Review: Sheltair Business Lounge Paris CDG Terminal 2D

April 17, 2020March 18, 2021 Koen 0 Comments

In this review, we will check out the Sheltair business lounge at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) Terminal 2D.

Getting to the airport

With my flight to Baku departing at 10:20am, I left my hotel at six to make sure I would be in the airport on time so I could enjoy some breakfast in the lounge and get a bit of work done.

To reach Charles de Gaulle Airport from my Paris hotel, I again opted to take public transport. It first involved a short metro ride from Blanche to La Chapelle on the metro. Annoyingly, my metro/RER return ticket which I bought beforehand at CDG somehow got damaged and I could not open the barriers at Blanche.

Mercifully, the woman behind the ticket counter spoke a tiny bit of English, so coupled with my limited knowledge of the French language I could explain the situation. The lady was magnanimous and gave me a new metro/RER ticket for free. Sometimes stereotypes such that of the arrogant Parisian citizen who doesn’t speak English just do not ring true at all.

metro paris — *The famous entrance sign to the Paris metro. ©Paliparan*

metro blanche paris — *Blanche metro station in the early morning. ©Paliparan*

Changing to the RER

La Chapelle metro is connected by a long underground passage to Garde du Nord, Paris’ busiest train station. I needed to head to the underground RER suburban railway lines, which was easy enough to locate. I was happy to see the RER train to Charles de Gaulle Airport being half empty at this early hour, with plenty of places to sit down.

Unfortunately, the train being French decided to have a spontaneous strike halfway up to the airport as it stopped in the middle of nowhere and didn’t move for some 15 minutes. After a while, the driver announced that everyone had to go off the train due to a technical malfunction of the train as we slowly pulled into a station in the suburbs.

We were all left in the cold drizzle at a dreary platform waiting for the next train to arrive, which only came after half an hour. Looking at some stressed faces of people in a hurry to catch their flight, it reminded me that exactly because of these potential situations I never really dare to do an airport commute too close to departure!

rer train paris charles de gaulle — *After a malfunction of the train, we were stranded on a dreary platform in the Paris suburbs on a cold, drizzly morning. ©Paliparan*

Terminal 2D

Fortunately I had plenty of time to spare at the airport where just weeks before I caught an Aeroflot flight to Moscow from Terminal 2C and a TAROM flight to Bucharest from 2E.

This time, I needed to go to Terminal 2D for my Azerbaijan Airlines flight to Baku. Terminal 2D is only a short walk from the public transport center of Charles de Gaulle Airport. With no luggage to check-in, I headed straight to security where there were almost no queues at all at the priority line.

Terminal 2D is quite long and narrow, which counts for both landside check-in area as well as the actual airside terminal. It mostly handles short to mid-haul flights within Europe on airlines such as Air Baltic, Air Malta, Austrian, Easyjet and Finnair. Carriers such as Air Serbia, Belavia, Croatian Airlines and Ukrainian International Airlines fly to destinations outside of the Schengen Area from the same terminal.

paris charles de gaulle cdg terminal 2d — *Terminal 2D of Paris CDG Airport. ©Paliparan*

Sheltair lounge

The Sheltair Lounge is the single lounge in Terminal 2D. As Terminal 2D is basically one long corridor, it is easily found by just following the signs for salon/lounge. The lounge is accessible by business class passengers, frequent flyer elites as well as Priority Pass holders.

The lounge is actually located on a mezzanine in the terminal so you have to take the elevator or a short flight of stairs up to reach the entrance. Note that the lounge is located before passport control, so remember that if your destination is outside of the Schengen Area you still need to clear immigration before heading to your boarding gate.

Sheltair lounge seating

I was welcomed into the lounge by a friendly hostess sitting behind the reception desk. The lounge was quite empty in this early hour of the morning, but would fill up quickly later on.

The Sheltair lounge is a good example of doing the best with the space that is given to you. Although I would certainly not describe the lounge as great-looking or having a memorable design, the designers did an excellent job dividing the limited space on the mezzanine level into several seating areas by putting up some book cabinets and half walls.

As a result, there are several mini-seating areas which creates some form of privateness and seclusion in what would otherwise be a large rectangular space constrained by the actual terminal.

Despite not having any special features, tarmac view or lots of natural light, I thought the finishing touches in the lounge such as vases, plants and cabinets filled with books and magazines looked quite good aesthetically.

Throughout the lounge there is a diverse array of seats, from comfortable sofas to dining tables. There are plenty of sockets throughout the lounge and WiFi speeds were fast, making it a good environment to get a bit of work done.

sheltair lounge review paris charles de gaulle cdg — *The Sheltair Lounge in Terminal 2D of Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. ©Paliparan*

Sheltair lounge buffet

Unfortunately, the food selection is one of the weaker aspects of the lounge, with the breakfast buffet being nothing to write home about. There were a few unappetizing looking cold cuts, pre-packaged jam and butter, as well as some French pastries such as croissants and pain au chocolat.

In the fridge there were packs of yoghurt too, and that was about it. That said, the pain au chocolat was fresh and flaky and tasted good.

When it comes to drinks, there are coffee machines which make an OK brew, as well as fridges full of cans of soda. There are also some jars of orange juice available.

For alcohol, there was a limited selection of wines available, as well as cans of Heineken beer and a few bottles of the stronger stuff (the basics only, such as vodka and gin).

Unfortunately, there was no champagne available in the lounge, which was a bit of a disappointment for a French lounge, especially as other contract lounges in other terminals at Charles de Gaulle Airport such as the Salon Paris in Terminal 2C did have some good quality champagne on offer.

sheltair lounge alcohol — *There was a limited selection of alcoholic beverages on offer in the lounge. ©Paliparan*

*A few cold cuts and French cheese in an otherwise completely empty fridge – which says everything about the quantity of the food buffet at the Sheltair Lounge. ©Paliparan*

Other amenities

The toilets in the lounge are located a flight of stairs down and were spotlessly clean. There are however no showers available at the Sheltair Lounge.

toilets sheltair lounge — *Sheltair Lounge restrooms. ©Paliparan*

Work

I had a small breakfast, some orange juice and a coffee in the lounge while reading one or two newspapers. After breakfast, I managed to have a constructive hour of work on my laptop.

While I think the lounge is decent for a quick coffee, drink or to get some work done in a quiet environment, it is definitely not a place to linger for a longer time. With my work done, I quickly got bored and just decided to have a walk in the terminal instead and wait the last few minutes at my actual boarding gate.

There were no lines at passport control and I arrived at my gate within seconds after leaving the lounge. As the lounge is located directly next to the two or so passport control booths, you have a good view on any possible queues so technically you can leave late to your gate as well if you desire to do so.

In short

The Sheltair Lounge is definitely not a lounge I would come early for to the airport. Although the lounge looks quite attractive – I think the designers did a great job given the limitations of the floor space – it is also a bit unmemorable at the same time.

Thanks to the design, which created semi-private seating areas throughout the lounge, it is however a nice place to sit or work in quietness while awaiting your flight.

Unfortunately, the buffet is quite dreary both in quantity and quality. You should definitely not come to the lounge with expectations to be fed well and sipping some champagne. Fortunately for me, there would be no shortage of food and fizz on my upcoming flight!

Trip report index

This article is part of the ‘Siberian Shuffle – A Crazy Winter Trip Around Eurasia‘ trip report, which consists of the following chapters:

1. Review: Wizz Air Bucharest to Oslo Sandefjord Torp (Airbus A321)
2. A Day in the Norwegian Capital of Oslo
3. Review: Norwegian Railways Night Train Oslo-Stavanger in a Private Sleeper
4. Review: Radisson Blu Royal Hotel, Stavanger
5. Stavanger – A Great Norwegian City Trip Surprise
6. Review: North Sea Lounge Stavanger Airport
7. Review: KLM Cityhopper Business Class Stavanger to Amsterdam (Embraer RJ-175)
8. Guide to the Carnival Celebrations in the Netherlands
9. Review: KLM Crown Lounge (Schengen) Amsterdam Airport
10. Review: Air France Business Class Amsterdam to Paris (Airbus A319)
11. Review: ‘Salon Paris’ Business Class Lounge Paris CDG Terminal 2C
12. Review: Aeroflot Business Class Paris to Moscow (Airbus A320)
13. Review: Aeroflot Domestic Business Class Lounge Moscow Sheremetyevo
14. Review: Aeroflot Domestic Business Class Moscow to Irkutsk (Boeing 737-800)
15. Review: Matreshka Hotel, Irkutsk
16. Irkutsk Trip Report: Exploring the ‘Paris of Siberia’ in Winter
17. Review: Mayak Hotel, Listvyanka (Lake Baikal)
18. A Winter Trip to the Frozen Wonderland of Lake Baikal
19. Review: Ibis Irkutsk Center Hotel, Irkutsk
20. Review: Domestic Business Class Lounge Irkutsk Airport
21. Review: Aeroflot Domestic Business Class Irkutsk to Moscow (Boeing 737-800)
22. Review: Pushkin Hotel, Moscow
23. A 24 Hour Stopover in the Russian Capital of Moscow
24. Review: ‘Moscow’ and ‘Jazz’ Business Lounges Moscow Sheremetyevo Terminal D
25. Review: Aeroflot Business Class Moscow to Paris (Airbus A320)
26. Review: TAROM Business Class Paris to Bucharest (Airbus A318)
27. Review: TAROM Business Lounge Bucharest Otopeni Airport
28. Review: Air France Business Class Bucharest to Paris (Airbus A320)
29. A Short Overnight Stopover in Paris
30. Review: Sheltair Business Lounge Paris CDG Terminal 2D (current chapter)
31. Review: Azerbaijan Airlines Business Class Paris to Baku (Airbus A320)
32. Review: Old City Hotel and Apartments, Baku, Azerbaijan
33. Destination Baku: An Intriguing Mix Between Old and New
34. Guide: Train Travel in Azerbaijan
35. Sheki: Azerbaijan’s Most Lovely Town and Springboard to the Caucasus
36. Must Be the Ganja! A Visit to the City of Ganja in Azerbaijan
37. Review: Shah Palace Hotel, Baku, Azerbaijan
38. Review: Azerbaijan Airlines Business Lounge Baku Airport
39. Review: Azerbaijan Airlines Business Class Baku to Paris (Airbus A320)
40. Review: Air France Business Lounge Paris CDG Terminal 2F
41. Review: KLM Business Class Paris to Amsterdam (Boeing 737)
42. Review: KLM Business Class Amsterdam to Bergen (Boeing 737)
43. Blissful Bergen – Is It Really Norway’s Most Beautiful City?
44. Review: Bergen to Oslo on a Norwegian Intercity Train (Bergensbanen Railway)
45. The Flamsbana Railway – From the Myrdal Mountains to the Fjord at Flam
46. Review: SAS Economy Class Oslo to Brussels (Boeing 737-600)
47. Review: Diamond Lounge Brussels Airport Pier B Non-Schengen
48. Review: TAROM Economy Class Brussels to Bucharest (Boeing 737-800)