Review Cathay Pacific's First & Business Class Lounge at T3 London Heathrow
London Heathrow Terminal 3 is, without a doubt, the one that offers the best ground experience of all [...]
Cathay Pacific
Oneworld
LHR
London Heathrow Terminal 3 is, without a doubt, the one that offers the best ground experience of any terminal in Europe, and more. Of course, I'm talking at the lounge level, because the rest is the classic mall with a few chairs.
In this article:
The reason is that this terminal is the London home of so many carriers, and this translates into a true lounge paradise. Here is the only (true) Centurion Lounge of Europe, here is one of my 3 favorite lounges in the world: Virgin Atlantic's Clubhouse and here are the lounges of Cathay, Qantas, Emirates just to name a few.
Foreword
Unfortunately, it is not possible to move easily between terminals at LHR, so to tour these lounges I sought out one of the few flights BA operates from this terminal and with an award ticket, paid 7500 avios. I took advantage of all the lounges in T3, otherwise I would have ended up in the usual (and boring) T5.
Location
Emirates lounge at London Heathrow terminal 3.
The lounges in this terminal are easily accessible and positioned close together, EK and Centurion excluded, all in the central area at the border between duty free and gate connections.
This lounge is located to the left of the tunnel and is identified by the letter C.
It is located on the upper floor and is reached by two dedicated elevators that lead directly from the terminal to the reception area.
Access
Cathay participates in oneWorld alliance and therefore access is allowed to passengers who hold elite Sapphire status and above.
There are two separate lounges beyond the reception area.
The First Class lounge is open to those who travel first class or hold an Emerald card, which in the case of British's executive club is Gold. Other passengers are instead directed to the business lounge.
In addition to this, it can be accessed if traveling in business class with a carrier of the same alliance and is also usable for China Southern passengers. Those who can access first class can go to business if they wish, but not vice versa.
Cathay Pacific First Class Lounge in London
Obviously this is the more interesting and confidential part of the two. Also here, as in Hong Kong, Cathay manages to offer truly elegant service in a beautiful and relaxing environment.
Compared to the business lounge this one is smaller, but it is just as brightly lit by the immense glass wall overlooking the runway.
There are several possible accommodations, and I, to write this review, went to sit in the most remote and quiet corner of the lounge.
There are runway view seats, others in the lounging area, there are sofas, armchairs, chase lounges, in short there is everything.
The main difference, than the business lounge, in addition to the size is the dining area.
There is a real restaurant here, with an a la carté menu. I went there for breakfast and on purpose had not had it at the hotel to enjoy the service. I went for an English breakfast, but if I wanted, there were noodles and more.
Those who don't want to sit in the restaurant can order from the rest of the lounge or help themselves from the small buffet or quench their thirst from the drink area, where there is no shortage of drinks even at 9 a.m.
The restaurant environment is just as relaxed as throughout the rest of the lounge.
Cathay Pacific Business Class lounge London
Continue down the corridor to the lounge for business class passengers.
As soon as you enter, to the right is the noodle bar a constant in all CZ lounges.
On the opposite side a large restaurant area, with an adjoining buffet where you can serve yourself. Hot and cold offerings and large selection of beverages.
Even in this lounge, the view of the runway gives light, excitement and relaxation. As does the background music, almost inaudible, but present.
Very nice long dining table right in the buffet area. I can imagine a family trip with pre-flight lunch in the middle of the lounge.
Toward the back of the room is then the gem of this room: the bar counter.
Admittedly at 9 a.m. it was not manned, but the amount of bottles on display suggests that with the end of breakfast here is partying, as in a 5-star hotel in Chelsea.
The only thing the two lounges have in common are showers and toilets, again an elegant ambience has been created here as throughout the rest of the lounge.
In conclusion
If you travel oneWorld from terminal 3 this is absolutely the first choice. Spatial view, elegant environment, zero noise and stress.
To have entered it with an award ticket in economy on a LHR/BUD flight was a real juggling act. It is for lounges like these that, every year, I try to renew my Gold membership in the British Airways Executive Club.
Pro
- Location
- Furniture
- Gastronomic offerings
Against
- It lacks that extra something to be perfect