Paris Rome

Charles de Gaulle is three airports wearing one name. Terminal 1 is the original 1974 brutalist circle with satellite gates reached through underground tunnels. It handles Star Alliance carriers and has a retro-futurist quality that either fascinates or confuses on first visit. Terminal 2 sprawls across sub-terminals labeled 2A through 2G, the largest section by far, with 2E handling most transatlantic arrivals. Terminal 3 is the budget terminal: basic, separate, and a different experience entirely.

The CDGVAL automated shuttle connects the three terminals in about 8 minutes, but the walk from your gate to the shuttle platform can add another 10. Walking between Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 is not realistic without the shuttle. Within Terminal 2, some sub-terminal connections are walkable and others require a bus. Security wait times spike during the morning transatlantic departure push from 2E.

The defining fact about CDG is its distance: 25 kilometers northeast of central Paris. The airport itself is well-equipped, modern in the newer sections, and stocked with restaurants and shops. But everything about your trip includes that commute into the city, which takes longer than many short-haul European flights.

Orly is compact, close to the city, and often overlooked by transatlantic passengers who default to CDG. Four terminals numbered 1 through 4 handle a mix of domestic, European, and a handful of long-haul flights. The terminals connect to each other on foot, no shuttle trains or underground tunnels required, which is a genuine relief if you have ever navigated CDG.

The international arrival areas are smaller and immigration moves faster than at CDG. The terminal buildings are functional rather than architecturally ambitious, though recent renovation has added polish to the arrivals hall and retail areas. It lacks the scale and lounge options of CDG, but what it trades in size it gains in speed.

Orly sits 13 kilometers south of central Paris. For anyone staying on the Left Bank or in the southern arrondissements, the ground transfer advantage over CDG is significant: half the distance, half the cost, and less time stuck on the motorway. The airport operates under an overnight curfew, so late-night departures and early-morning arrivals are not an option.

Beauvais-Tillé is a single-terminal airport 55 miles north of Paris. The distance from the city makes it a budget carrier outpost rather than a true Paris airport. Facilities are minimal: a few cafés, limited seating, and no transit rail link. Expect long queues at peak hours in a building not designed for the volume it sometimes handles.

No jet bridges at most gates. You walk across the tarmac to your aircraft. Check-in counters and security share the same compact space. If your flight is delayed, there is not much to do inside.

Fiumicino sits on the coast twenty miles southwest of central Rome. Terminal 3 handles most long-haul international flights, including all nonstops from New York. The airport has four terminals spread across a wide footprint, and the walking distances between them are long enough to factor into your timing if you are connecting between flights.

The Leonardo Express train platform is inside the airport, connected to Terminal 3 by a covered walkway. You clear customs, follow signs for the train, and you are on a platform within ten minutes. The 32-minute ride to Roma Termini is the default exit. Early morning arrivals are congested: every US East Coast red-eye lands in the same window, and immigration queues can run 20 to 40 minutes before you reach the train.

Food and shopping inside the international arrivals area are limited. Once past customs, the landside opens up. If you are departing, Terminal 3 airside has enough restaurants and shops to fill a long wait, though nothing you would cross town for.

Ciampino is the smaller of Rome's two airports, nine miles southeast of the city center. No transatlantic service operates here. The airport handles European low-cost carriers and charter flights, with a single terminal building that feels more like a regional bus depot than an international airport.

The terminal is compact enough that you can walk from the entrance to the gate in five minutes. There are no jet bridges: you walk across the tarmac to board. Security is fast because the passenger volume is low compared to Fiumicino. If you are arriving on a European budget flight and connecting to a transatlantic departure, you need to get yourself to Fiumicino separately, which is a trip across the city.