Airport lounge, worth it?

[MsMiaWallace]

Tempted to book one this year as a special treat.
Are they worth it or best to avoid?
It'd be Birmingham Airport No1 Lounge.

I've only used it twice (Manchester) and found it pretty underwhelming if I'm honest

If I'm with a group who are keen to use a lounge then I'll go along with the majority but I don't personally find it adds anything to my holiday

They are all extremely variable and if you hit them at a busy time just as they've cleared away a 'meal time' then they are pretty dire.

We go because I get those loung

There's lounges, and then there's lounges.

Anything at a major hub airport by the major airline(s) located there will typically be large and pretty decent with all sorts of food/drink/amenities. Anything at an outstation, especially a smaller one that only supports a few flights a day will likely be smaller, more crowded, and lower offering akin to a cafe. Many times we have come out of a small lounge and realised a nook could be found in the main terminal which would have been quieter and more secluded than the lounge. Our most recent flight we were flying from Copenhagen and the SAS lounge was dire, so we decamped to a crappy 'Irish' bar in the terminal and bought our own food and drinks with the football on, in a secluded quiet corner, which was much more pleasant!

I agree in some airports you can find a quiet place with drinks and food much nicer and cheaper than a lounge. But then I am not interested in getting pissed before a flight.

Depends on the lounge and on you.

The only time I've really appreciated it was in Geneva. I was about 7 weeks pregnant, exhausted, alone and feeling so sick. My flight was delayed and the only seats were hard metal.

I asked the BA lady if there was a medical room or anywhere I could lie down in the airport. She gave me a pass to the first class BA lounge. They were so nice to me. Let me lie on the sofa, brought me water etc.

I wrote in to thank them for being so kind.

Any other time it has felt like a waste of money and so not worth it.

I went to an adult only one at Manchester Airport a few years ago. Food etc was ok but the big plus was the quietness. No screeching over excited children. When we came out to go to the gate the noise and hubbub was a shock.

So sometimes it is worth it for that alone!

Was very disappointed with Manchesters T2 lounge, food looked very unappetizing, and the place was crowded and noisy.
Not the relaxing experience I was expecting, and I wouldn't book again. What is aggravating we always fly VA, but you can't access their (reputedly very nice) lounge unless you have booked a package holiday with Virgin.

I only use airline lounges/plaza premium otherwise I get to the airport as late as possible

We did this recently and it was great and didn't work out to much more expensive, if you eat and have a few drinks

Be just looked for our next holiday in July.
Its £130 for me, DH and DD each and £30 for DS
Even with ever hungry teen DS it wouldn’t be worth it unfortunately.
At £50 each or similar I might do it but that’s extortionate

Definitely do some research.

Manchester has different lounges and unfortunately I booked one that was not so great.
Food was very average. No windows. Loos out of the lounge.
It didn't feel special.
We ended up leaving and going to the departures bar. Much better service and atmosphere.

Heathrow. I got a good one. Lots of space and great food.

I think they are worth it if you know what you are going to get.

EACH @Hoppinggreen ?! I pay about £25 for the one at Gatwick I think.

Yes each!
If it was in total I would happily consider it

Which airport is that one? I wonder if the prices have gone up since covis or something?

If you'd be using the lounge at breakfast time, I assume you have a mid-morning flight? So you'd be trying to check in during a busier time of day. You could find that all your lounge time gets eaten up in check-in/security, whereas a later arrival at the airport would mean your check-in time was shorter. This may depend a bit on whether you're travelling in school holiday time.

We get a free lounge pass with our credit card. I regard it as the best perk of all of them! It’s bliss to sit in peace and quiet, with guaranteed comfy seats, wi fi and free food and drink!

We had breakfast in a lounge in T4 at Heathrow last year - it was a hot and cold buffet, nearly as good as Premier Inn’s breakfast! Well worth it!

We get free lounge access with Amex and always take advantage, not sure if I'd pay for it separately as the lounges vary a lot in quality. Birmingham tends to be pretty busy and noisy.

Anyone got any thoughts on the ones at Gatwick South terminal? Thinking about trying one for the first time at Easter, thinking the airports likely to be busy as it's in school holidays.

Manchester in early July

I think either a glitch or a misunderstanding @Hoppinggreen (hoping that doesn't come across as rude!). The most expensive airport lounge at Manchester is £143 for 3 adults and a child in July.

Still probably not worth it, but a little more palatable!

Have used a few and mostly found them to be excellent and worth the money. We had a 4 hour layover in Jeddah this week and it made it so easy.

have a priority pass so only costs £20 a visit.

do enjoy the showers in some of them after a long flight.

for me mostly worth it all depends on how much time at the airport.

Yet we used to on New Year’s Eve and was excellent. But was also fairly quite

Thank you but I went into the Manchester airport website and this was the result

booking.manchesterairport.co.uk/lounges/results/?EntryDate=13+Jul+2023&EntryTime=10%3A00&chosenTerminal=3&adultundefined=3&Offerlines%5B0%5D.Name=Adult+%2816%2B%29&Offerlines%5B0%5D.MaxQuantity=6&Offerlines%5B0%5D.Count=3&childundefined=1&Offerlines%5B1%5D.Name=Child+%283%2B%29&Offerlines%5B1%5D.MaxQuantity=5&Offerlines%5B1%5D.Count=1&MaxQuantity=6&Terminal=6

@ladymacbeth
i am an idiot!
I have just re read it and you ARE correct.
Thank you, I think given that we would probably spend that on food and drink we may well book on.
Apologies again, I really need to work on my comprehension skills

@Hoppinggreen yes that's says the same thing, £140 total not £130 each!

I feel like I'm misunderstanding something 😂