My Singapore Airlines flight was departing from gate B46, and there’s a Senator Lounge located near gate B43, which is less than a minute walk away. That’s quite convenient, given that this flight goes between Singapore and New York, so it’s only a quick walk for the passengers transiting in Frankfurt.
As I explained in the last post, it is a bit disappointing that Star Alliance first class passengers only get access to the Lufthansa Senator Lounge, which is more or less identical to the Lufthansa Business Lounge. Technically the Senator Lounge is for partner first class passengers and Star Gold members, while the Business Lounge is for Lufthansa and Star Alliance business class passengers. But in practice they’re more or less identical, and it’s just a way to spread out the crowding a bit.
Anyway, back to the lounge.
There was an agent at the entrance scanning boarding passes.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport entrance
The lounge is actually one level up from the concourse, so once through the entrance I took the escalator up to the lounge level (the escalator is one way, so to go down you either have to take the stairs or an elevator).
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport escalator
There’s a second entrance on the second floor, to the left of which is the service desk if you need any help with rebooking, seat assignments, etc.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport entrance
The hours for this lounge are 5AM until 10PM daily.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport hours
I have to say that Lufthansa has done a lot to freshen up their lounges in the past several years, so that they actually feel fairly modern now. There were floor-to-ceiling block letters near the entrance inside a glass display, which I don’t really get, but…
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport interior
While I love Lufthansa’s First Class Lounges, their Senator and Business Lounges just don’t do it for me. They just feel like big gate areas. They don’t use walls or partitions to make them feel private, or use different “themes” throughout the lounge to create more of an experience. Rather the lounge just kind of felt like an IKEA showroom with some food.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport interior
Near the windows were plenty of leather chairs.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport seating
The tarmac views from the lounge were quite nice, at least.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport view
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport view
At the far of the lounge, some of the leather chairs faced a couple of TVs with the news on.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport seating
Next to that was some cafe style seating, with both dining tables and table-top seating.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport seating
And then that led into the main cafe area, which had tons of dining tables.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport seating
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport seating
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport seating
While there are self serve drinks, there’s also a bar with specialty cocktails, made-to-order coffee drinks, etc.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport bar
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport bar menu
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport bar
The food spread in the Senator Lounge was okay — not as good as the one in the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge.
It featured cereal, yogurt, fruit, pretzels, croissants, etc.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport buffet
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport buffet
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport buffet
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport buffet
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport buffet
The only hot dish was some not-so-appetizing scrambled eggs.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport buffet
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport buffet
Then there was a coffee machine.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport buffet
There were several kinds of self serve wine, including champagne and rose.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport buffet
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport buffet
Then there were bottled soft drinks and water, as well as a soda fountain and two beers on tap.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport buffet
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport buffet
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport buffet
There’s a large business center in the corner of the lounge.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport business center
Then there’s a “Senator Spa,” where you can either get paid spa treatments, or otherwise this is also where the showers are located.
Lufthansa Senator Lounge Frankfurt Airport Senator Spa
The most impressive part of the lounge had to be how empty it was. In my experience Senator Lounges are almost always way overcrowded, and that wasn’t the case this time.
I left the lounge at 7:50AM for an anticipated boarding time of 7:55AM. I arrived at the gate a minute later, and was surprised to find that I was just about the last passenger to board.
Singapore Airlines gate Frankfurt Airport
Lufthansa Senator Lounge bottom line
Lufthansa’s Senator Lounges just aren’t impressive. At all. From the decor to the food to the “factory” feel, it just seems to encompass the negative side of “German efficiency” (“ve have zhis much space to build zha lounge, how many seats can vhe fit in, and vhat kind of a deal vill IKEA give us on zha furniture?”). These are a far cry from some of the best airport lounges in the world.
The Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge was nicer in just about every way, and I’d totally recommend it if you’re Star Gold or flying first or business class on a Star Alliance airline.
Anyone have a different take than I do on Lufthansa Senator Lounges?
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