Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG)

Smoking at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport

The good thing about CDG is that for many of the terminals there are designated smoking areas once you're passed security controls. Some are small enclosed smoking rooms while others are terraces. Look for signs saying "Espace Fumeurs".

Before Security

Before security, smoking is generally allowed only outside terminal buildings, which usually have designated smoking areas near entrance and exit doors.

If you arrive at the airport well ahead of your flight and feel the desire to smoke before entering airside, it is preferable to use the smoking areas inside your departure terminal rather than going outside to re-enter through Security.

After Security

After security, CDG has smoking areas in several terminals, although facilities differ considerably depending on which terminal your flight is departing.

There are smoking areas on Level 10 of Terminal 1 accessed by lifts, normally located adjacent to shops such as Ladurée and Hermès. Some lounges, such as the Icare / Star Alliance Lounge and the Qatar Lounge, have private smoking terraces.

A large outdoor smoking terrace in Terminals 2A and 2C in the common duty free area next to the Starbucks coffee shop and the Burberry store — on the 2A side — is one of the airport's better options for smokers, as it is an improvement over the small smoking rooms elsewhere in the airport.

There are smoking areas in Terminals 2B and 2D, next to gates B20, D58 and D62 / D63 both inside and outside the terminals. There is also an internal smoking room, behind the restaurant La Table de Michel Roth, near the 50D area.

Terminal 2E has the most smoking areas, with concourses K, L and M containing both smoking cabins and terraces near gates K31, K39, K41, L23, L30, L31, L42, L45, L49, M31 and M50. Some of these areas are proper outdoor areas, however the smaller glass cabins can feel very cramped during busy long haul departures with passengers from different airlines.

Downstairs behind security are the smoking areas in Terminal 2F by gates F21, F31-F36 and at F46, indicated by signs usually next to toilets or in the transfer areas.

Terminal 2G has a smoking area just after security in its main waiting area, next to Espace Business. Terminal 2G has fewer facilities and is considerably more remote from the other terminals, so it is advisable to use the smoking area in Terminal 2G rather than expect to be able to walk to another terminal.

Terminal 3 has smoking areas near Gate 8 and near Gate 11 in open space accessible from the Pret A Manger side.

Closed, crowded, or less comfortable areas

Not all CDG smoking areas have the same quality: some are large terraces, while others are smaller glass rooms with little ventilation. Some areas within the busier concourses — especially in Terminal 2E K and L — can be overcrowded and unpleasantly smoky.

If your terminal provides a choice of options, first check the one closest to you and try the next option if that one is busy or uncomfortable.

Vaping at CDG

Since CDG does not distinguish between vaping and smoking for passengers, it is probably best to treat vaping like smoking at the airport and on the plane.

Elsewhere in the terminal, passengers are not permitted to smoke or vape — the smoking of e-cigarettes — outside designated and marked smoking areas, or inside toilets, restaurants and lounges.

Practical Advice

Be careful that Paris CDG is quite a big airport, and it may take longer than expected from terminal to terminal or concourse. Check which terminal, hall and especially gate you need.

The best advice is to follow signs marked "Espace Fumeurs" and to only smoke in those areas. There are more places to smoke at CDG than at many other airports in Europe but fines still apply for smoking outside these areas.