@@77smpi found a piece of chewing gum in my food in ba’s edi lounge. it was in the beans from the breakfast buffet. complained and got an apology, however looking back I should have escalated this issue.
Great video as always Matt, I have been in all of these lounges and you are right the CCR is miles above the rest. On a recent evening flight from T5 I went to Galleries South but it was still quite busy so headed to the B lounge. Always a quieter and better experience there and the staff were happy to bring me champagne refills. I admit the long walk back to A gates is a bit daunting when your flight is closing at A10 gates and you've had a few too many glasses of wine, but it's still worth the effort for a superior lounge.
One of the reasons I found your channel so interesting was that it opened my eyes up to the world of BA status. I'd previously paid for a Priority Pass in 2020, just a month before the you-know-what which has to be one of the worst purchases of my life (even though they extended it to 2022). I actually went to the Plaza Premium lounge in Feb 2020 and it was so overcrowded - the food was good but there was literally nowhere to sit so I just perched on a ledge somewhere. Flying around the US I found that virtually all lounges that were priority pass were either over-full or closed. I managed to get into the same lounge as BA in Dublin once with it but generally I got about 5 mediocre lounge accesses from the pass. I've heard it's good in Asian lounges though, so it might just be an issue with them giving away priority passes like candy on US credit cards but even the busiest BA lounge is nowhere near as bad as the priority pass lounges.
Thanks for noticing.... Would you believe I scripted that before I knew the frames would line up that way??? Sometimes I'm good, and sometimes I'm really lucky!
Really enjoyable video, Matt. I flew out of Heathrow T5 in June 2022 and, as I was only flying PE and don’t hold any status, checked in to the Aspire Lounge (thanks to my Priority Pass via Amex Gold). I actually found it to be a very pleasant experience, with apron views and a solid F&B offering (was breakfast service at the time). It was VERY busy though, and we were fortunate to get a decent table - they started turning people away shortly after we got there. All in all though, I found it rather good, and would use it again if I flew from T5. 👍
Hi Matt, lucky you to enjoy all these lounges. We flew back from Orlando terminal C on Sunday and the BA business class lounge is the general use Plaza ‘Premium’. So many people seemed to be paying for entry meaning no seating except in kiddies play section. BA really need to up their game in the US; we find the BA Business class lounges at Gatwick South and LHR to be pretty decent though. Safe travels and keep the great videos coming.
Good afternoon Matt. My Sunday afternoon viewing of your video was, I'm afraid, postponed due to some actual flying, for which I naturally apologize profusely. Firstly, an update to a previous video: the T5 flight connections fast path lane now leads into the new "everything in" scanners, which swings it for me as the best choice. I arrived into T5 yesterday as silver, my status still not having been updated, so had to use the Galleries Club lounge. Not a seat to be found. Eventually one opened up and I gratefully grabbed a coffee whilst contemplating how to keep an eye on my hand baggage whilst getting some food down. Whilst examining this Gordian knot my status finally updated and I headed downstairs to a slightly confused lady who kindly gave me access on the basis of my app, even though her screen showed a big red cross. Separate databases: what could possibly go wrong? Sadly the flounge was also rammed, though this time there was one seat within /almost/ eyeball distance of the food, which I grabbed before anyone else. Not a pleasant lounges experience for me, I have to say. I did though partake of the showers, surely a missing feature of your videos? The T5 videos are ok, just, but come a poor second to Iberia's spacious offerings. They would have taken the prize, for me, until last week, when I had the pleasure of AA's Boston showers, which, astonishingly, actually did have room to swing a cat.
Another excellent video. Concorde is definitely the best - sadly I've only been there once. Agree about North Galleries - very uncomfortable. I didn't like South Galleries but I'm finding it better now (the seating pods are quite nice). First (Gold) lounge I've been to once a long time ago but will be there in a few days time now I'm Gold. The only BA lounge I've still not been to is B gate and I've heard a lot of good things about it...might be able to sneak there after First. Never used the Arrivals lounges but might give one a go. I'm impressed by your walking speed from B to A gates :)
The think I appreciate most about the Concorde Room when I use it flying by flying First class is its quietness. Sure there are fewer people but they seem to make less noise as per the ambience! When full the actusl First class lounge can remind me of an AA Admiral's club on a bad day with people screaming down mobiles on calls they frequently have no urgent need to make. As always, a nice and informative video.
Hi Matt, Hope you are keeping well!!! As I was watching your video I had to think of an analogy I discussed with a friend at late. I think the lounges of Ba at their home hub in London are like buying a new build home from a large building group.....If you live out of your parents bedroom, a new build seems like class. Once you experienced the joys of an older house vs a new build, you would never class a new built as great!!! As always, great video!! Stay well Thomas
I’m a big fan of the walkway….. not only a place to get some steps in but there are some spots where you can get some travel-yoga nailed too. I didn’t bump into anyone running laps though. I must have been chief weirdo that day.
Matt, a very enjoyable video. I do like the idea of your rankings and I would agree. As someone who usually travels BC when ever possible, but only has Silver status, If I fly out of T5 I usually head for the B terminal lounge as I find it more comfortable, not as busy and the food seems better. If I use the main A terminal lounges I would opt for the BA South lounge. My main reason is like you said the North lounge always seems busier, but also beyond those double doors on the right, it is more open and I do not like sharing my space or eating and drinking experience with flying vermin. Keep up the good work. Steve. C. YNWA. PS, 2nd is still a possibility.😁🤞
Very enjoyable Matt, albeit it short lived for me as I bump to Bronze in June. 😥I leave for the Maldives as Silver but return as Bronze, so back to PP from Amex Paltinum PP for the foreseable! Though the mention of extra payment to secure a placed is a faff. I think you may have gone and done it for silvers with the comparisons between First and Galleries.... knowing BA I fear they will reduce the quality and options in the Galleries rather than improve the First. I was impressed with you not using the travelators in getting from the B lounge to the A gates. My wife and I were advised to go to that lounge over the main one on our recent Cape Town trip and found it quiet and relaxing, though the Whispering Angel didn't do it for me and couldnt get a glass of champers. 😒 You mentioned you had no way of gewtting into the Aspire lounge but didn't say why and as there wasn't a queue apparent, wonder why. Or was it that there was a waiting list?
Cheers - I don't have priority pass and dragon pass doesn't include the aspire, which is why I didn't go in. I debate getting a PP (one way or another) almost weekly but I'd make so little use of it ...
@@MattsPlanetthanks Matt, I can understand you sticking with your BA access due to your Gold status. Do you only ever fly with one world airlines, thereby having access to their lounges? Can I ask, bearing in mind the amount of miles and flights you do, what travel insurance do you use? It's probably the main reason I have kept Amex Platinum, together with the car hire status upgrades and hire car insurance. Though, no longer having Oneworld access, other than business class trips, the PP access will resume being enjoyed, when available.
Quality, as always. My experience with Priority Pass has been most lounges really need to be pre-booked if you want to guarrantee getting in. I've had the odd good luck some places, but usually at out stations. For those of us stuck at the lowly Silver tier, the B concourse lounge for the win. As you rightly mention - you just need to make sure you allow yourself enough time to trundle back to the main terminal for your flight. I find the arrivals lounge in T5 to be a great respite before slogging into town after a long international flight. Especially if I have slept and not had any breakfast on board the airplane. One question, though - while I know it would be goverened by credit card or cash access, does not Amex have a Centurion Lounge in T5 these days?
"trundle" is such a good word!! No centurion at T5 - I'd imagine there'd be demand for one but amex would have to unseat someone very established to get the space and that will be expensive....
Only times I’ve had pleasant experiences in the North Lounge have been for early morning departures when it’s not been too busy. There are also murmurs of a new C gate lounge being added as part of the upcoming lounge refurb programme, as well as the possibility of a Concorde dining area being added to the B gate lounge (similar to the one in T3)
Lots of rumours... I've heard on good authority that T5C was always intended to be a US pre-clearance block, in which case it would need a lounge. That would be good!!
I didn't know if you were aware Matt, but if you use the Arrivals Lounge as a First Passenger you have the option of a cabana with a bath instead of the shower cubicles. On the subject of cabanas, these re-opened in the Concorde Room on the 25 May
Another great video - this sort of stuff is so helpful for the uninitiated like me. Now a test as to whether I was paying attention or not. At 16:20 did you mean to say "This lounge is always busier than the SOUTH lounge" rather than "busier than the NORTH lounge"?
I'm oneworld emerald and will be departing T5 on a monday morning soon and this has helped me greatly as I scour the web for lounge reviews. Think ill drop straight into the first lounge!
Great video! If flying from B or C gates I would always choose the B lounge, less crowded, well staffed, clean and the new cooking station is a great addition. I hope BA will take from inspiration from Cathay or Qatar for the refurbs, and get rid of the hospital style bathrooms.
@@MattsPlanet I would say, functional. I don't need a feminine "refresh." I need a functional shower. It's enough to look at all the instrucions as to how to adjust the hot and cold and direction of the water, and where the different outlets and buttons are. I just need to figure it out once. I don't want to learn a new design and new pattern of behavior, everytime I simply want a funchional shower. Maybe BA could leave the functional showers for practical blokes like me on one sice of the corridor, and the fancy "refreshed" showers for the queens on the other side of the corridor........
Great vid, once had to walk the tunnel from A to C as the train had a malfunction. Hate the queue at the plaza lounge. Aspire lounge is always extremely busy but the worst part is they don't have any restrooms, you need to exit and use the restrooms in the main terminal. The BA business lounges are ok'ish, i find the virgin club house amazing, the Lufthansa lounge in t3 is also pretty good.
Great review. Not had the opportunity to use the Concorde Lounge yet, but definitely echo it’s worth the trip / possible steps to go the B gate lounge. Don’t bother with the ones in the main terminal any more - too often packed and dirty such that having a sandwich outside Pret is way preferable.
I don't have BA status but I'll often buy a business class flight home to Inverness from Heathrow, as it can be good value when you factor in the ground experience. I do like to use a lounge at T5 as I find the main departure area particularly chaotic and noisy. So, I've used the Galleries North / South and also the Club Aspire lounge (pre-booked) with Amex. I agree with your rankings in respect of these three, but the Club Aspire lounge, though busy, was better than I expected. I actually really like the Galleries North / South. They come in for some stick and I don't really know why. Maybe I'm lucky and haven't caught them at their busiest.
Cheers - Steve Marsh just released a video about a night out in Inverness and I really want to go now!!! All of your points are valid and if the north lounge isn't busy its a perfectly pleasant place to spend some time!
@@MattsPlanet Brave man! No, seriously, it's a nice compact city. Our main shopping centre (although we live around 35 miles north). Inverness airport is quite a nice no-hassle place to fly in and out of, although it could do with an express shuttle bus to the city centre. (The usual service buses have been re-routed and now take forever!). HFP has a review of the Aspire lounge there. Describes it as like being in someone's sitting room! If you're coming up, why not review the on-airport Courtyard Marriott? It's a couple of minutes' walk to the terminal. We find it handy for early flights down to London and, when there are two of us, the room cost can often be covered by the fact the early BA and Easyjet flights are usually significantly cheaper than the later ones. Will have a look at the @steve-marsh video.👍
I think the Galleries term is more than just business as BA also refers to the 'Galleries First' lounge. You're right though, in that its not really a first lounge - although it is not just for BA golds as any OneWorld emerald can use it too. As for the arrivals lounge, the biggest issue is the showers - last week there were 15 out of the 90+ showers serviceable.
My most recent Heathrow connection was back in 2022 and both BA and Iberia were using Terminal 3. I had enough time to visit just one lounge (and I was Sapphire at the time), I chose the Qantas lounge. I should've chosen a different one!
`Thanks for this Matt, my wife and I are traveling club world to Denver in the summer and can't wait for it, based on your review and others I've seen I think we'll give the B gates lounge a go. Hope you're well.
Doing good here thanks. US flights almost always go from B or C gates so you'd be unlucky to have to double back if you head for the B lounge. Have a great trip!
Hello chap, in the First lounge that staffed station in the middle of the main area across from the buffet spur, in between the windowed wine racks at 5:42 and in your video, they really ought to make some effort with cocktails there: I think they're missing a trick TBH. I did ask for them to replace the ice in a zip locked ice bag for me a couple of weeks ago, but that was all too hard for them, so I turned around and left with a frustrated FFS look on my face. I don't think there's even a sink there, which is probably why they don't do cocktails. If they did they'd need new staff, as I don't think the two that I encountered could do anything that's a script beyond one or two ingredients including the ice. I might give it a try next time. There's no propping the bar up there either, there's no counter to speak of, nor stools. There was a manned food station at breakfast at the B gates lounge last time I was there about a month ago: I'm quite fond of the simple bacon and sausage baps, even when in the CCR. Cheers, Howard.
Hi mate! I've had an idea of a video along the lines of "cocktails you can make yourself from what's available in the F lounge" but the list of cocktails I end up with is always very short. And dull!!! I didn't actually approach the manned bar this time through as I remembered it being "staff only" when it was set up during the "you know what" and I didn't think to check if you could now use it in person!
Hello Matt! Greetings from Korea! Long time viewer, but first time leaving a comment! I'd love to see a lounge review at Heathrow's terminal 2 as well. Really enjoyed the great video!
Sadly my lowly Silver Status got me an even more basic experience at CMB yesterday than the offerings shown here. Will I have to follow your video advice and knock up ye olde AUH to CGK in BC to advance to gold, and of course find out what the better lounge in Colombo is like? Thanks Matt, once again the only videos on here that make real sense to a Oneworld traveller.
Perfect Matt! This is the video I've been waiting for. I'm flying BA Club World in Spring 2025, LHR-TYO, return, so from your rankings, I'd head ideally to the the B-gate lounge. A great video!
@@MattsPlanet Yeah, April 2024 was my first time back on BA in probably about ten years or so, I'm afraid to say. I was so spoilt by FIrst Wing immediate access to lounge and Concorde Room, that I was surprised that I had to wander far afield to my LHR-JFK flight. So weird that commentators brag about how massively popular and profitable the LHR-JFK route is; yet, you have to do a haphazard escalator and train journey out of the First Wing area to get to the B Gate for the JFK flight. Almost as confusing as CDG's stylish yet illogical K,L,M halls.
All this talk of lounges has given me a thought for a future video series - you could locate BA lounges worldwide and commence a 'tour' of such, perhaps rating them on some sort of scale. For example, I believe there are roughly 12 or so BA branded (not AA/Oneworld) in the US. The Boston one, for example, PHL, IAD, IAH all have BA lounges. Alternatively, you could commence a 'lounge tour' of the world and its airports that silver/gold status holders could access. Heck, you might even take the penguin soft toy you featured in a video eons ago and give a 'penguin approval rating' for each lounge....
I think I did mean South! And I couldn't access Aspire with a priority pass from my Amex as I don't have the platinum card - I made a video about why I don't have it and it just doesn't make sense for me
@@MattsPlanet I don't think you need an Amex Platinum to access Aspire? I've accessed it with my Amex Gold many times before. Unless if they've changed the rules recently.
@@MattsPlanet Weird as I’ve been allowed in with my Gold card. I just went on the Amex website and selected the gold card and it says this: “Take advantage of 4 complimentary Priority Pass airport lounge visits every year giving you access to over 1,300 airports globally.”
Hi there your comment always makes me smile, just returned from 1st class flight on AA and BA business from Manchester to Dallas, omg, please don’t fly AA the only reason I did was to experience their 1st class and flagship dining before they got rid of it( too late , should’ve got rid of it sooner!!) the crew on both flights excelled, but the soft and hard products bloody awful, food was dreadful, didn’t even go there on the return ( saved myself for concord room). No WiFi on either leg, just felt exhausted on both legs on arrival. The pyjamas and amenity kit cheap, cheap, cheap , and don’t even go there on flagship dining, grim plus DFW airport was closing down at 8.45pm. Shut by 10.00pm( flight at 11pm) but good news on t5 concord room the Cabanas have reopened, no more 40 winks!! Yeah , also like you did all available lounges at t3 and honestly BA 1st outshone Cathy Pacific . Usual delay for London to Manchester ( 1.5 hours delay) but will never ever fly AA again lol.
Another terrific video. I find it quite bizarre that sometimes there's JW Blue in the First Class Lounge, and sometimes not. Seems like a bizarre level of inconsistency when you consider how much a bottle costs vs. the black label or the talisker storm that's usually there.
Great video as usual, Matt. Let me know if you're heading through T3/5 on a Friday afternoon - always happy to guest you into the CCR as I'm usually on my own.
another great video matt i have used a few of them lounges but alas not CCR we are flying to MIA in winter and hope to use it if the price is good hopfully they will have some JW blue by then
I’ve always wondered if the B and C concourses have a BA lounge. It’s good to know the B concourse has. But the C concourse could use one since it’s impractical to back track from there to the main concourse or the B gates. Nevermind if there is an automated people mover to allow departing passengers to go back but that’s not even a feature in most other airports anyway.
C was apparently intended to house US preclearance so would have had a post immigration lounge... But the negotiation about doing it is still ongoing...
It's weird how mediocre BAs lounges are in their own, supposedly flagship, home terminal. I went to Boston last month, and that lounge blew the Heathrow First Lounge out of the water food and drink wise (fresh made cocktails and food to order that wasn't buffet dried out fishcakes and pies). App.ordering was available with food not on the buffet brought to you. Had direct boarding from the lounge too! Definitely better wines in the F/Gold lounge than the Galleries though (at least for now) Also, Whispering Angel is a very meh rosé. It retails for £15-20. A lot of BAs wines and spirits are probably 'gifted' to them for very cheap or free as a promotional stock (maybe even Diageo pays them to put it in front of us)
I knew you could reserve Club Aspire T5 in advance with Priority Pass for a small additional fee but didn't realise you could do the same thing with Plaza Premium T5, thanks for the tip.
Hi Matt, Another great video. Were fliying BA First to the US in October on a A380 (so a C gate boarding) whats your preference, A) stay in the CCR as long as you can and be one of the last to board or B) head down to C early and be first on board to get settled in and enjoy a PDB Thanks in advance
A nice choice!!! If you've planned enough time in the CCR then being first aboard is always nice... Although there's no fighting for overhead space in F so you can happily be last too! I tend to get on first, but it makes filming easier to do so
Hello Matt. Another great informative vlog. However: I was in the T5 Arrivals Lounge a couple of weeks ago, and thought I overheard one of the staff indicate the T5 AL was closing!! Any rumours? Keep up the great reviews.
There's a refurb coming which is probably what they were refering to.... Although there's so few arrivals lounges around the world now it wouldn't be a complete shock
Yes I was surprised at how mundane/bus terminal waiting room it felt but surprisingly the f&b was very decent and loved the fact you could still order from the app and it was so personal. Maybe I got lucky with the first flight of the day in from JNB.
Thanks for the video-had a pleasant back to back from Jersey to Belfast with a good length between flights to hone my B gates and back to A gates PB-wife particularly jealous about the whispering angel! Aspire definitely worst but I haven’t been in the premium plaza-I’d also go onto say I think the B gates lounge is nicer than the First lounge! I wonder whether BA would ever deny you entry to B gates if you were departing from the A gates?
Thanks - it's close between the T5B and the F but it's still just the F for me... I think they'll let you in if you make it clear you know how to get back to A and you know how long it takes!!;
The BA LHR Loungebird App was released April 15. It would have been interesting to see how accurate the numbers are, vs your walkaround. Then again, the North Club Lounge still shows a network error! Doh!
Thanks! I suspected if they were on one floor, they'd be on others! Although I doubt BA fed you as lavishly down there as they do passengers in the lounges!
At T5 BA first class lounge there is a bar and the bartender prepares a cocktail for you! Or you use the QR code as you mentioned and order the cocktails at your table. 👍
I wonder if Galleries-B is a bit better because it will have a lot of people flying Long Haul in both Club & First who want to get to B quickly, and proportionately less "status" flyers. Pure speculation
There may be something to that - I've heard its been busier lately - all these RUclipsrs making videos about it.... But I think you learn that a long haul / US route is very likely to be a B gate so its less of a gamble to head straight there
Yeah, I just got my BA Gold status, and I wondered into T5 check-in area; but, I was on the left side, and at the head of the velvet rope line, the staffer told me that I was in the wrong place and that I had to walk all the way over to the right side of the terminal and check in there. So, I walk way over there, and there was a discreet podium and entrance to a wood-panelled area. I was helped there, and did check in and security there, and at the end of the mouse maze I did find myself smack in the middle of the champagne lounge. I was exhausted by the maze process and quicly self served a couple full glasses of complimentary champagne. Yeah, the table had a QR code, which seemed useless, then I wandered further to forage. I had to walk a long way and around a corner and further down I found the food So I piled up my plate with food and returned to the champagne area and poured myself more champagne and ate my breakfast food. I was in need of a shower , and I took another look at the QR code and successfully booked a shower. I went to the shower area and confirmed with the shower area attendant that I had a booking The shower area was functional and felt great. Then I proceeded back to the food area for self serve cappuccino and croissant, and I ate at a table near the foyer. I was too tired a and afraid to try my luck at the Concorde Room. I was happy enough in the First Wing lounge. Then I asked the foyer podium attendant about my flight, and I found out that I was in the wrong place. I had to go to the B Gates. I had to take the escalators down to the train level, take the train to the B Gates, take more escalators up, then wander around back and forth, and then another escalator up, and I found the lounge for the B Gates. I saw the special pink champagne area, but I was not in the mood for more champagne, and I just had another self serve cappuccino and croissant, before quickly finding my gate nearby for JFK. Somehow, I was the only persona in Boarding Group One, so that was nice. Thank you for the vidoe. Yeah, I see the food is the same every where. Gold is worth it just for the self servce champagne and shower right after First Wing special checkin and security, otherwise, yeah, that's it, and I might go back to AIr France, we'lll see....thanks again.
I went in the Qatar lounge years ago, well before the channel and I remember it being excellent.... I just hate paying the APD on London departures so haven't flown through there since!!! I really should, as it would be good content for the channel!
well you certainly know your watching too much matts planet when you spot that ba man at 8:27 is same ba man who made appearance in t3 lounge tour video ! i need to get out more...
@@MattsPlanet And on the aircraft, too! I coudn't find an outlet in the lounge, but I told myself I'd charge my phone on the aircraft. Then, I got on my B777 premium economy seat to JFK, and the singular socket that was between the shins of my neighbor and me had no power. Sad. Sad. Sad.
7.14. I'm surprised that the bottles are left open like that. They should really seal the champagne bottles with stoppers, to prevent the champagne from going flat.
It's a very good point! Although my experience is that any bottle of champagne left out in the First lounge doesn't sit around long enough to go flat!!!!
Boarding not boarding and now balcony not balcony. Could be a new thing going forward? Matt, have you heard the rumours of a T5C lounge including a CCR that was always planned but never built now becoming a reality??
I could eat almost 2,000 calories worth of Nachos alone. 😁 My last lounge experience was at the B gate and it was unpleasantly busy. So, sadly, too many people know about it already 😂
I saw a story about a kid who planned to eat a pound of nachos when he got to 99 pounds in weight. So for a few hours of his life he would be 1% nacho ...
I visited the Plaza lounge recently. I wasn't impressed as food offering was tiny and the lounge is not at all spacious. I put this down to being spoilt in Asia were the Plaza brand have excellent lounges. I'm looking forward to the B gate lounge soon.
Matt me and my son flying on first on the 21st of this month if you or any of your followers want to be a guest let me know theres 2 spaces. No point wasting it lol
Haven’t been to non BA lounges, but off BA North is the least favourite for exactly same reasons. Just beyond me to understand why all these people rush to this one while South is more spacious and often is far less busy
Please don't tell everyone about the B lounge 😉 The Whispering Angel section is rather tacky, though and their sparkling wine wasn't much to write home about either (though that may be because we'd just been sipping champagne in the Concorde lounge 😁before making a short, stop off on the way to a B gate).
You may think you suffer for your dear viewers but you did skip the Plaza Premium and the DREADFUL Aspire lounges. I spend a lot of time at the T5B Galleries even when I am departing from the A Gates and it is well worth the hike there and back. The fewer people who know about it the better so I hope the 14K who have seen your video thus far don't descend on it when I am trying to doze in the Pod Area.
This video has done well but hopefully memories are short and the B gates remain tranquil!! It is a pain to get back from so hopefully that puts a lot of people off!
@@MattsPlanet it feels like a failure because it is. We had a chance to win it but too inconsistent. Strikers all off the boil at the same time. Oh well. YNWA😥 Steve. C.
My airport experience tends to be a Boots meal deal and stealing a look at the magazines in WH Smith. Cheers for the look at the dark side!
There are 4 lounges at Edinburgh. Maybe a future video?!
@@77smpi found a piece of chewing gum in my food in ba’s edi lounge. it was in the beans from the breakfast buffet. complained and got an apology, however looking back I should have escalated this issue.
I feel a Collab coming on ... Steve in the Concorde room???
Agree
Suggest to Matt that he tries out Eastern Airways. 😄😄😄
Lounge crawls can be a lot of fun! Thanks for the info + video!
They certainly can be! Even better when you're not staying sober so you can film everything!!
Great video as always Matt, I have been in all of these lounges and you are right the CCR is miles above the rest. On a recent evening flight from T5 I went to Galleries South but it was still quite busy so headed to the B lounge. Always a quieter and better experience there and the staff were happy to bring me champagne refills. I admit the long walk back to A gates is a bit daunting when your flight is closing at A10 gates and you've had a few too many glasses of wine, but it's still worth the effort for a superior lounge.
Plus you get your steps in with the walk back!!
One of the reasons I found your channel so interesting was that it opened my eyes up to the world of BA status. I'd previously paid for a Priority Pass in 2020, just a month before the you-know-what which has to be one of the worst purchases of my life (even though they extended it to 2022). I actually went to the Plaza Premium lounge in Feb 2020 and it was so overcrowded - the food was good but there was literally nowhere to sit so I just perched on a ledge somewhere. Flying around the US I found that virtually all lounges that were priority pass were either over-full or closed. I managed to get into the same lounge as BA in Dublin once with it but generally I got about 5 mediocre lounge accesses from the pass. I've heard it's good in Asian lounges though, so it might just be an issue with them giving away priority passes like candy on US credit cards but even the busiest BA lounge is nowhere near as bad as the priority pass lounges.
Thanks. Things are better in Asia in so many ways!!! And US credit cards are extremely generous to every one's detriment!
Flying BA business from T5 for the first time in July - very much looking forward to visiting the B lounge! Thanks for the helpful video!
Have a great trip!
And just in time before my first BA business class flight from T5 tomorrow! Thank you for another fantastic video Matt
Have a great trip!
@@MattsPlanet Aww thank you! Hopefully I'll work my way up to the Concorde room 🤞🏾
Excellent video Matt, really informative.
Thanks for watching!
The Concorde room will get you in the mood for your up coming Bus Ride to the Plane😀😀
Nothing says "premium" like a bus gate....
Salad - not just for rabbits...... lounge password "bunny". Very drole Matt LOL!!!
Thanks for noticing.... Would you believe I scripted that before I knew the frames would line up that way??? Sometimes I'm good, and sometimes I'm really lucky!
Really enjoyable video, Matt.
I flew out of Heathrow T5 in June 2022 and, as I was only flying PE and don’t hold any status, checked in to the Aspire Lounge (thanks to my Priority Pass via Amex Gold).
I actually found it to be a very pleasant experience, with apron views and a solid F&B offering (was breakfast service at the time).
It was VERY busy though, and we were fortunate to get a decent table - they started turning people away shortly after we got there.
All in all though, I found it rather good, and would use it again if I flew from T5. 👍
Good to know - thanks. Contract lounges are generally good, just not as good as airline lounges!
Hi Matt, lucky you to enjoy all these lounges. We flew back from Orlando terminal C on Sunday and the BA business class lounge is the general use Plaza ‘Premium’. So many people seemed to be paying for entry meaning no seating except in kiddies play section. BA really need to up their game in the US; we find the BA Business class lounges at Gatwick South and LHR to be pretty decent though. Safe travels and keep the great videos coming.
Thanks - through Gatwick next month so will make a video about that in due course. Overseas lounges can be grim....
Good afternoon Matt. My Sunday afternoon viewing of your video was, I'm afraid, postponed due to some actual flying, for which I naturally apologize profusely.
Firstly, an update to a previous video: the T5 flight connections fast path lane now leads into the new "everything in" scanners, which swings it for me as the best choice.
I arrived into T5 yesterday as silver, my status still not having been updated, so had to use the Galleries Club lounge. Not a seat to be found. Eventually one opened up and I gratefully grabbed a coffee whilst contemplating how to keep an eye on my hand baggage whilst getting some food down. Whilst examining this Gordian knot my status finally updated and I headed downstairs to a slightly confused lady who kindly gave me access on the basis of my app, even though her screen showed a big red cross. Separate databases: what could possibly go wrong?
Sadly the flounge was also rammed, though this time there was one seat within /almost/ eyeball distance of the food, which I grabbed before anyone else.
Not a pleasant lounges experience for me, I have to say.
I did though partake of the showers, surely a missing feature of your videos? The T5 videos are ok, just, but come a poor second to Iberia's spacious offerings. They would have taken the prize, for me, until last week, when I had the pleasure of AA's Boston showers, which, astonishingly, actually did have room to swing a cat.
Cheers Ian and congrats on getting gold! Showers and toilets were a bit of an oversight but I really didn't have the time this trip to explore them...
Another excellent video. Concorde is definitely the best - sadly I've only been there once. Agree about North Galleries - very uncomfortable. I didn't like South Galleries but I'm finding it better now (the seating pods are quite nice). First (Gold) lounge I've been to once a long time ago but will be there in a few days time now I'm Gold. The only BA lounge I've still not been to is B gate and I've heard a lot of good things about it...might be able to sneak there after First. Never used the Arrivals lounges but might give one a go. I'm impressed by your walking speed from B to A gates :)
Cheers Dave. May have been some editing assistance with the speed of my walk!!!
The think I appreciate most about the Concorde Room when I use it flying by flying First class is its quietness.
Sure there are fewer people but they seem to make less noise as per the ambience! When full the actusl First class lounge can remind me of an AA Admiral's club on a bad day with people screaming down mobiles on calls they frequently have no urgent need to make.
As always, a nice and informative video.
That's a good point - sophisticated travellers in there!
Another great video Matt! From "Oi You!" I would say B-Lounge is deffo my favourite after South Galleries (I'm still only a measley Silver Status!)
B Lounges for the win! We'll get you to gold...
B Lounge is my favourite as well👍
Hi Matt,
Hope you are keeping well!!! As I was watching your video I had to think of an analogy I discussed with a friend at late. I think the lounges of Ba at their home hub in London are like buying a new build home from a large building group.....If you live out of your parents bedroom, a new build seems like class. Once you experienced the joys of an older house vs a new build, you would never class a new built as great!!!
As always, great video!!
Stay well
Thomas
Great analogy! Experience the Doha or Hong Kong lounges and you'll understand where the BA lounges really rank!
I’m a big fan of the walkway….. not only a place to get some steps in but there are some spots where you can get some travel-yoga nailed too. I didn’t bump into anyone running laps though. I must have been chief weirdo that day.
Really useful video tour, many thanks for your effort
It was a real struggle to make this! Glad you enjoyed it!
Matt, a very enjoyable video. I do like the idea of your rankings and I would agree. As someone who usually travels BC when ever possible, but only has Silver status, If I fly out of T5 I usually head for the B terminal lounge as I find it more comfortable, not as busy and the food seems better. If I use the main A terminal lounges I would opt for the BA South lounge. My main reason is like you said the North lounge always seems busier, but also beyond those double doors on the right, it is more open and I do not like sharing my space or eating and drinking experience with flying vermin.
Keep up the good work.
Steve. C.
YNWA.
PS, 2nd is still a possibility.😁🤞
Vermin (flying or otherwise) is not a good look in a lounge!
Very enjoyable Matt, albeit it short lived for me as I bump to Bronze in June. 😥I leave for the Maldives as Silver but return as Bronze, so back to PP from Amex Paltinum PP for the foreseable! Though the mention of extra payment to secure a placed is a faff.
I think you may have gone and done it for silvers with the comparisons between First and Galleries.... knowing BA I fear they will reduce the quality and options in the Galleries rather than improve the First.
I was impressed with you not using the travelators in getting from the B lounge to the A gates. My wife and I were advised to go to that lounge over the main one on our recent Cape Town trip and found it quiet and relaxing, though the Whispering Angel didn't do it for me and couldnt get a glass of champers. 😒
You mentioned you had no way of gewtting into the Aspire lounge but didn't say why and as there wasn't a queue apparent, wonder why. Or was it that there was a waiting list?
Cheers - I don't have priority pass and dragon pass doesn't include the aspire, which is why I didn't go in. I debate getting a PP (one way or another) almost weekly but I'd make so little use of it ...
@@MattsPlanetthanks Matt, I can understand you sticking with your BA access due to your Gold status. Do you only ever fly with one world airlines, thereby having access to their lounges? Can I ask, bearing in mind the amount of miles and flights you do, what travel insurance do you use? It's probably the main reason I have kept Amex Platinum, together with the car hire status upgrades and hire car insurance. Though, no longer having Oneworld access, other than business class trips, the PP access will resume being enjoyed, when available.
Quality, as always. My experience with Priority Pass has been most lounges really need to be pre-booked if you want to guarrantee getting in. I've had the odd good luck some places, but usually at out stations. For those of us stuck at the lowly Silver tier, the B concourse lounge for the win. As you rightly mention - you just need to make sure you allow yourself enough time to trundle back to the main terminal for your flight. I find the arrivals lounge in T5 to be a great respite before slogging into town after a long international flight. Especially if I have slept and not had any breakfast on board the airplane. One question, though - while I know it would be goverened by credit card or cash access, does not Amex have a Centurion Lounge in T5 these days?
"trundle" is such a good word!! No centurion at T5 - I'd imagine there'd be demand for one but amex would have to unseat someone very established to get the space and that will be expensive....
Only times I’ve had pleasant experiences in the North Lounge have been for early morning departures when it’s not been too busy.
There are also murmurs of a new C gate lounge being added as part of the upcoming lounge refurb programme, as well as the possibility of a Concorde dining area being added to the B gate lounge (similar to the one in T3)
Lots of rumours... I've heard on good authority that T5C was always intended to be a US pre-clearance block, in which case it would need a lounge. That would be good!!
I didn't know if you were aware Matt, but if you use the Arrivals Lounge as a First Passenger you have the option of a cabana with a bath instead of the shower cubicles. On the subject of cabanas, these re-opened in the Concorde Room on the 25 May
I didn't know that - thanks. Did I see there were only a few cabanas in the CCR? Perhaps 2???
@@MattsPlanet there are 3 cabanas in the CCR, 2 is my favourite.
Another great video - this sort of stuff is so helpful for the uninitiated like me.
Now a test as to whether I was paying attention or not. At 16:20 did you mean to say "This lounge is always busier than the SOUTH lounge" rather than "busier than the NORTH lounge"?
I did! Well spotted. I'm pretty good at catching these before the video goes live but this one crept through....
I'm oneworld emerald and will be departing T5 on a monday morning soon and this has helped me greatly as I scour the web for lounge reviews. Think ill drop straight into the first lounge!
Have a great time!
@@MattsPlanet Will do Matt. If I ever meet you there, beer is on me.
Great video! If flying from B or C gates I would always choose the B lounge, less crowded, well staffed, clean and the new cooking station is a great addition. I hope BA will take from inspiration from Cathay or Qatar for the refurbs, and get rid of the hospital style bathrooms.
Indeed - I didn't feature the bathrooms this time as I wanted the video to be quite positive! But they are grim.... Spacious but grim!
@@MattsPlanet I would say, functional. I don't need a feminine "refresh." I need a functional shower. It's enough to look at all the instrucions as to how to adjust the hot and cold and direction of the water, and where the different outlets and buttons are. I just need to figure it out once. I don't want to learn a new design and new pattern of behavior, everytime I simply want a funchional shower. Maybe BA could leave the functional showers for practical blokes like me on one sice of the corridor, and the fancy "refreshed" showers for the queens on the other side of the corridor........
Great vid, once had to walk the tunnel from A to C as the train had a malfunction.
Hate the queue at the plaza lounge. Aspire lounge is always extremely busy but the worst part is they don't have any restrooms, you need to exit and use the restrooms in the main terminal. The BA business lounges are ok'ish, i find the virgin club house amazing, the Lufthansa lounge in t3 is also pretty good.
Thanks - I'm not as big a fan of virgins clubhouse as many but I'm back there in September and I'm very happy to have my kind changed!!!
Looking forwards to my Concorde lounge time in July now
It'll be great - enjoy!
Great review. Not had the opportunity to use the Concorde Lounge yet, but definitely echo it’s worth the trip / possible steps to go the B gate lounge. Don’t bother with the ones in the main terminal any more - too often packed and dirty such that having a sandwich outside Pret is way preferable.
There's serious capacity issues with the galleries lounges in the main terminal...
I don't have BA status but I'll often buy a business class flight home to Inverness from Heathrow, as it can be good value when you factor in the ground experience. I do like to use a lounge at T5 as I find the main departure area particularly chaotic and noisy. So, I've used the Galleries North / South and also the Club Aspire lounge (pre-booked) with Amex. I agree with your rankings in respect of these three, but the Club Aspire lounge, though busy, was better than I expected. I actually really like the Galleries North / South. They come in for some stick and I don't really know why. Maybe I'm lucky and haven't caught them at their busiest.
Cheers - Steve Marsh just released a video about a night out in Inverness and I really want to go now!!! All of your points are valid and if the north lounge isn't busy its a perfectly pleasant place to spend some time!
@@MattsPlanet Brave man! No, seriously, it's a nice compact city. Our main shopping centre (although we live around 35 miles north). Inverness airport is quite a nice no-hassle place to fly in and out of, although it could do with an express shuttle bus to the city centre. (The usual service buses have been re-routed and now take forever!). HFP has a review of the Aspire lounge there. Describes it as like being in someone's sitting room! If you're coming up, why not review the on-airport Courtyard Marriott? It's a couple of minutes' walk to the terminal. We find it handy for early flights down to London and, when there are two of us, the room cost can often be covered by the fact the early BA and Easyjet flights are usually significantly cheaper than the later ones. Will have a look at the @steve-marsh video.👍
I think the Galleries term is more than just business as BA also refers to the 'Galleries First' lounge. You're right though, in that its not really a first lounge - although it is not just for BA golds as any OneWorld emerald can use it too.
As for the arrivals lounge, the biggest issue is the showers - last week there were 15 out of the 90+ showers serviceable.
Thanks - having 94 showers is only impressive if they work!!! 15 is really poor....
My most recent Heathrow connection was back in 2022 and both BA and Iberia were using Terminal 3. I had enough time to visit just one lounge (and I was Sapphire at the time), I chose the Qantas lounge. I should've chosen a different one!
That Qantas lounge is great when a QF plane is due to depart - otherwise it's a bit meh!
`Thanks for this Matt, my wife and I are traveling club world to Denver in the summer and can't wait for it, based on your review and others I've seen I think we'll give the B gates lounge a go. Hope you're well.
Doing good here thanks. US flights almost always go from B or C gates so you'd be unlucky to have to double back if you head for the B lounge. Have a great trip!
Hello chap, in the First lounge that staffed station in the middle of the main area across from the buffet spur, in between the windowed wine racks at 5:42 and in your video, they really ought to make some effort with cocktails there: I think they're missing a trick TBH.
I did ask for them to replace the ice in a zip locked ice bag for me a couple of weeks ago, but that was all too hard for them, so I turned around and left with a frustrated FFS look on my face. I don't think there's even a sink there, which is probably why they don't do cocktails. If they did they'd need new staff, as I don't think the two that I encountered could do anything that's a script beyond one or two ingredients including the ice. I might give it a try next time. There's no propping the bar up there either, there's no counter to speak of, nor stools.
There was a manned food station at breakfast at the B gates lounge last time I was there about a month ago: I'm quite fond of the simple bacon and sausage baps, even when in the CCR.
Cheers, Howard.
Hi mate! I've had an idea of a video along the lines of "cocktails you can make yourself from what's available in the F lounge" but the list of cocktails I end up with is always very short. And dull!!! I didn't actually approach the manned bar this time through as I remembered it being "staff only" when it was set up during the "you know what" and I didn't think to check if you could now use it in person!
Hello Matt! Greetings from Korea! Long time viewer, but first time leaving a comment!
I'd love to see a lounge review at Heathrow's terminal 2 as well. Really enjoyed the great video!
I have an idea.... I think the Singapore lounge closed for a refurb so I'll wait for it to reopen
Sadly my lowly Silver Status got me an even more basic experience at CMB yesterday than the offerings shown here. Will I have to follow your video advice and knock up ye olde AUH to CGK in BC to advance to gold, and of course find out what the better lounge in Colombo is like? Thanks Matt, once again the only videos on here that make real sense to a Oneworld traveller.
Thanks Tim! Didn't have time to check out the regular status lounge on either trip through Colombo but I can imagine they're not world class...
Perfect Matt! This is the video I've been waiting for. I'm flying BA Club World in Spring 2025, LHR-TYO, return, so from your rankings, I'd head ideally to the the B-gate lounge.
A great video!
Thanks - the longer the haul, the more likely there'll be a b or c gate too
@@MattsPlanet Yeah, April 2024 was my first time back on BA in probably about ten years or so, I'm afraid to say. I was so spoilt by FIrst Wing immediate access to lounge and Concorde Room, that I was surprised that I had to wander far afield to my LHR-JFK flight. So weird that commentators brag about how massively popular and profitable the LHR-JFK route is; yet, you have to do a haphazard escalator and train journey out of the First Wing area to get to the B Gate for the JFK flight. Almost as confusing as CDG's stylish yet illogical K,L,M halls.
All this talk of lounges has given me a thought for a future video series - you could locate BA lounges worldwide and commence a 'tour' of such, perhaps rating them on some sort of scale. For example, I believe there are roughly 12 or so BA branded (not AA/Oneworld) in the US. The Boston one, for example, PHL, IAD, IAH all have BA lounges. Alternatively, you could commence a 'lounge tour' of the world and its airports that silver/gold status holders could access. Heck, you might even take the penguin soft toy you featured in a video eons ago and give a 'penguin approval rating' for each lounge....
Not a bad idea! I do have a massive lounge based project in mind for later this year, although that needs a few things to fall into place....
16:20 - do you mean South lounge? Also, why could you not access the Aspire lounge? It's available to Amex customers via Priority Pass. Thanks
I think I did mean South! And I couldn't access Aspire with a priority pass from my Amex as I don't have the platinum card - I made a video about why I don't have it and it just doesn't make sense for me
@@MattsPlanetI don’t think you need an Amex Platinum to access Aspire. I’ve accessed it with my Amex Gold various times before.
@@MattsPlanet I don't think you need an Amex Platinum to access Aspire? I've accessed it with my Amex Gold many times before. Unless if they've changed the rules recently.
@@P8REN Its a Priority Pass lounge so you'd need a Platinum Amex to get one - you can of course buy a PP but an Amex Gold won't work on its own
@@MattsPlanet Weird as I’ve been allowed in with my Gold card. I just went on the Amex website and selected the gold card and it says this: “Take advantage of 4 complimentary Priority Pass airport lounge visits every year giving you access to over 1,300 airports globally.”
Hi there your comment always makes me smile, just returned from 1st class flight on AA and BA business from Manchester to Dallas, omg, please don’t fly AA the only reason I did was to experience their 1st class and flagship dining before they got rid of it( too late , should’ve got rid of it sooner!!) the crew on both flights excelled, but the soft and hard products bloody awful, food was dreadful, didn’t even go there on the return ( saved myself for concord room). No WiFi on either leg, just felt exhausted on both legs on arrival. The pyjamas and amenity kit cheap, cheap, cheap , and don’t even go there on flagship dining, grim plus DFW airport was closing down at 8.45pm. Shut by 10.00pm( flight at 11pm) but good news on t5 concord room the Cabanas have reopened, no more 40 winks!! Yeah , also like you did all available lounges at t3 and honestly BA 1st outshone Cathy Pacific . Usual delay for London to Manchester ( 1.5 hours delay) but will never ever fly AA again lol.
AA's F is indeed an endangered species... But the seats pivot.... At least the crew was good
B Gates lounge refurb has definitely made it a more pleasant experience than before.
Refurbs of the other lounges are promised too...
Another terrific video. I find it quite bizarre that sometimes there's JW Blue in the First Class Lounge, and sometimes not. Seems like a bizarre level of inconsistency when you consider how much a bottle costs vs. the black label or the talisker storm that's usually there.
I don't ever remember seeing blue in there if I'm honest but I'm reliably informed it does appear!!
Great video as usual, Matt. Let me know if you're heading through T3/5 on a Friday afternoon - always happy to guest you into the CCR as I'm usually on my own.
Very kind! No plans for a Friday right now but I'm sure it'll happen!
Thank You ✈️
Thanks for watching!
another great video matt i have used a few of them lounges but alas not CCR we are flying to MIA in winter and hope to use it if the price is good hopfully they will have some JW blue by then
Not sure what the rules are for the JW blue to appear...
@@MattsPlanet i will say @matts planet said the should be some here then they will go and get one
I’ve always wondered if the B and C concourses have a BA lounge. It’s good to know the B concourse has. But the C concourse could use one since it’s impractical to back track from there to the main concourse or the B gates. Nevermind if there is an automated people mover to allow departing passengers to go back but that’s not even a feature in most other airports anyway.
C was apparently intended to house US preclearance so would have had a post immigration lounge... But the negotiation about doing it is still ongoing...
It's weird how mediocre BAs lounges are in their own, supposedly flagship, home terminal. I went to Boston last month, and that lounge blew the Heathrow First Lounge out of the water food and drink wise (fresh made cocktails and food to order that wasn't buffet dried out fishcakes and pies). App.ordering was available with food not on the buffet brought to you. Had direct boarding from the lounge too!
Definitely better wines in the F/Gold lounge than the Galleries though (at least for now)
Also, Whispering Angel is a very meh rosé. It retails for £15-20. A lot of BAs wines and spirits are probably 'gifted' to them for very cheap or free as a promotional stock (maybe even Diageo pays them to put it in front of us)
Not been to BAs Boston lounge but it sounds like I should go!!!
I knew you could reserve Club Aspire T5 in advance with Priority Pass for a small additional fee but didn't realise you could do the same thing with Plaza Premium T5, thanks for the tip.
Probably the only way to get in these days!
Hi Matt, Another great video.
Were fliying BA First to the US in October on a A380 (so a C gate boarding) whats your preference, A) stay in the CCR as long as you can and be one of the last to board or B) head down to C early and be first on board to get settled in and enjoy a PDB
Thanks in advance
My opinion, for what it's worth, would be to stay in the CCR as long as possible.
@@nicholasashaw72 Thanks that was our thought as this will probably be our only visit
A nice choice!!! If you've planned enough time in the CCR then being first aboard is always nice... Although there's no fighting for overhead space in F so you can happily be last too! I tend to get on first, but it makes filming easier to do so
@@MattsPlanet Thanks Matt, due to the great advice in your videos this flight was booked using points and vouchers
Hello Matt. Another great informative vlog. However: I was in the T5 Arrivals Lounge a couple of weeks ago, and thought I overheard one of the staff indicate the T5 AL was closing!! Any rumours? Keep up the great reviews.
There's a refurb coming which is probably what they were refering to.... Although there's so few arrivals lounges around the world now it wouldn't be a complete shock
I enjoyed the Virgin arrivals one. Showers were good and the table order breakfast + coffee was really top.
I have covered that lounge in my ATL to LHR video - a little bit tired I thought but the catering was good
Yes I was surprised at how mundane/bus terminal waiting room it felt but surprisingly the f&b was very decent and loved the fact you could still order from the app and it was so personal. Maybe I got lucky with the first flight of the day in from JNB.
Love your videos..great job 😂
Thanks for watching!
Thanks for the video-had a pleasant back to back from Jersey to Belfast with a good length between flights to hone my B gates and back to A gates PB-wife particularly jealous about the whispering angel! Aspire definitely worst but I haven’t been in the premium plaza-I’d also go onto say I think the B gates lounge is nicer than the First lounge! I wonder whether BA would ever deny you entry to B gates if you were departing from the A gates?
It won't.
Thanks - it's close between the T5B and the F but it's still just the F for me... I think they'll let you in if you make it clear you know how to get back to A and you know how long it takes!!;
The BA LHR Loungebird App was released April 15. It would have been interesting to see how accurate the numbers are, vs your walkaround. Then again, the North Club Lounge still shows a network error! Doh!
The sceptic in me wonders how they track numbers... Hard to believe it can be accurate....
@@MattsPlanet it uses cameras at the lounge entrances not sure how accurate it is however!
As an ex crew member at BA I can confirm the furry friends were frequently seen in the Crew Reporting Centre the floor below too 😁
Thanks! I suspected if they were on one floor, they'd be on others! Although I doubt BA fed you as lavishly down there as they do passengers in the lounges!
At T5 BA first class lounge there is a bar and the bartender prepares a cocktail for you! Or you use the QR code as you mentioned and order the cocktails at your table. 👍
Next trip I'll test it out!
I once changed into running gear to run in the tunnel, but security collared me and 'asked' me to stop.
That's a bit tough! I knew it was possible though!
I wonder if Galleries-B is a bit better because it will have a lot of people flying Long Haul in both Club & First who want to get to B quickly, and proportionately less "status" flyers. Pure speculation
There may be something to that - I've heard its been busier lately - all these RUclipsrs making videos about it.... But I think you learn that a long haul / US route is very likely to be a B gate so its less of a gamble to head straight there
Yeah, I just got my BA Gold status, and I wondered into T5 check-in area; but, I was on the left side, and at the head of the velvet rope line, the staffer told me that I was in the wrong place and that I had to walk all the way over to the right side of the terminal and check in there. So, I walk way over there, and there was a discreet podium and entrance to a wood-panelled area. I was helped there, and did check in and security there, and at the end of the mouse maze I did find myself smack in the middle of the champagne lounge. I was exhausted by the maze process and quicly self served a couple full glasses of complimentary champagne. Yeah, the table had a QR code, which seemed useless, then I wandered further to forage. I had to walk a long way and around a corner and further down I found the food So I piled up my plate with food and returned to the champagne area and poured myself more champagne and ate my breakfast food. I was in need of a shower , and I took another look at the QR code and successfully booked a shower. I went to the shower area and confirmed with the shower area attendant that I had a booking The shower area was functional and felt great. Then I proceeded back to the food area for self serve cappuccino and croissant, and I ate at a table near the foyer. I was too tired a and afraid to try my luck at the Concorde Room. I was happy enough in the First Wing lounge. Then I asked the foyer podium attendant about my flight, and I found out that I was in the wrong place. I had to go to the B Gates. I had to take the escalators down to the train level, take the train to the B Gates, take more escalators up, then wander around back and forth, and then another escalator up, and I found the lounge for the B Gates. I saw the special pink champagne area, but I was not in the mood for more champagne, and I just had another self serve cappuccino and croissant, before quickly finding my gate nearby for JFK. Somehow, I was the only persona in Boarding Group One, so that was nice. Thank you for the vidoe. Yeah, I see the food is the same every where. Gold is worth it just for the self servce champagne and shower right after First Wing special checkin and security, otherwise, yeah, that's it, and I might go back to AIr France, we'lll see....thanks again.
Sounds like a great day out to me! BA will never compete with la premiere on AF but it still can be a great experience
Apart from the Concord lounge. I find that Qatar lounge in T4 is the best. BA gallery lounge is always crowded. CX lounge is nicer than BA lounge.
I went in the Qatar lounge years ago, well before the channel and I remember it being excellent.... I just hate paying the APD on London departures so haven't flown through there since!!! I really should, as it would be good content for the channel!
well you certainly know your watching too much matts planet when you spot that ba man at 8:27 is same ba man who made appearance in t3 lounge tour video ! i need to get out more...
Amazing! Probably time for a break! Thanks, but probably time for a break!!!
How do you get back from B gates back to A if need be? Ah -4 level, never knew
You can go from a to b the same way if you want the exercise too
BA really need to sort out plug provision in their lounges. Some of us go to get some work done, and finding a socket is like needles and haystacks.
100%. Hopefully the refurbs will address this!
@@MattsPlanet And on the aircraft, too! I coudn't find an outlet in the lounge, but I told myself I'd charge my phone on the aircraft. Then, I got on my B777 premium economy seat to JFK, and the singular socket that was between the shins of my neighbor and me had no power. Sad. Sad. Sad.
Gutted you didn’t go the Aspire Lounge as in contrary to the reviews I have always found it to be better than the Plaza Premium in several aspects.
Next time...
They are cocktails on those QR codes. You can see it in your video right at the bottom
Thanks - quite a limited range I think?
7.14. I'm surprised that the bottles are left open like that. They should really seal the champagne bottles with stoppers, to prevent the champagne from going flat.
It's a very good point! Although my experience is that any bottle of champagne left out in the First lounge doesn't sit around long enough to go flat!!!!
Boarding not boarding and now balcony not balcony. Could be a new thing going forward? Matt, have you heard the rumours of a T5C lounge including a CCR that was always planned but never built now becoming a reality??
T5C was planned to be a US pre-clearance zone so a CCR would make sense there... Fingers crossed!
went in the plaza lounge a few months ago, it was HELL, no seats, dirty and the food looked and was crap,
Very mixed reviews on the T5 contract lounges!
I could eat almost 2,000 calories worth of Nachos alone. 😁 My last lounge experience was at the B gate and it was unpleasantly busy. So, sadly, too many people know about it already 😂
I saw a story about a kid who planned to eat a pound of nachos when he got to 99 pounds in weight. So for a few hours of his life he would be 1% nacho ...
@@MattsPlanet That's an admirable life goal. 😄
Isn’t there a 10th lounge in T5 for VIPS?
There's a Windsor suite close to T5 for VIPs but that's not generally accessible. One day!!!
Did you say the arrivals shut at2pm?!?!
yes
It does. Which makes sense in some ways as most of the us inbounds are landed by then
I go to Thailand every year, what longe could I get.
Depends on the airport, terminal, airline, status ....
I visited the Plaza lounge recently. I wasn't impressed as food offering was tiny and the lounge is not at all spacious. I put this down to being spoilt in Asia were the Plaza brand have excellent lounges.
I'm looking forward to the B gate lounge soon.
Supply and demand for that plaza is way out of whack in the UK... Far too many people trying to get in
Matt me and my son flying on first on the 21st of this month if you or any of your followers want to be a guest let me know theres 2 spaces. No point wasting it lol
That's such a kind offer! Are you going to be there in Jan 28th 2025? I doubt it...but I'd love to go into ccr one day lol
@orionbaden-powell1496 ok this is crazy but me and my wife are look at jan28 till fab 26th 2025 lol
Feb lol
Thanks - very kind of you to offer!
Haven’t been to non BA lounges, but off BA North is the least favourite for exactly same reasons. Just beyond me to understand why all these people rush to this one while South is more spacious and often is far less busy
The North is "right there" for so many people! But the South wins
Better for me to have silver with BA and the equivalent lounge access tier with star alliance...
Very sensible - although you need to be gold with star to get the roaming rights. But it's a nice pragmatic approach
Please don't tell everyone about the B lounge 😉 The Whispering Angel section is rather tacky, though and their sparkling wine wasn't much to write home about either (though that may be because we'd just been sipping champagne in the Concorde lounge 😁before making a short, stop off on the way to a B gate).
The cat may be out of the bag, sadly!
2000 Kcal a day sign is a legal requirement....
As is calorific content in England, but not Scotland, which is a wise choice 😉
Nanny state!!!! But not in Scotland! 5 points to our northern friends!
What's the calories in a deep fried mars bar?!
I have used the Aspire Lounge, may be i just picked a bad time, but it was awful! Cramped and very poor food, so much so we left.
That's what I've heard.... Never actually made it in myself....
You may think you suffer for your dear viewers but you did skip the Plaza Premium and the DREADFUL Aspire lounges. I spend a lot of time at the T5B Galleries even when I am departing from the A Gates and it is well worth the hike there and back. The fewer people who know about it the better so I hope the 14K who have seen your video thus far don't descend on it when I am trying to doze in the Pod Area.
This video has done well but hopefully memories are short and the B gates remain tranquil!! It is a pain to get back from so hopefully that puts a lot of people off!
A lot of the lounges would have seats available if people didn't put their luggage and coat on 3 seats and sit in a fourth. Selfish.......people!!
Completely!!! And if RUclipsrs didn't make videos about hidden gems like the T5B lounge!!!
There are RATS in the lounges?? 🤢
I don't think so but mice have been spotted... Not sure that's much better actually!!!
If it's any consolation they also have them in the BA Waterside offices.
@@MattsPlanet I don’t mind mice so much 🐭
Technically correct, but yes, cheating in spirit 😂
I try to be transparent in my videos!!
ME again.
Still didn't see any Cognac. Really annoys me. 🤯
Steve. C
YNWA
Don't get me started!!! Start of the season, new midfield, I'd have taken 3rd.... So why does it feel like such a failure now!!!! YNWA
@@MattsPlanet it feels like a failure because it is. We had a chance to win it but too inconsistent. Strikers all off the boil at the same time. Oh well.
YNWA😥
Steve. C.