The Avianca Lounge in Bogotá had some odd quirks but was not a bad place to wait to spend the bulk of my layover in BOG.
Avianca Lounge Bogotá Review (BOG)
I visited this lounge while connecting between international flights in Bogota.
Hours + Access + Location
This lounge is located in the international departures area of Terminal 1 at El Dorado International Airport. You will find the lounge closest to gate 32. Proceed upstairs to the entrance. Current hours are 4:00 am to 12:30 am, which surely would have been nice during my trip (I had to wait till 5:00 am for the lounge to open).
When I did head up to the lounge at 5:00 am, I found a huge line that was only very slowly being processed.
Access is reserved for business class passengers, Star Alliance Gold members, and select elite members of Avianca’s LifeMiles loyalty program.
If traveling today and you find yourself at BOG in the middle of the night, the El Dorado Lounge near gate 47 is now open and is accessible 24/7 via Priority Pass.
Seating
The lounge overlooks the gate area below is almost fully enclosed, lacking natural light except in a series of windows high above. Seating includes mostly tables and chairs, though there are some couches too. In a dark alcove of the lounge, many had removed their shoes and were trying to sleep on couches.
You’ll have to search out power ports. Most tables and chairs do not have one within reach.
The Branded Lounge
I wonder how much Samsung paid for this product placement…?
But nice that charging stations, tables, and computers are available.
Food + Drink
Masks are still required in the lounge (as of 2023) and food is still not self-serve. Instead, you’ll line up for food and beverages and point to what you want.
The breakfast spread was not bad, with soup (I believe it was Ajiaco, not the more popular Changua), croissant sandwiches, and scrambled eggs.
Coffee was downright horrible, which is a shame for being in coffee-rich Colombia. The “Tostado” machine automatically added sugar…
(Go to Café Gourmet instead).
Other beverages included soft drinks and juice (also not self-serve).
Here’s the full schedule of lounge dining:
Lockers
In case your layover is long, you can utilize lockers located in a corner of the lounge with a brightly-checkered carpet that looks like a children’s play area.
Restroms + Showers
Showers were closed during my stay – perhaps someone can leave a comment as to whether they have reopened. The restroom was clean.
CONCLUSION
I appreciated the Avianca Lounge Bogotá as a superior place to wait for my flight than the gate area. While this lounge is not on the level of other flagship lounges, I appreciated the warm breakfast and a quiet place to sit and work.
We were there 2 weeks ago 2 times once going to Argentina and once 10 days later coming back from Brazil. We had the same slow check in, the food was sad and we left after 30 min and went to the LATAM lounge directly across.
What a difference! Self serve, power ports and comfortable seating. Made the 2 hours fly by.
Did check out the el Dorado club 3 hour maximum stay and meals cost money. If it is the only thing open, and you can snag a sleeper lounge on the hallway to the restrooms, ok. Beyond that it felt like a dark Chinese restaurant in a basement in NYC to me. Better than nothing but LATAM wins the day hands down in Bogota for us. Used Priority Pass there and El Dorado and Platinum Amex for Avianca.
I don’t like the International lounge, but the National Lounge it’s incredible!! Sleeping pods, and work stations with lounge chairs… it’s sooooo much better!
Good to know! Thanks.
terrible, the food is lousy, seats are uncomfortable