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First- and business-class airport lounges are more than a place to catch a buffet and boot up your Wi-Fi connection. The best ones blend convenience with serenity, whether through spa treatments, celebrity chef restaurants, or relaxing in day suites.
The newbies in North America tend to look more like utilitarian-but-upscale restaurants, often themed around the city in which they’re located, while the more global European and Asian lounges lift pampering to the next level, including yoga rooms in Hong Kong, spas in Sydney or peloton training at Heathrow.
As post-pandemic business travel surges, airlines and credit card companies are competing for customer loyalty, adding perks for frequent flyers. Airports overseas are leading the luxury movement, but American Express, Chase Sapphire, and Capital One are all expanding their footprints at airports nationwide, at the same time that Delta, United, and American are overhauling their offerings.
The newest crop of business lounges gives you good reason to arrive early to the airport.
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Qantas First Lounge at SYD
Image Credit: Qantas The Qantas First Lounge at Sydney Airport has the usual high-end airport lounge fare. The 21,000-square-foot space features seasonal menus by Australian chef Neil Perry, award-winning wines, barista-made coffee, marble-clad showers, and private business suites and conference rooms. But its day spa featuring LaGaia products sets this lounge in a class of its own. Weary travelers can request a massage that targets the neck, shoulders, and scalp, a hot stone back massage, or a foot soak treatment. Frequent flyers can combat the havoc wreaked by elevation changes with a facial.
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Emirates First Class Lounge at DBX
Image Credit: Emirates The Emirates First Class Lounge at Dubai International Airport spans an entire floor to include a plethora of seating areas, shower suites, and semi-private quiet rooms for napping, as well as a wine cellar, two cigar lounges, and in-house spa. The dining room buffet is a temple to international cuisine, with fare from Mediterranean food to a Moët & Chandon Champagne lounge.
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Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse at LHR
Image Credit: Virgin Atlantic Virgin Atlantic’s flagship Clubhouse at London Heathrow features a 45-foot cocktail bar, as well as a brasserie serving an extensive menu and afternoon tea. Travelers can get their heart rate up on one of the lounge’s Peloton bikes before grabbing a shower or head to the Clubhouse’s outdoor terrace with a drink to get fresh air.
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Delta Sky Club at JFK
Image Credit: Delta Airlines In July, the Delta Sky Club debuted its new home at JFK’s Terminal 4, a 14,000-square-foot complex anchored by a 360-degree marble bar serving wine, beer and seasonal cocktails. The lounge features four soundproof booths for taking calls or relaxing, a covered patio overlooking the airfield, and an electric outlet for each of the lounge’s 250 seats. The menu spotlights local chefs including, through September, Jewish deli staples like brisket hash sandwich, vegetarian latkes, and labneh parfait by Elyssa Heller, founder and CEO of Edith’s Eatery & Grocery in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
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Cathay Pacific First Class Lounge at HKG
Image Credit: Cathay Pacific Cathay Pacific operates two first-class lounges at Hong Kong International Airport. The Wing, in Terminal 1’s south departures hall, provides five temperature-controlled cabanas, each boasting a large bath and rain shower, day bed, and work space to unwind after a long flight. There’s also a Champagne bar, a restaurant featuring a la carte dishes, and a full buffet. The Pier, in the north departures hall, features eight private day suites with fully-equipped shower suites, an à la carte restaurant, and the Retreat, an in-house spa with complimentary massages. Designed by London-based Studioilse, the space seeks to replicate the feel of a contemporary apartment, using walnut, bronze, and brass warmth, leather and mohair-upholstered furniture for tactility, and honed green onyx for its rich color.
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American Express Centurion Lounge at SEA
Image Credit: American Express American Express, the first credit-card issuer to roll out its own lounge network, tripled the size of its Centurion Lounge at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport earlier this year, relocating it to the Central Terminal’s new mezzanine level. The 14,000-square-foot club features views of the Olympic mountains and a menu by James Beard Award semifinalist Kristi Brown, specializing in soul food such as Trinidadian Spiced Pork Belly and “Peach Cobbla” French Toast. The lounge also boasts Centurion’s first full-service coffee bar, “Blue Roast by American Express,” from local Seattle roaster Caffè Umbria and a 40-square-foot mural of the Seattle skyline by local artist Harold Caudio made from coffee beans.
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Chase Sapphire Lounge by The Club at BOS
Image Credit: Chase Chase is challenging AmEx and Capital One with its own network of lounges, opening its first domestic location in May at Boston Logan International Airport. The 11,640-square-foot lounge features views of Boston Harbor, coffee from local Atomic Coffee Roasters, and seven dishes from acclaimed chef Douglass Williams of Boston’s MIDA and APIZZA. Amenities include a private nursing suite, two shower rooms, and two wellness rooms with anti-gravity massage chairs and guided meditations from healer Devi Brown. Works by local artists Silvia López Chavez, Cig Harvey, Pelle Cass, Gohar Dashti, and Daniel Gordon continue the Beantown theme.
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United Polaris Lounge at IAD
Image Credit: United United’s latest Polaris Lounge for long-haul international business customers (and for first-class customers traveling on Star Alliance partners) opened at Dulles International Airport in 2021 as one of six premium sites nationwide. The $41 million lounge makes heavy use of white marble, plush leather, and calming tunes to soothe harried travelers. The space boasts two Quiet Suites with luxury bedding from Saks Fifth Avenue, a dining room with a made-to-order menu, and a full bar. Its six shower suites, which come with a full slate of toiletries, feature rainfall shower heads and two-way closets for attendants to deliver pressed or ironed clothes to passengers who are rinsing off.
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Capital One Lounge at IAD
Image Credit: Capital One Capital One’s first and flagship lounge opened at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport in 2021. (A second location, pictured above, is scheduled to debut in September at Dulles International Airport.) Amenities include a shower suite, ergonomic relaxation pods, and an exercise room equipped with refrigerated bottled water, cold towels, and two Peloton bikes overlooking the airfield.