Charles de Gaulle Airport is a large aviation hub consisting of 3 terminal buildings. The airport welcomes more than 200.000 passengers daily, being among the ten busiest airports worldwide. The ever-increasing CDG passenger traffic has led to plans for the construction of a fourth terminal. Nevertheless, due to the covid pandemic and the potential environmental impact, those plans came to nothing.
Terminal 1 is the oldest building of Charles de Gaulle Airport, serving mostly international flights (exempt from Air France’s routes handled by terminal 2). T1 is built looking like a huge octopus, spread into 5 levels. Although its main services are located in the circular central area, the boarding gates are scattered through 7 satellite buildings interconnected to the main terminal area but not between them. In any case, T1 ground level isn’t accessible to passengers. The other four floors house the airport’s facilities and amenities Explicitly:
Terminal 2 is, without any doubt, the reason why CDG Airport is considered to have a complex layout. T2 consists of 7 sub-terminals, which serve different purposes. In general terms, T2 is dedicated to Air France flights but also handles connections to European destinations along with international flights.
T2A houses Check-in areas 1-8, as well as Boarding Gates A and C. It is spread into 2 levels: the ground level hosts the Arrivals and the first one the Departures.
T2B, now reopened after a long renovation period, shelters Check-in zones 1 and 2 and Boarding Gates B and C.
T2C is split into two floors, with the first floor housing the Arrivals and the second the Departures (Gates C).
T2D has the same layout as T2C. Here the Boarding Gates D are to be found.
T2E is the largest department of T2. It has Check-in areas 2-13 and Boarding Gates K, L, and M. Please note that Boarding Areas L (Satellite S3) and M (Satellite S4) are accessible only via the airport’s transit train. Overall, T2E welcomes many transit passengers while hosting the airport’s hotel, Yotel Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, available only to passengers with a T2E boarding pass (that is, passengers from out of Schengen destination).
On the other hand, Check-in areas 1-7 and Boarding zones F are to be found in T2F, also serving many transit travelers.
Last but not least, T2G is the smallest facility of T2 and the only one completely separated from the other sections. T2G lies 800m away from the rest of the T2 complex and handles flights from Schengen destinations along with Air France’s domestic and European routes.
Our Tip: T2G was initially constructed to serve Air France’s needs exclusively.
Terminal 3 of CDG Airport lies right opposite T1, at a 1 km distance, and serves charter flights and low-cost air carriers. It is composed of one building, hosting the Arrivals (on its north side) and the Departures (on its south). The Departures area is subdivided into two zones, Hall A and Hall B.
The three Paris airport terminals are connected via the CDGVAL automatic shuttle and the free shuttle buses. In detail, terminal 1 is linked to T3 by the free CDGVAL shuttle train, operating daily from 04:00 am to 01:00 am with a 4-minute frequency or via an airport taxi. On the other hand, you can reach T2 using the CDGVAL train or the free green shuttles, running from T1 to T2A and T2C from 05:00 am to midnight.
As far as the “maze-like” T2 is concerned, the sub-sections T2A-T2F are walkable and connected via pedestrian walkways. Nevertheless, T2G is located 800m away, reachable only via free shuttles, while free shuttle services are also available to passengers who don’t want to move around on foot. Explicitly:
Finally, to reach the other two terminals from T3, you can choose between the CDGVAL driverless train or an airport taxi.
Paris Roissy Airport has 3 terminal buildings. Terminal 1 is the initial airport’s terminal, looking like a giant octopus, with a central area housing its services and 7 “tentacles” where the boarding gates are to be found. On the other hand, T2 is subdivided into 7 sections (basically 7 sub-terminals), whereas T3 consists of one single terminal building.
Air France flies from and to Paris airport terminal 2. Specifically, France’s flag national air carrier uses the sections T2E, T2F, and T2G for its routes’ departures and arrivals.