Barcelona Airport - ridiculous check-in system!!
Discussion
So at most airports I’ve been to you have your passports checked BEFORE you go to Duty Free, and then you hang around until the Gate Number is posted, and then go straight to the gate.
Barcelona Airport- you go through security, hang around in duty free and the gate number is announced 1 hour before the flight. However you then have to go through passport control, with every other flight that’s going at the same time, and THEN walk/run a mile to the gate before you board a bus that takes you on a scenic tour of the airport lasting 20 minutes before you finally arrive at the plane.
Surely it makes sense to check passports when you go through security rather than wait until 30 minutes before the flight???
Barcelona Airport- you go through security, hang around in duty free and the gate number is announced 1 hour before the flight. However you then have to go through passport control, with every other flight that’s going at the same time, and THEN walk/run a mile to the gate before you board a bus that takes you on a scenic tour of the airport lasting 20 minutes before you finally arrive at the plane.
Surely it makes sense to check passports when you go through security rather than wait until 30 minutes before the flight???
Been like that for years. I think its a simple case of too many planes and not enough gates.
I love Barcelona and have probably been at least 15 times in the last 10 years but the bus ride / long taxi out to the runway does grate at times.
Every time I was sat trundling along the taxi way at 10mph I would say to myself next time I am flying into Girona but I never did!!
I love Barcelona and have probably been at least 15 times in the last 10 years but the bus ride / long taxi out to the runway does grate at times.
Every time I was sat trundling along the taxi way at 10mph I would say to myself next time I am flying into Girona but I never did!!
Nearly caught me out at Hamburg on a retuning Easyjet Flight - at the furthest, presume cheapest gate from the centre of the airport.
Actually arrived 2 hrs before departure,7 minutes through security 16 minutes through security as German efficiency sent me back to the start as when they said empty your pockets, I hadn't realised they also meant apart from metal they wanted used cotton snot rags out the pockets as well (having said that the steel works I was in the previous day was pretty grim so maybe my handkerchief was more metal than snot or cotton).
Grabbed hotdog, vendor clicked me and travelling companion were English "Gate funfuntfunfzig?" Told us it was a long walk and we'd have to clear passports. And indeed we did, for 50 minutes, while EU nationals had a straight through gate, us ex mainland Europeans had to queue. Myself and companion were the last two on the Easyjet - apparently they left quite a few behind reguarly on that flight due to people not realising the extra delays.
Actually arrived 2 hrs before departure,
Grabbed hotdog, vendor clicked me and travelling companion were English "Gate funfuntfunfzig?" Told us it was a long walk and we'd have to clear passports. And indeed we did, for 50 minutes, while EU nationals had a straight through gate, us ex mainland Europeans had to queue. Myself and companion were the last two on the Easyjet - apparently they left quite a few behind reguarly on that flight due to people not realising the extra delays.
MitchT said:
At Vienna everyone had to queue for their passports checking as we departed the country. That one was new to me!
That's standard for most countries. You're stamped in and stamped out. The UK is, in my experience, unique in not checking passports on departure other than at the gate. 
MitchT said:
At Vienna everyone had to queue for their passports checking as we departed the country. That one was new to me!
We ended a cruise a few years ago and flew back from Vienna. It was a total shambles. It was one big endless queue, first for baggage check-in and straight for another for passports.It's like they had never had a plane depart before and they did not know what to do.
We even had Captain Bing-Bong announce, as we were sitting on the plane, going nowhere, that this was the first time he's been to the airport and said something along the lines of this place is clueless, they have no idea what they are doing, and he did not know what the hold up was.
ETA : I've mixed up Vienna and Venice, which is where I'm referring to.
ettore said:
MarkJS said:
It’s nothing new. I’d also say that virtually every European airport that does this is still a thousand times better all the way round than a UK airport.
They’re really not better at all - one of those myths.Gassing Station | Holidays & Travel | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff