Aeroporto Galileo Galilei Reviews 

We had an extremely disappointing and unacceptable experience at Pisa Airport today involving a Ryanair flight from Pisa to Cagliari.
My friend arrived at the airport on time and went to the gate displayed on the airport screens: Gate 8. We queued there as instructed.
While we were waiting, the gate was changed from 8 to 9. We received no audible announcement about the change, and my friend also received no notification through the Ryanair app, despite having notifications enabled. He already had his boarding pass and had checked in.
When he realised the gate had changed and reached Gate 9, boarding had closed less than five minutes earlier. The aircraft was still visibly there.
Despite this, he was denied boarding.
What makes this particularly unacceptable is that the Ryanair staff told us that they don't call passengers' names over the speaker unless they have checked luggage. So a passenger who is already inside the airport, has checked in, has a valid boarding pass and is waiting at the gate displayed on the airport information is apparently simply expected to somehow know that the gate has changed.
We were then told by staff, in an incredibly dismissive manner:
“We are not in school. You are grown-ups. We don't have to manage you and tell you if gates change. You should look at the screen and figure it out for yourself.”
And one member of staff went even further, telling us:
“Next time take the boat, it's for unprecise people like you.”
This is completely unacceptable treatment of passengers, they were rude, dismissive, and mocked us instead of helping.
Airport staff have a responsibility to provide clear and timely information to passengers, particularly when something as important as the departure gate changes. Passengers should not be left guessing, and they certainly should not be mocked when they are affected by a change they were apparently not adequately informed about.
As a result of this incident, my friend had to purchase a last-minute replacement flight costing around €300, despite having arrived at Pisa Airport on time.
We expect Pisa Airport to investigate what happened, including how the gate change was communicated, whether an announcement was made, what information was displayed on the airport screens, and the conduct of the staff involved.
We will also be pursuing the matter directly with Ryanair and, if it is not resolved, through the appropriate consumer protection and passenger-rights channels.
A passenger should not have to pay another €300 because a gate changes without clear communication and then be insulted by staff when trying to reach the correct gate.
Pisa Airport needs to take responsibility for the quality of the passenger information and the behaviour of the personnel operating at its gates. This was an appalling experience.

The worst airport I have ever experienced. Long queues, no seating facilities, lack of cleanliness ... a complete flop.

We arrive and were put through new immigration system. I passed the first vetting but my partner and child did not so they got sent to a new queue and I was given a chit. Not knowing what to do I went with my family to the next queue -then being told I had to go in the EU queue, and went through the same system to check my passport and face which I had just done, the other had to go to a manual check - 50 mins latter they are still there - what a farce!?

Worst airport - it’s not build for the load - we have spend 3 hours on the ground floor, because there are no seats.

I have travelled extensively and this is by far the worst airport experience I have ever had to endure. It's not just one aspect of the airport that is bad, it is everything. There were massive queues for everything except security check which was reasonable in comparison with some places. However, the lack of facilities is inexcusable. There's is insufficient seating and a total lack of organisation. For me the worst thing was the boarding of my Ryanair flight to Manchester. The queue was mixed up with that of 2 other flights and there was do staff to direct people. The staff checking boarding passes were incredibly slow and periodically everything just stopped and I dont mean for just a couple of minutes, I'm talking about 20 minutes or more. There was no explanation given to passengers at all and information displays were still saying the flight was on time when it was already 30 mins behind schedule. It know it has a lot of budget aiines using it but this airport is to be avioded at all cost, believe me when I say that the details in this review are not exaggerated and they are only the tip of the iceberg. Finally the whole place is a severe safety hazard with people queuing on stairs, blocking exits etc etc

No place to sit, no room to stay, no air to breathe. WC are dirty. Police don't speak English at all. I can't believe this is European airport.

Overcrowded chaotic hot no seating facilities the worst experience ever don’t go there!!!

Pisa airport is by some distance the worst in the world (that I have travelled through - and that's a fair few). If you can fly to Firenze or Bologna do it, even if it adds some to your travel time. Pisa is that bad. The facilities are dirty, overcrowded and extortionately expensive. The food is very poor. I've had better Pizza on the high street in Swansea. There is nowhere to sit. There is a coop supermarket a 7 minute walk from the departure terminal. Go there, the Italian food and drink you might want to take home is half the price of the scandalously priced duty free shop.

I have no choice but to use Aeroporto Galileo Galilei at Pisa. In addition to the reviews, I noticed that our Transavia pilot spat out the name "Ppisa" as he announced it. I found this quite amusing as the Dutch pilot on another flight into Pisa announced that we were descending over the Adriatic and would soon be arriving in Pisa. Pisa airport is in fact a US military base next door to the Tirrhenian/Mediterranean sea that doubles quite lucratively as an international airport. It is a terminus for many cut-price airlines from all over Europe. The ground staff are hard-pressed to keep up with the pressure of arrivals and departures, American military traffic permitting: they always get priority. The result is, I freely acknowledge, a sweaty, rude and unhygienic reception for passengers from everywhere who had been lead to expect better.

As a Schengen (passport-free zone) arrival I fortunately do not have to contend with staff who are now also required to fingerprint passengers from the UK. So I can breeze around all that.

I only inhabit the departures/arrivals part of the building when waiting, and hoping, to get away. I can only testify to the inadequacy of that part of the operation too. The drinks/foodbars soon get very congested and run out of the very stuff they are supposed to serve. The area for passengers simply waiting to depart soon runs out of seats, and even disabled passengers are expected to sit on the floor. The toilets are insanitary and overflowing. The heat, due to the sheer numbers of human livestock cramped together, becomes unbearable.

The projection of this operation as a luxury enterprise is frankly ridiculous. It would be better to confront travellers with the truth: Sorry we can't help you and don't dare to complain because you will get very rude answers. Frankly I admire the staff who have the stamina to stand up to the tide of complaints.

It was not always so. On the first floor of the building, unbeknownst to most, was a very comfortable area. It used to be the first-class area, frequented by spoiled aircrew and directors of Pisa airport. There was a restaurant which served a delightful selection of genuinely Italian dishes, which one could enjoy while looking out over the dispersal area for aircraft coming and going. The toilets were a dream: really deserving the American description of "bathroom". There was even one toilet with a bidet, and all were enclosed in classical American comfort architecture. But then came change. Like thunderclouds presaging the arrival of disaster, the jealous cleaning staff tried to barricade the toilets increasingly with "closed" signs, and they tried to shift customers who knew about the place down to the rather insanitary conditions downstairs. These became more insanitary as time went on. Then MacDonaldisation closed in, and as the restaurant upstairs was converted to American-style fast food, so the toilets were closed, extensively demolished and converted into the same insanitary model as downstairs.

That is sadly the truth of Pisa airport today. All available funds were sucked into the massively over plan and over budget "Pisa Mover" project. I read that someone said you can walk from central Pisa to the airport; I'd like to know how. I once tried to walk from the midway station on the Mover advertised as the car park; it involved me in a struggle with motor traffic on the via Aurelia and roads trying to lure me into the IKEA settlement instread. I wouldn't recommend anyone try it. I didn't even have baggage with me. Of course the truth is that the airport is very near the rail route, indeed very near the city. You could walk it if suitable pavements were provided. Or moving belts like at Schiphol. "Mind your step".

But Schiphol know all about sucking funds from other projects.

My advice to travellers from Pisa airport is: bring a good book and find a comfortable seat until your flight is announced. Then don't be in a hurry to join nervous queues for "security". When they have subsided walk up and check your boarding card in. Once through "security" (check you get your documents back because they can be pretty lax) find a place where you have a good view of the Departures board. Once again with a good book. If you have a travelling partner, so much the better, because one of you can hunt from somewhere a modest refreshment may be available. Don't expect anything else and don't panic when departure of your flight is announced. Watch the queue for that and only join it as the end is nigh. As the terminal progressively shuts down, the staff become increasingly nervous.

In my experience my flight usually gets away in the end.

What a vile airport, I’d rather fly from a public toilet in a war zone.

Awful place. All departures packed into a tiny space security horrendous lives. If you buy fast track it's almost worthless as they don't monitor it, so you join the main Q and have to fight ordinary and rightly disgruntled passengers. It's a mess. My least favourite airport in the darned world. Worse than any 3rd world country.....

Dirty toilets, hugely insufficient seating, overcrowding, forcing passengers into stairwells to stand for extended periods far too early for actual boarding.
Absolutely dreadful.
Perversely, security checks are quick and efficient.
Try any other airport, even if it means a drive.

I would not recommend this lounge ever. We arrived at 825am. Looking forward to a breakfast selection. 3 danish pastries, cake yogurt and pineapple. The coffee machine was broken and the coffee provided, you could stand in it. There was bread but no toaster. No cheeses or hams either
Sooo disappointed

If it was possible no stars at all! Horrendous experience today from arrival to getting through passport control. Doors on plane opened very quickly after landing but stairs did not appear for quite some time. It appeared there was only one bus servicing the plane, so back and forth several times! The queue for passport control started immediately on entering the building. All the newly installed machines unused! We were let through in groups to the next queuing area and the to the lines for passport control. The lines for various passports/assistance not adhered to and no one monitoring. Staff thin on the ground. It was nothing short of chaos as people started to changes lines with any patience gone and tempers frayed. To add to the mix it was HOT! That was only two flights landing close in time! Absolute 0 out of 10.

Awful airport! Worst airport experience in Europe.

Excessive waiting and que from check in to boarding. Crowded, chaotic and noisy.
NO lounge opportunities for SkyTeam members, and the lounge definitely doesn’t seem like it’s worth paying for. Rude staff, small and very poor selection of food/ drinks. Stay away from the lounge.

Bathrooms constantly unavailable due to cleaning, out of service etc.

Would avoid this airport at all cost in the future.

I have used this airport on and off for 40 years and I regret to say I have witnessed its deterioration over that time.
Horrendous queues, horrible international departure lounge, poor food options and apparently no investment over those 40 years unless you include the abomination called the Pisa Mover
Definitely one to avoid

This is the worst airport I have been in for the last 10 years. Total shambles at arrival with 2 hours to clear passport, 2 staff on duty shouting at passengers to do this, then stop, don’t do that. Border agent taking 3 minutes to slowly flick through a passport despite using an electronic machine to take biometric pictures and finger prints. The flight behind us took 4.5 hours to clear passport. Same shambles coming back, lengthy queue at passport control to again take biometric pictures and fingerprints for everyone. I have never know an airport to be this slow, disorganised and rude. The terminal itself is dirty, lounge is dirty with very poor choice and standard of food. I would give Pisa Airport a wide berth and fly anywhere else

Worse airport I have been through! Getting through passport control took passengers nearly 2 hours! All flights were delayed, police taking their time chatting to check people’s ID’s. People were furious and angry at the awfully managed operations at the airport. Our flight was delayed by 2 hours due to lack of staff.

Very disappointing experience at Pisa Airport. People are forced to wait more than 3 hours just to get inside, in terrible conditions with no air conditioning or proper ventilation. The air inside is unbearable and it is unacceptable to leave so many passengers waiting like this. Having only two counters open for entry is absolutely a scandal and shows very poor organization. This airport seriously needs to improve its management and passenger service.