"Bruce" wrote in message

"Recliner" wrote:
Yes, I've also now had a go in the pods. I hadn't parked at the
airport, but as you say, no-one monitors who's using the system
(though it's a bit tucked away at the terminal). As you say, the
ride is a bit bumpy, but it wouldn't put me off using them again --
it certainly beats the bus. They have a suitably multi-lingual UI,
and there's room for four people plus bags -- maybe the ride is
smoother when there's more load on board?


Possibly. But the ride was atrocious - the worst I have ever
experienced on any mode of public transport - and there were two of us
on board, neither of us lightweights, with heavy baggage including
over 70 kg of photo gear alone. Total load was probably about the
same as four average adults. ;-)

Apart from the ride, I was very impressed. The whole system was far
more professional than I had expected.

In fact the whole T5 experience was a pleasure, which was a welcome
change from my recent experience of Heathrow. In contrast, Terminal
2A at Charles de Gaulle was simply horrible. Despite flying BA (the
national 'flag carrier') our flight was sent to a remote stand and we
were bussed to T2A. To add insult to injury, an incoming EasyJet
flight got an airbridge (JetWay if you prefer) and its low-fare
passengers had a very short walk into the terminal. :-(

A long climb up steep stairs followed (still carrying all the photo
gear we could take as cabin luggage, and with no lift or escalator
alternative) with a long wait for checked baggage and then the longest
of long walks to the RER station. It took 2hr 35min from landing to
getting on the train, most spent in and around a very ugly building.

The 45 minute train ride was comparative bliss. ;-)

I'm glad we travelled on a Sunday and stayed an extra night. We would
have missed our deadline had we been on the Monday morning flight.

Agreed, Heathrow T5 is a pleasure to use, though as with any large
terminal, there can be a fair amount of walking to some gates. The
entire terminal is step-free, and that includes the HEx and Tube
stations. Like you, I actively dislike CDG, and T2 there is even worse
than the old T1 (though your experience seems to have been particularly
bad). I wonder why BA hasn't returned to T1 after the refurbishment?

One slightly annoying thing about LHR T5 is the way that it so blatantly
steers would be rail pax towards HEx rather than the Piccadilly Line.
They even have a sales person at the customs exit, and all the leaflets
are for HEx. The ticket office sells Oyster cards, but there's nothing
to tell would-be buyers about them. I also couldn't see any sign that
the machines would see Oyster cards. I recently advised a couple of
first-time visitors to London to ensure they bought Oyster cards and
took the Tube (ideal for their hotel), and the ticket office was quite
surprised to encounter tourists who knew to ask for them.