Checking in at CDG on Delta

I have no experience with Delta, but the rule of thumb is to arrive at CDG 3 hours before departure.

As Andrea says, 3 hours is recommended as it's always better to have to wait than to miss your flight and sometimes it takes the full 3 hours to get to your gate. In early October there wasn't a special line for Sky Priority to go through Passport Control but Delta did have a special line for boarding for Sky Priority. Also check your reservation but for most flights, Delta uses Terminal 2E.

I had Sky Priority through Air France who is a partner with Delta. There was a separate check in line at ticket/luggage counter & a Sky Priority line through security. With Air France it allowed us to board with the Business Class, I am not sure if Delta does the same.

Delta says this:

"Security Check-in Requirements for International Travel To/From Non-U.S. Cities

The recommended arrival time at the airport prior to departure of international flights is 3 hours. When traveling to/from a destination outside the United States, you must be checked in at least 60 minutes before your scheduled departure time and it is required that originating passengers be at the gate and ready to board at least 45 minutes before your scheduled departure time. This minimum requirement applies to all customers checking-in, with or without baggage. Customers who fail to complete the check-in procedures by these deadlines will not be able to travel on desired flights and change fees may apply."

The Delta website also has a schematic diagram of the part of CdG it uses for check-in. As noted, the airport is a sprawl of terminal buildings and security check-points, including screening at the departure gate lounge, so three hours is a good suggestion. The plane's doors may be closed well before the published departure time.

Do check to see if you're actually flying Delta "metal," or if you're actually flying Air France "metal" with a Delta code share number. You don't want to waste time going to the wrong place to check in.

When we were there last year, it wasn't the security line that was the problem. It was the huge number of people checking in and not being sure we were ever in the right line.

CDG is the worst!!!! Just make sure you read every sign and watch every directional instruction. And no one seems to be in the right line.

I would allow 3 hours, though I had no trouble when I flew Delta in May. BUT it was a mess at the gate. They seemed to be trying out some sort of new hand held passport checker/ security device. There was a huge line. Some of the passengers had tickets with no zones listed. I flew out on a Sunday morning. I didn't see any Sky Priority lanes.

Thanks to all. Based on our experience at the elevator at TGV station at CDG this afternoon trying to just get to our shuttle bus to our airport hotel, we appreciate all the advice. My wife's last day mantra now is " duty free shopping baby" with our early arrival tomorrow.

Thanks all for the advice. Between a quiet Sunday and Delta/AirFrance Sky Priority it was a breeze. Left Hilton on shuttle bus at 1100. No one in line at Sky Priority for baggage check. (long lines elsewhere), then to passport control in another Skypriority line that was 5 minutes (other line was much much longer). Then to general security for all which had, UNLIKE TSA, every possible lane open for the K gates, so that we were 3rd couple in line in our lane. From hotel to gate 40 minutes. I believe for sure the exception to the rule. Skypriority really helped by probably at least 1-1.5 hours. It also got us in the Airfrance lounge for free food,drinks, and unlimited macaroons. Longest line was the traffic jam trying to get to Terminal 2E.
Thanks Delta!!

We flew from CDG to ATL last week in coach on an Air France/Delta code share with an Air France flight number. Five days before our flight we went online to Air France's site to select our seats. We selected seats in row 19 near the front of the main cabin, which was an upgrade at extra $32 each -- we were more than willing to pay for a little extra room. The web site seemed to confirm the better seats but would not allow us to process payment. Thinking this was just a web site glitch, we visited the Air France office in Paris to pay for our upgrade. We were told that we had no assigned seats, and that Air France could not help us because Delta controlled the seating. I then spoke with Delta at their 800 number, and was told that Air France controlled the seats!!!! After I explained that we were caught in a no man's land, the very nice Delta rep was able to assign us non-upgraded seats in row 30, "as close to the front as I can get you." About 24 hours before our flight, we received an email from Air France that we could check in online. At that point, I was able to upgrade to row 19 and process a credit card payment. The lesson here is that Delta and Air France have no transparency in their code share arrangements when it comes to seat selection, airline web sites are less than they could be (which site, Delta or Air France, should you deal with on code shares?), and patience is the key to getting the seats you really want.

Our AirFrance flight departed from CDG Terminal 2E Saturday for Detroit. After checking in online the previous night we arrived at the airport and were given conflicting gates. So after K36 was confirmed, we waited to board only to be told that boarding would be delayed due to the "condition of the cabin". Then after the delay both priority and coach were boarded at the same time. I couldn't understand why we were boarding when no plane was near K36 aside from an A320. There was no A340 in sight. We were stuffed into a standing room only bus at the end of the gate! There was no overhead storage for bags so everyone was jostled by each others' items and falling into each other. The bus took us god knows where and we walked up a WWII era stairway onto the 275 passenger plane. Then buses continued to arrive and each passenger had to walk up the steps with their carry-ons. Once on board we were told conflicting causes for the delay, one of which involved a mechanical issue that would be "fixed in 10 minutes". This had to be one of most unproductive processes I've ever seen considering that there were no planes at K36! This flight has one of worst on-time arrival rates and I can understand why now. What a weird experience with AirFrance.

Wow! United at CDG is looking better and better!