IATA Code: PUF
Address: Aéroport Pau Pyrénées
F-64230 Uzein
France
Terminal Plan: Here
Distance from City: 10km
Day Trip Possible: No
Passenger Numbers: 690,000 (2009)
Closest Alternative: Toulouse, Bordeaux
OVERVIEW: A fast-growing airport thanks to the low-cost airlines and also a good winter sports offering, Pau also features a decent terminal building which is better than many other regional airports.
Airport Past: Pau was a regional airport, being ideally located in the middle of Paris and Spain. Low-cost airports made it more viable to attract new destinations.
Airport Present: The terminal building was overhauled in 2003 and is a modern facility which can take up to 1m pax/year.
Airport Future: Passenger numbers are not up to capacity as yet but there seems to be decent growth potential here.
GETTING THERE: Pau lies around 10km from the city; not too far a distance. It’s likely that many package holidays for winter sports will have their own transfers built in.
Bus: There is a shuttle bus which connects the airport with the city centre, which leaves every hour. It takes 30 minutes for this journey with a superb price of just 1 euro.
Train: No train station at the airport, but the shuttle bus connects with the train station allowing you to reach more destinations.
Taxi: Outside the airport there is a taxi rank. Expect to pay between 25 and 30 EUR for a taxi downtown.
Car Hire: Avis, Budget, Europcar, Sixt, Hertz and National have desks at the airport.
GENERAL TIPS: The airport is reasonably equipped for one of this size. There should be no bother with queues but may be some during the winter season where there are many people utilising the baggage services.
Terminal: Well built and modern terminal which is laid out over two levels. Bright and spacious inside with a surprising amount of seating. Glass fronted with views on to the runway.
Facilities: One large restaurant at the airport. There is not a great range of shops but they do sell an excellent line of local produce. There is information and tourist information desks. ATM, disabled facilities and business lounge are also in the airport. No free wi-fi but is available from certain hotspots inside the airport.
Nearest Hotel: None at the airport, the nearest being in Pau itself.
Nearby: Pau is a large district but Lescar and Lons are nice and on the way onto the city.
BUDGET TRAVELLERS GUIDE: This is a good destination but there are several surrounding airports which are not too far away (relatively speaking). For winter sports, it’s likely to be very convienient but not the cheapest.
Accomodation: Good range of hotels in Pau. Likely to be busy in-season with the best deals out of it.
Transport: Brilliant value bus from the airport to the city centre at just 1 euro. Aside from this transport is reasonable in Pau and you can walk to many places.
Connections: Not a large range of connections. Ryanair used to offer flights to Brussels-Charleroi, Paris-Beauvais and London-Stansted but do so no longer. Air France offer flights to Paris CDG and Paris-Orly. A new airline Swiss Line will offer flights to Marseille and Rome-Fiumicino, with CityJet offering good connections to London-City, Amsterdam, and Dublin. Flybe offer one flight to Southampton.
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