Comment "Arrive early for your flight" on Geneva Cointrin International Airport, Switzerland

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Arrive early for your flight

GVA is a only medium-sized hub, but it's slower than a lot of big airports like LAX or CDG.

When I arrived for an Air Canada flight on a Sunday morning, there were already hundreds of people in several confused long lines for the AC checkin counter more than two hours before the departure time, and service was very slow (most of them had skis in huge bags to check). The security line was also long and slow, and I heard loud British passengers complaining they were late for their flights. After security, you have to line up a third time to show your passport for exit control (that wasn't a long line), then you line up a fourth time to show your passport and boarding card at the gate about 30 minutes before boarding, then you line up the fifth (and final) time to board the plane.

The moral is not to cut it close: at least on the weekend, 2 hours early for an international flight from Geneva should be a minimum, not a maximum. Or if you can, pick an airport like Paris CDG or Frankfurt FRA that's a bit better organized.

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