The seat shortage on the key Bristol-Paris CDG route continues to ease. Last month (see Online news, April 12) we reported on how Easyjet was adding an extra flight to compensate for the recent withdrawal of BA Connect which used to operate five flights a day.
Easyjet now operates two flights a day and the budget carrier will be joined on the route by Air France which will fly three times a day starting on June 11. Fares will start at £105 return with flights by 48-seater AT5 turbo-props.
But whereas Easyjet caters more for passengers flying to or from Paris (because passengers cannot throughcheck to other carriers), Air France is targeting the route at travellers hoping to make onward connections at its Paris CDG hub.
In particular there are convenient links to other cities in mainland Europe along with the Middle East, Asia and the US. For example, Air France's 1725 flight from Bristol reaches CDG at 1955 in good time for late night departures for Hong Kong, Tokyo and Singapore.
The full schedule sees Air France departing Bristol at 0630, 1040 and 1725 and arriving in CDG at 0900, 1310 and 1955. In the return direction, services depart at 0935, 1400 and 2040 to reach Bristol at 1010, 1425 and 2115.
But remember to allow two or three hours to be sure of making connections at Paris CDG's Terminal 2 (the terminal used by Air France and various foreign carriers). Although Air France's MCT (minimum connecting time) is only 45 minutes it's essential to allow longer owing to delays on the ground.
For more information go to airfrance.co.uk.
Report by Alex McWhirter
