Review: Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt (FRA)

Prior to flying Air Canada’s Boeing 777 business class from Frankfurt to Toronto, I visited the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge. As a Star Alliance business class passenger you have the option of using this or the Lufthansa Business Lounge, so I visited both during my time at the airport.

As the only non-Lufthansa Star Alliance lounge at Frankfurt Airport, I have a soft spot for the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge. It has nice decor, great views, comfortable rest areas and shower suites, and most importantly, pretzels! I often stop into this lounge if I’m departing on a flight from this part of the terminal, even if not flying Air Canada.

Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt location

The Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge is located in Terminal 1 Concourse B of Frankfurt Airport, in the non-Schengen area (meaning you have to clear passport control to use this lounge). Once you’ve cleared security, just follow signage toward gates B41-B48.

Around gate B43, you’ll see an escalator on the right side, leading up to the Maple Leaf Lounge, as it’s one level above the concourse.

It should be pretty easy to spot the lounge’s unique exterior, which features wood paneling.

There’s also an Air Canada Boeing 787 aircraft model right at the entrance, which I appreciate as an avgeek.

Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt hours

The Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt is open daily from 6AM until 5PM. This covers all Air Canada departures from the airport, and many departures on partner airlines as well.

Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt entry requirements

The Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge is a standard Star Alliance business class lounges, so can be accessed by:

• Air Canada business class passengers, as well as business class passengers on all Star Alliance partner airlines; no guests are allowed
• Star Alliance Gold members can also use the lounge and bring a guest when flying Star Alliance the same day

On top of that, those with an eligible Air Canada lounge membership can also visit this lounge.

Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt seating & layout

The Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt is 726 square meters (~7,800 square feet). So it’s not massive, but it’s a decent size for an outstation lounge, and in my experience it doesn’t get quite as crowded as the Lufthansa lounges at the airport.

When you enter the lounge, you’ll see the buffet and a communal table with high-top seating right near the entrance.

The center of the lounge — both physically and visually — is a sitting area with two massive “U” shaped couches, and a sculpture in the middle. This space has alternating glass and textured panels, which along with the mood lighting, makes this a pretty cool space.

Then to one side of this area are roughly a dozen cafe-style tables. There’s a long bench on one side, and then chairs make up the rest of the seating.

The other side of the lounge by the windows has more traditional lounge seating, with chairs in rows facing one another.

There’s more seating in the back of the lounge, which is intended to be a quiet area, though I find that’s generally not observed by people (and if anything, it being quieter over there seems to make people want to make phone calls).

One unique feature of this lounge is the resting area, where there are pre-reclined chairs, each in a semi-private area with a television. I find this to be significantly nicer than the rest areas offered in the Lufthansa lounges, which have no privacy.

The last area of the lounge, which is really quite hidden, is the business center. This is behind reception and to the right, and it can be easy to miss this. It’s not unusual to find this area totally empty, even if the rest of the lounge is quite crowded.

The lounge has plenty of natural light on one side, along with views of the apron, though they are a bit obstructed due to the terminal’s design.

Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt food & drinks

The Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt has a pretty decent selection of self serve food & drinks. Lufthansa lounges may have a slight edge when it comes to quantity, but as someone who usually isn’t big into eating in lounges (when flying in a premium cabin, I eat way too much on the plane and am not getting much movement, so…), I find it more than sufficient.

The buffet consisted of yogurt, fresh fruit, cold cuts, all kinds of pastries, croissants, pretzels, and pancakes, scrambled eggs, bacon, and candy.

To drink there was coffee, tea, water, soda, beer, wine, and liquor.

My consumption in the lounge was limited to a pretzel, which was ridiculously delicious. I may have even had a second one. Given that the Lufthansa lounge didn’t have any of these during my visit, that gives this lounge the edge when it comes to catering, by my standards. 😉

Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt bathrooms & showers

The Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt has bathrooms behind reception. The mens restroom had a few sinks, stalls, and urinals, which were well maintained.

The Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt also has shower suites, which I find to be significantly better than the ones you’ll find in Lufthansa lounges. They’re nicely appointed, and they have Molton Brown products.

Bottom line

For Star Alliance travelers, the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt is a welcome alternative to Lufthansa’s endless collection of lounges. The Maple Leaf Lounge has nice decor, a comfortable relaxation area, beautiful shower suites, and pretzels.

Whether you’re flying Air Canada or another Star Alliance airline, I definitely think it’s worth at least stopping in here. I also find it’s often less crowded than the Lufthansa lounges at the airport.

What do you make of the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge Frankfurt?