Review: Austrian HON Circle & First Class Lounge Vienna Airport

Looks like a great lounge! I like the seating directly in front of the tarmac! And the footrests are a nice touch!

Dang, on my last trip I was thinking of flying out of VIE! Didn't realize they had great ground service there too!

Yup - there is and in fact always was a HON lounge at VIE even before the terminal 3 opened. Back then in the old days (before 2012) the lounge had to be accessed from a completely different entrance than the main airport terminal and was rather exclusive (as only HONs were allowed and now also LH/LX First Class pax connecting in FRA, MUC or ZRH are allowed to enter).

Too bad, Lucky, that you missed the dedicated HON Check-in/Security Check though!
It is at the far left end of terminal 3 and makes for a super smooth experience (think of something you'd experience in FRA at the FCT and definitely worlds better than what LX offers in ZRH).

OS also provides limousine service when departing/arriving from a remote stand (either as HON or LH/LX First Class pax). When flying into VIE one usually has to point that out to the crew so they can inform VIE and request the limousine. It is not as smooth and a routine as it is in FRA and sometimes a bit of a struggle to get.... ^^

Come back to VIE soon to check out the HON/First Class offerings!

Gerald / Vienna

What's our best guess on number of HON Circle members, given the admission requirements to that tier?

I was just in Vienna airport and the Austrian Business lounge last week.

Then Austrian business lounge is decent, but in term of food I think the other priority pass lounge next to it was better. I got into the Austrian business lounge with my boarding pass, and the PP lounge with my Lounge Club card.

What's bad about the Vienna airport though, is that it has absolutely no electric outlet to plug your devices in in the arrival/departure areas. You either have to trek all the way to a lounge, or you can ask nicely at the information desk to use their outlets.

Hi Ben-I used to fly several times a year internationally now not so much but thanks to you I get to travel the world and see really cool places 🙂 Good report!

@neil s
Maybe Ben has the up to date info, but according to a German documentary I watched a few years ago there were some 4000 HONs. Keep in mind though, the 300k miles per year (average over 2 years) requirement is completely different from those of US legacy carriers. For HON miles, only paid F/J flights in the LH group count -- Y doesn't count at all. The simplest case would be to fly 100k in LH/LX F (which counts x3 miles). So you can think of HON as the EXP of AA, except 100k all in F, and only on AA/US metal!

I flew IAD-FRA in LH F, then FRA-VIE and on to my final destination. I was denied HON lounge in VIE. My flight in VIE was departing from a remote position and I really wanted a ride but no such luck. The attendant told me it was only for F passengers departing on F on arriving from F.
The attendant at the FCT said they would send a telex to the VIE ground crew to keep an eye on me, but nothing happened.

Looks really nice, Ben - presumably they gave you access based on your same-day LH F flight from FRA?

From the pictures it looks quite similar to the Sen lounges at VIE (though obviously less crowded). Note also that there are showers in the Business lounges also. In fact, of the last 3 times i was passing through VIE and needed a shower twice the Sen showers were closed and i was walked to one in the Business lounge.

Hi ben. We call it the HONdehütte (As in Hundehütte 😉 ) - small but cozy.
And there's never more than 3-5 pax inside the Lounge. Glad u enjoyed my hometown. Next Time u're around buzz me by txt to +436648231853.

There is a designated HON/F-Class entry at the departure level at Terminal 3. Just the last entry door and then just to the left - looks like prison entry, but fine and you cut the line...