station where you could get high speed trains direct to Paris, Marseille or Milan. Well if you are at an airport I would suggest that catching a plane to all of those places would be a better bet - and yes there are direct flights to them all!