A little bump in the road…..stranded at Charles de Gaulle airport (Paris)

The flight to Paris was uneventful. We left on time, arrived on schedule, no line in Security or Passport Control, arrived at the departure gate for our flight to Prague with loads of time to spare. The terminal was packed with travelers and the humidity was oppressive on this dreary foggy day. There was ample opportunity for a snooze.

As the clock ticked towards our scheduled 1 p.m. departure, we were anxious to get to the Hotel Metamorphis, take a shower, put on some clean clothes and explore Prague. Something seemed a little fishy when it was 12:45 and boarding had not commenced. Oh, a half hour delay for a “verification on the aircraft”……which stretched to 90 minutes, two hours, and – you guessed it- le vol annule’. So we high-tailed it to the customer service desk where we were directed to exit the terminal and re-enter in the departures terminal, where there was absolutely NO ONE at the Air France desks. Post haste about 150 disgruntled and frustrated would be passengers showed up. Eventually three Air France customer service people appeared, and after about 15 minutes of talking amongst themselves (probably clueless on how to handle re-booking all those unhappy souls), they stationed themselves at the Sky Priority desks, ready to handle the dozen or so frequent flyers while totally ignoring the huddled masses snaking along behind the ropes. After another 15 minutes, one more Air France representative showed up. We were lucky to be near the head of the line, so we were booked on the next available flight….TOMORROW! So we are spending the night in the Ibis Styles Hotel, courtesy of Air France. It’s sort of like a Holiday Inn Express with a tiny bathroom, very firm beds, and no bidet! Hey, aren’t we in France?

We briefly entertained the idea of taking a taxi into Paris, but we are pooped after 18 hours in transit. So we will be dining at the exclusive hotel restaurant tonight. Of course breakfast is included and Air France gave us lunch vouchers.

So, hopefully tomorrow’s 1 p.m. flight does not meet the same fate as today’s (I was assured by the Air France guy that this never happens🤯).

We are missing a private city tour tomorrow morning. Hopefully we make it to Prague for the 5 pm beer tour.🍺