As 2023 draws to a close, it is time for my annual “Top 10” series. Here, I’ll look back on the top 10 airline lounges I visited in 2023.
Note, this is not my all-time “top 10” list, but only my “top 10” list of lounges I visited this year.
10. Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge San Francisco (SFO)
Air Canada’s latest Maple Leaf Lounge is my favorite of them all, with a beautiful terrace, great service, and great food and drink as well.
> Read More: Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge San Francisco (SFO) Review
9. Capital One Lounge Denver (DEN)
The new Capital One Lounge in Denver offers warm service and a wide variety of high-quality food and drink. This is now my go-to lounge in Denver.
> Read More: Capital One Lounge Denver (DEN) Review
8. United Polaris Lounges (LAX/SFO/EWR)
I’m lumping three Polaris lounges into one, but United does great with its network of Polaris Lounge for longhaul business class travelers and I greatly enjoy the a la carte meals available in these lounges.
Read all of my Polaris lounge reviews here.
7. Chelsea Lounge New York (JFK)
The flagship first class lounge for American Airlines and British Airways at New York JFK may not have any natural light, but the staff shine and the food is excellent (better than the Polaris Lounges). Here’s to hoping the lounge can upgrade its coffee in 2024…
> Read More: Chelsea Lounge New York (JFK) – First Class Lounge For American Airlines + British Airways Review
6. SWISS Alpine Lounge Zurich (ZRH)
I love the ski lodge decor of this lounge and even more I love the delectable salad bar and hot specialties. The food in this lounge is really something special and I greatly appreciate this Star Alliance Gold Lounge in Zurich.
> Read More: SWISS Alpine Lounge Zurich (ZRH) Review
5. Qantas First Class Lounge Los Angeles (LAX)
This remains a solid lounge with delicious coffee and a great menu of a la carte dining. I consider this the best lounge in LAX and appreciate that the lounge is never crowded.
> Read More: Qantas International First Lounge Los Angeles (LAX) Review
4. Qantas First Class Lounge Singapore (SIN)
Singapore Changi has many excellent lounges and even has many excellent oneworld lounges, but the Qantas Lounge is thoughtfully laid out with a wide assortment of high quality food and drink, including excellent coffee.
Full review coming.
3. Qantas First Class Lounge Sydney (SYD)
The flagship Qantas International First lounge in Sydney is architecturally one of my favorite lounges in the world and also offers a great selection of food and drink with excellent service. The spa service is also not to be missed.
> Read More: Qantas International First Lounge Sydney (SYD) Review
2. Qatar Airways Premium Lounge Singapore (SIN)
This lounge featured my best lounge meal of the year, a lovely pair of lamb chops cooked a perfect medium rare. This is a small lounge, but the dining menu beats even Qantas and I greatly appreciated the excellent service from staff.
Full review coming.
1. Singapore Airlines Private Room Singapore (SIN)
Singapore’s flagship first class lounge is superb…the food and drinks were excellent, but so was the service and the seating…it was quiet and comfortable.
Full review coming.
Finally, I want to give honorable mention to two of my favorite Priority Pass Lounges that I quite enjoyed this year, including the Oman Air Lounge in Bangkok (BKK) and the La Valette Club in Malta (MLA).
What was your favorite airline lounge in 2023?
Re: United’s Polaris Lounges–
While I generally agree with your observations and experiences at the Polaris Lounges at LAX and SFO. your statement that the Polaris Lounge at EWR sometimes gets crowded is an understatement. The number of UA international departures in the late afternoon results in this lounge having insufficient seating capacity.
Same at IAD over the summer. It was absurd at times. It has gotten better as of late though.
What was your rationale for Lufthansa not to make the cut?
Didn’t fly Lufthansa First this year. Can you believe it? Must break a 15-year record…
Wow. Reading this really showed me how many mediocre-to-bad lounges I’ve experienced this year just a combination of a bit less travel, no award space on airlines with amazing lounges (cough – Cathay – cough), and just unimpressive lounges like EVA in TPE. The very short list for me in order is:
Polaris ORD
Virgin JFK
JAL first HND
I was lucky enough to do 12 hours in the Private Room in Changi since the renovation. Absolutely amazing. Love they have sleeping rooms. Though I also got to check out the Al Safwa First class lounge in Doha for 12 hours. It was better than the Private Room. My number one is definitely Al Safwa, then Private Room, three is Lufthansa First Class terminal in Frankfurt, and then The Pier or Wing in Hong Kong. After that is Japan Airlines First class lounge in Narita airport. I have been to all of them. I have the stretch marks to prove it.
I must be really easy to please as my favourite lounge in the entire world remains the Aegean one at SKG, and that’s only because of the direct boarding arrangements.
Everywhere else, I am perennially unable to get to the gate without either having to wait for an eternity before boarding starts or risking being left behind as the gate closes. In fact, every 5-6 flights I manage to achieve both, running like mad across the terminal as FINAL CALL is displayed on the departure screens only to reach the gate and discover that boarding hasn’t even started.
I struggle to understand how it’s possible to place QF LAX ahead of the Chelsea at JFK.
Krug, LPGS and vintage Dom vs what?
Coffee >>> Champagne in my book and the Chelsea Lounge has bad coffee while the Qantas Lounge has superb coffee. Just a personal preference.
Champagne is hugely overrated, and I say that as someone who does enjoy drinking it. A friend in the wine trade has assured me that a simple attempt to divide the amount of champagne sold by the amount of land covered by the Protected Denomination of Origin designation would result in yields that are simply not possible.
I haven’t tried to crunch the numbers myself, but I no longer perceive it as superior to Cremant d’Alsace or any other sparkling wine made using the traditional method. I certainly wouldn’t rate the quality of an airline product based on the champagne brand they serve, particularly if, as is too often the case, their whisk(e)y offering doesn’t even include a decent single malt (this is the one area where LH is strong, I have seen some really good bottles, and been able to try out some very interesting lesser-known brands, in their SEN lounges).
Visited the Maple Leaf SFO. lounge last week and agree was great. Also really enjoyed the quiet hallway of the Capital One lounge in DEN. One more very enjoyable lounge was the Chase Lounge at BOS.
Turkish airlines in Istanbul is easily my favorite lounge….
Lounges that wowed us in 2023 were Cathay’s The Wing First lounge at HKG (The Pier First lounge was still closed) and Qatar Airways’ new Al Mourjan – The Garden Business lounge at DOH.