Yesterday, I lamented my rather pitiful birthday evening stranded at London Heathrow Airport, but things took a positive turn the next day thanks to my business class boarding pass on British Airways and my oneworld Emerald status. It turned out to be a very fun day of LHR lounge hopping.
Birthday Lounge Hopping @ LHR
I’ve talked about lounge hopping at London Heathrow before, my favorite airport when it comes to oneworld lounges. With the whole day ahead of me before my flight to Basel, I visited several lounges and enjoyed a great day of delicious food and drinks.
First, I wasted two hours showing up at Terminal 4 first and trying to clear security instead of going to Terminal 5 first (the terminal I was flying from). I was forced to return to Terminal 5, head downstairs, and take the bus to Terminal 4 airside (but of course, go through security again). It all seemed so stupid: why go through security twice…but it was a small blip (I’ll address this more in a future post).
My first stop was the Qatar Airways Premium Lounge, the only oneworld lounge at LHR I have never visited before. It’s located in Terminal 4 and is really two lounges in one, with the Premium Lounge for those traveling on a oneworld business class ticket and a frequent flyer lounge one level below it for those flying in economy class with oneworld Sapphire or Emerald status.
The Premium Lounge is very posh, with a nice a la carte menu (though the lounge recently ditched its fancy coffee machine and barista for an automatic machine…#firstworldproblem) and a premium buffet.
I missed breakfast due to the terminal security snafu, but arrived for lunch and enjoyed a delicious bowl of soup, some Arabic mezze, and a tender main course of beef…and lamb…and salmon.
My day was looking up!
By the way, the frequent flyer lounge downstairs was also very nice. No a la carte dining, but the same buffet as upstairs.
There was still the coffee problem, though.
So I headed to Terminal 3…to the Qantas Lounge. Yes, the security people thought I was crazy, but let me through. I love Qantas’ signature Vittoria Coffee and enjoyed two strong flat whites…with some lasagna and a salad (the potions were very small, or so I told myself).
As long as I was in Terminal 3, I also went next door to the Cathay Pacific Lounge to enjoy the first class section there before my oneworld Emerald status expires. I didn’t eat anything beyond a bowl of fresh fruit, but I just love that space…it is my favorite lounge in LHR in terms of decor.
And then it was back to Terminal 5, on the bus again and through security again to the BA Galleries First Lounge, where I waited for my (delayed) flight to board.
Finally, I made it onboard and settled in for the short flight to Basel.
It was not a great day in that I was separated from my family, but it was a pretty darn fun day in terms of lounge hopping and also a productive one since I was able to work whilst sitting in each lounge. Plus, I’ve got a lot of new content. I’ll eventually offer full reviews of each lounge.
Thanks for posting this. I’m really looking forward to your full reviews. I just flew BA business class last week to retain the gold status they gifted me. I had an 8 hour layover in LHR and didn’t realize you could go between terminals. I would have much preferred T3 to the crowded Galleries First lounge. I fly home on Finnair on Sunday and am excited to try the sauna in their lounge as well as see their new Schengen lounge with the separate area for emeralds.
You keep eating like that and there won’t be any more shirtless selfies.
That’s for sure.
No fair, if it’s your birthday we want to see a pic of you in your best birthday suit.
I’ve never been able to figure this out. You have to initially clear in your ticketed terminal, then you can transfer wherever? How do you access the transfer area from the general airside area? I cannot envision this in T5. I feel like it might be a secret, but I hope you share.
The Cathay Pacific First Lounge is possibly my favorite lounge that I’ve been too. Absolutely lovely atmosphere and great food. You were smart to skip the so-so BA Galleries in T3 as well as the drab AA Admiral’s Club.
I’ve read the BA Galleries First Lounge in T5 is disappointing. Looking forward to your take on it.
I love that Cathay lounge so much. Quiet and almost empty for afternoon flights to the USA on American.
I was one of the rare flyers who sometimes choose BA to return to the states over American. Love that 747 upper deck! Certain seats were so private.
I find the new BA Club Suite amazing…AA is not bad at all, but I prefer BA.
I haven’t flown the new BA suite but it’s retuning to Australia for the summer (Sydney to Singapore) for 40k AA miles, 50k for first!).
I also really enjoying flying AA.
The last seat before the galley on the upper deck on BA had an almost cocoon like feel with a lot of legroom (on the little fold up footstool). Quite cabin and direct aisle access. Plus loads of storage next to the window.
And it was the upper deck on the 747!
I last flew it on thanksgiving day in 2018. But it meant I missed the Cathay lounge.
59A & 59K on the A380 it’s almost better than Club World Suites. It’s a really great ride.
Agree with Matthew. And the Do&Co catering onboard BA is fantastic. Love a good lounge tour at LHR, but I can spend 5 hours visiting just those in T5. Especially with caviar and LPGS in the Concorde. I find going between the terminals is too much trouble. But plan to to fly Virgin Atlantic and visit their lounge in a month.
Your seat choices came up in a previous article, so i took the plunge and booked the same seats for my forthcoming sept flight into washington and out of SFO.
Thanks for info
Five lounges, four security screens, lots of food….and yet not a bite of cake! Hoping Heidi and the children have fixed this error. 🙂
The eaay way to pass through security at LHR in a terminal you are not flying from is to tell security staff that you want to shop in that terminal, after all, LHR is a shopping centre and it happens to have some aircraft departures and arrivals as a sideline but the main business is as a shopping centre.
How did you get from T5 airside to the connections bus to head over to T4? Also, did you have any issues getting back through security at T5 after going to T4/T3? I thought that if you scanned your boarding pass at T5 to go airside and met conformance that it was very challenging to re-enter the terminal if you wind up trying to lounge hop at other terminals
Please tell me you wouldn’t have done this except for your readers. I promise I will go directly to terminal 3 and right into the Virgin lounge at LHR next week.
If you have to be alone on your birthday – and in an airport – it sounds like a great way to spend the day!
Happy Birthday Matthew! My birthday is in a couple of days, and it explains so much that you are a fellow Leo.
Again, how do you get from your ticketed terminal to another terminal from the airside departures area?
Terminal 4 is awful. The Plaza Premium lounges are awful. Thankfully, there’s a Gulf Air lounge that is used by Gulf Air and 1 or 2 other airlines. They don’t advertise it, but for 20 or 25 GBP you can buy a day pass. Real champagne, very good food, and friendly service. Never very crowded. I don’t understand why Air France doesn’t send their business-class passengers to this lounge. Plaza Premium’s lounge is awful.