risab

I have checked their website regarding carry-on baggage allowance and I know that I could call directly with this question (and be on hold for a very long time) so I am turning to my fellow travelers to, hopefully, answer this question.

We are flying to Italy on AF in two weeks (changing at CDG). We will check one suitcase and take carry-on's with us (just in case our luggage gets delayed) because we have very short connection times.

So, here is the question. My two teens are each taking a carry-on bag. They need to also take their laptops and books to do homework while away. Will the airline also allow them to bring a back pack to store under their seat or will this exceed their limit?

One more question. I know that we need to carry 3oz. size liquids in a quart-size ziplock bag. Can we only put 5 items per bag - will they balk if we put 6-7 or are they very strict with this rule.

Off topic but still relevant...
I've got to transfer from 2E - 2F for my flight connection...should we walk? Do you think they'll have someone meet us if the connection is short?

Thanks!

ira

Hi R,

Your carryon has to meet both size and weight limits. AF does weigh the bags.

You can have one item of "personal" baggage as long as it fits under the seat.

I'm not aware of restrictions on the number of little bottles that you can put in your 1 qt bag.

You can walk between 2E and 2F.
Here's a map of CDG2:
www.aeroportsdeparis.fr
Click "plans and guides..."

Depending on your flights, you might have to reenter through security.

What's your connection time?

>Do you think they'll have someone meet us if the connection is short?<

Oh, you are so funny!

Margaretlb

In November 2005, my AF flight CDG to FLR was cancelled after we sat on the tarmac to de-ice for a couple of hours. When our bus load of passengers arrived back at the terminal, not only were we not met by anyone to tell us where to go to reschedule, an AF employee seeing this big group of people standing around wondering where to go, was very angry and reprimanded us for not knowing where to go. Wrong attitude for that AF employee - we were a bunch of de-planed New Yorkers and she was sorry about her lousy comments and attitude real quickly! So, meet you for a short connection? As Ira said, that's pretty funny!

nonnafelice

Many times I have seen AF employees meet people who have short connections when they are headed for a connecting transAtlantic flight (i.e., returning home from Paris to the US). As you exit the plane in Paris, they will be waiting, holding signs that say, for example, "Boston", "Washington," etc.

However, I don't ever recall seeing this for European connections. Probably they figure that if you miss your flight to Rome, for example, there are plenty of others available -- whereas if you miss your overseas flight they might have to put you up for the night which would cost them money.

Also, you have to go through passport control after deplaning at CDG -- you have to do this before you can get to your next flight. We have sometimes had long waits to get through this line. Make sure you have your boarding pass ready for your next flight, too, when you go through passport control. We didn't realize we were going to have to show that as well as our passport at that point, and were very unpopular as we held up the line while searching for just where we had put them. Of course, it would never occur to them to put up signs telling you that you need your boarding pass.

Dukey

It would be really helpful if we knew

your origination point

is your baggage going to be checked all the way through

is there some reason the children cannot place the books in the checked baggage

how "short" is your connection time

We've been on hold for almost five hours now...

alanRow

Just to get things straight, you want your kids to have a carry-on bag, a laptop AND a backpack.

Mariarosa

I have not flown AF in the last 2 years (since regulations have gotten even more strict), but I am flying them again in less than 2 months, so I have been going through the process of reading their carry-on requirements website and remembering my flights with them in the past. My recollection of them is that they are stricter than American Airlines and Delta, but not as strict as British Airways. They will ballpark the size of your carry-on and they will weigh it. If your carry on passes the test, it will get tagged with a bright tag that signals it can be carried on board. If not, they'll check it for you. You can bring 1 carry-on and one piece of a personal nature (small backpack, or purse or laptop or camera bag). If your kids need to bring a backpack with multiple textbooks on the flight, I would not recommend bringing another carry-on for them. Since you're checking your luggage anyways, you and your husband can share your carry-ons with your kids and bring 1-2 days worth of clothes and toiletries for the entire family in case your bag gets delayed. That way, they'll be able to bring their books and laptop on board.

Christina

Air France has their requirements on their website. If you are talking about three carryon items, the above post is what I'd say. You can't.

ekscrunchy

I flew AF a couple of months ago round trip fro the US and on a domestic leg. I had a pocketbook and a backpack. My backpack did not fit under the seat, but went in the overhead rack. At no time were either of these items weighed. Nor did they take more than a cursory glance at the items in my little plastic bag. This is not to say that you will receive the same treatment, of course. And what they tell you on the phone may not necessarily be what the reality is at the airport.

risab

Thanks everyone for weighing in an offering advise (along with some humor and lectures)...

As for our connection time...our outbound trip only has one hour and ten minutes to make the connection for our Rome flight (AF straight through). Our return flight from Rome only has 45 minutes (so we are aware their is a possibility that we'll be spending the night in Paris).

I mentioned about being met at the plane, not for humor's sake, but because I had read several posts where folks said that this could happen - but as someone on this thread has clarified - it is usually from EU to the USA, not an EU to EU country.

As for the kids...they can put some of their books in their carry-on and even their laptop. They do have smaller "daypacks" or messenger bags that would fit fine under the seat.
We're just more concerned about the connection time and a luggage delays. This is not the first time I've switched at CDG for a flight but it is one of the shorter times I've had. A few years ago we switched coming from Vienna to CDG on Air France to Delta. We made it as the plane was boarding and, of course, I got pulled aside in the security check boarding the plane. But we made it and so did our luggage.
I didn't realize all of the issues with CDG until after I had made these flight reservations and I these were the best flight times and dates I could find because I was using FFlyer miles and booking during a school break - not an easy task. But, we'll get there and it will all work out in the end.

logandog

We flew AF from LAX to CDG in Jan. '06. My wife had two samll carry ons. No problem on either leg of the trip.They look at it before check-in and tag it "cabine", they did not weigh it.
People with very large bags were pulled and had their checked luggage weighed and they were charged.
Security was super tight at CDG.We had our carry-on and hands swabbed 3 times for explosives residue.