Bergerac Airport

[Blodwyn]

A tiny airport with one or two flights a day and the slowest possible passport check! We went to meet our son this morning. The plane had already landed and we thought we might get away with the half hour free parking. No chance! People emerged from the arrivals hall at a rate of about one every two minutes. We overstayed by 15 minutes and had to pay 4 euros - not much, but a lot for 15 minutes. There were still quite a few people waiting for people to appear. It's not recent, it's been like that for a year or two. The officials type passengers' passport numbers into a computer, then put the passport into a scanner. I think they are paid by the hour! A bit annoying.

[lindal1000]

It has got worse recently because of increased checks that are being applied to people coming in and out from non-Schengen countries as part of the measures in increase security at Schengen borders. Apparently they have employed a few more customs officers but there are still only two check points. Also Bergerac doesn't have an automatic scanning system, so as you say, all numbers have to be typed in manually. On a full flight it can take over an hour to get everyone through.

[alittlebitfrench]

Bergerac airport. LOL. Sounds like hell.....and i am not talking about the wait.

Give me Beauvais any day. LOL

[Chancer]

Only an ex-pat could moan about paying €4 for parking for 45 minutes plus at an airport [:D]

 

And then make out it was €4 for 15 minutes [:'(]

 

Its that much a minute at the short stay car park at Gatwick, probably more now as my knowledge is at least 12 years out of date.

[mint]

I'd have paid more just visiting a friend in the local hospital back in Wales and parking in their car park.  

Have no idea if the staff had to pay as well[+o(]

[Chancer]

Actually on reflection having a pop at the OP was very hippocritical of me, as someone that has not paid a penny for parking in the UK (whose prices I was citing) since I have been on French plates I should fermer la gueule[:$]

 

With all the UK reg cars reportedly seen at Bergerac airport its probably very few that actually pay [:D] 

[alittlebitfrench]

I thought the car park at Bergerac airport was an unofficial scrap yard. LOL

Anyway, all this little regional airports will be closing soon after Brexit. Ryanair admits they may cut these routes.

I have heard that Tours airport may close next year.

[Chancer]

Dont know about little regional airports but our brand new in 2007 international airport has yet to recieve its first flight!!!

 

Didn't stop them from building a 2nd terminal building when the first had still not recieved one passenger, I have customers who come several times a year to maintain and calibrate the radar and ILS systems, the baggage handling conveyors, the X ray scanners etc, when they see me doing the menage they joke that I could do thir job, all it involves is dusting away the cobwebs.

 

The fire crews there will probably finish their career without ever leaving the rest lounge [:D]

 

There will be a lot of attrition in the regional airports.

[woolybanana]

Socialist airports and spending?

ALBF, you send almost joyful that these small airports should lose flights; besides the loss of jobs, it is the convenience and pleasure of air travel to the heart of France which will be destroyed, plus the many,many FRench people who fly out of France will lose out too.

Maybe you wish this on expats/immigrants in your psychotic view of (mainly) Brits who choose to make their lives here, to invest here and to attempt (sometimes feebly, admittedly) to learn the language and about the culture of France.

Remember, you will always be an outsider too. Let's call you Never Quite French

[alittlebitfrench]

That was quite funny Wooly...'Never quite French'. I like that. Not as good as 'birdfoodmiles'. LOL

Now Wooly, back to the thread. Ummmm, no I quite like the idea of regional airports. I had to work (many years ago) in the UK on a contract and I was commuting using many regional airports. I think I have flown into most. Well not those in the SW. Nimes was my favourite. St Ettiene was nice.

I think a lot of expats buy property in France based on these airports. Personally, I don't think that is a good idea.

[woolybanana]

Just for once, we agree, NQF, very dangerous to buy based on an airport.

[Hoddy]

ALBF like much of your information about the Dordogne, yours about the parking at Bergerac Airport is out of date. The junk yard scenario ended several years ago.

I think Blodwyn has fallen foul of the arrangements this year where they have introduced a new short-stay car park. This has unfortunately coincided with delays at the arrivals passport control.

For a comparison, at East Midlands Airport the pick up costs are £2.00 for 10 minutes and £1 for every minute after that. I live near EMA and wait in a supermarket car park until they ring to tell me they are out of the airport checks. That would work at Bergerac.

[woolybanana]

Crafty, Hoody, but do you choose Lidl or Aldi as opposed to an expensive supermarket car park?

[alittlebitfrench]

LOL

Hoody, I made the 'junk yard' comment up.

I just guessed that during the 'boom' period a lot of people moved over after watching 'a place in the sun' and realised that France was not for them (or they run out of money) and just dumped their car at Bergerac and flew home.

I really had no idea it was true.

[woolybanana]

Both Poitiers and La Rochelle had a problem with expats dumping their cars in the, then, free car parks and by the sides of the road roundabout. Hopefully sorted now by the crusher.

Many, many years ago there was a similar problem at one end of the seafront in Dieppe, when the ferries came in and out of the old seaport.

Youngsters travelling round used to dump old camping vans there and leave them as it was cheaper than taking them back; I remember some prime examples of aged and very rusty old Bedford (?) sliding door vans left there.

[lindal1000]

Bergerac airport is very convenient for many of us and flights have actually increased in recent years..BA now fly from City over the summer and there are many more flights to other parts of France and Europe. Summer months you are spoilt for choice and the new works are a big improvement on what was once no more than a tin hut for arrivals and departures. However, no one moving to this part of the world needs to worry about the airport closing or reducing flights as Bordeaux is only an hour away where you can fly just about anywhere all year round.

When OH picks me up from Bergerac he waits til I call him from the arrivals hall before setting off.

[Gardian]

Where we are in the NE Gard, we are rather spoiled for choice over provincial airports. That statement in itself tends to point towards one or two of them at least losing their services, but I've thought that for years and not much has changed.

From east to west, we have Avignon, Nimes, Montpellier, & Beziers. Montpellier is the biggest and as airports go, is quite a nice place to fly out of. Avignon is little more than an airfield, but no worse for that.

We did use Carcassonne once a year ago and it was grim, largely because there were 4 Ryanair flights at more or less the same time and none of the facilities could cope. To be fair, they are expanding the airport buildings.

Ultimately, the market will decide over any provincial airport's future. Low load factors = destination dropped.

For that reason, if there's a major fall-off in load factors, I could see Montpellier as the only survivor.

[Patf]

Tarbes/ Lourdes is like that, in fact the first time I went to meet someone there I drove right past it, it's so small. But parking is free.

Toulouse used to be, but now you can get lost in there and parking is well organised, but confusing for me.

[Gardengirl]

As Gardian says, we are well-endowed with airports in this area, but as well as those he lists, some in our residence use Nice, and most of our family fly Gatwick to Marseille as Gatwick is so easy to get to from their homes.

There has been talk of Nîmes airport's possible closure for years, but the stationing this year of the canadairs and other planes in the fleet that bomb fires with water at Nîmes Garons will hopefully help to keep Nîmes airport in service.

We definitely didn't buy because of having one airport nearby, but quite a selection. Plus we can take the train to Nîmes from Paris or Lille, like many of our French friends or, our transport of choice now, direct trains from St Pancras to Avignon. Now if that stopped running we would be concerned.

[alittlebitfrench]

@ Gardian

Montpellier is a loverly airport to fly into especially when they fly out to sea and then turn around to land back into the airport.

I spend my holidays watching the planes from the beach/flat landing into the airport.

[Blodwyn]

Not much help for us down in the south west!

[Blodwyn]

I know British airport parking can be very expensive but you can't compare Bergerac with Gatwick! There is no public transport to Bergerac airport and there is one small café. . As far as I'm concerned if it's free for half an hour - very good! - then we did pay 4 euros for the extra 15 mins.

I still don't understand why they laboriously type in passport numbers with one finger, but still put them in a machine as well. The UK-Bergerac flights are mostly Brits and a few French - so EU passportholders for now.

[Blodwyn]

The car park has been done up, most of the parking is under cover - with solar panels on the roofs. I always wonder at the number of British registered cars there. Why, why would people who live in Britain leave their car at a French airport? Surely theydon't live in France but neglect to register their cars here?

[Blodwyn]

On my rare UK visits I also fly to East Midlands. A friend waits at a nearby service station and I phone her when I arrive. My son uses the very frequent bus service to Nottingham.

I think we will lurk elsewhere and wait for him to phone us when he's near the from of the customs queue next time. I don't know of supermarkets close to Bergerac airport as we don't pass any on the way.

[Judith]

My most recent flights have been from Beziers, and yes, hubby waits in a nearby parking area until he sees the plane land, and even then he doesn't rush to collect.  We have an unspoken arrangement that I wait somewhere around the terminal if he is not there, until he comes to find me.  Once he was quite late arriving and they were cleaning the terminal around me .... he delayed leaving because of a  huge storm.  Not quite cracked the parking at Carca or Montpellier, but I seem to use them less than Beziers as it happens.  Lots of French fly from Beziers, particularly to Edinburgh, which is particularly popular with them!

Also quite a lot of UK residents who stay for some longer period of time, do find they need to go back to the UK, maybe for a family do or business ... hence British cars parked at the airport.