Review: Oneworld Lounge Los Angeles (LAX)

Agree. LAX Oneworld lounge is more an eveningtime mood lounge. Qantas more of a daytime mood lounge. Generally seek either depending on the likely mood of the flight and destination ahead.

@Lucky would you prefer this or Flagship at LAX?

Strangely, this lounge has also been available to Air France / KLM business class pax for many years, last I flew AF from LAX (before summer) they were still sending you to the Oneworld lounge. I'm not sure if it's still the case right now.

Not sure lack of natural light here makes "a dark dungeon" a fair assessment. It's right on par with The Pier in that regard.

A "dark dungeon"? Seriously? Nitpicking, as you admitted reviewing the Qantas first lounge.

Qantas and AF codeshare on Australia/France routes. Also last time I flew from SFO Qantas used the AF/KLM lounge there, so it's possible AF access to the OW lounge at LAX is part of an arrangement between QF and AF on the west coast, or part of a wider agreement between the airlines.

But Ben *is* nitpicky. We, his readers, *are* nitpicky. In fact, we actually come here *for* the nitpicking.

Feels darker. Not a bad thing, though, if that's the vibe you're looking for.

+1
@Ben would be great to get your ranking of the Oneworld lounges at LAX too

Although technically the lounge is operated by British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, its strictly operated by Qantas and as such is a 'tipping not required' lounge (as in the custom in Qantas' Australian lounges, but of course you can still tip if you really feel the need to). I understand staff are paid such to compensate for lack of tips.

@ Sel, D. -- Funny enough, I think I prefer the Flagship Lounge. It has floor-to-ceiling windows and lots of natural light, so I think that would be my choice. That being said, I might stop by here if I wanted a decent coffee. 😉

@Lucky you forgot one way to access the Oneworld Lounge LAX, if you’re an Alaska Lounge+ Member you can access it with a same day international Qantas ticket in any class of service.

I just flew Air France out of LAX, and I was able to use the One World lounge. It was much nicer than the new Delta Lounge and had better food.

Mike, your answer makes a lot more sense than my theory that AF/KLM are too embarrassed to send their passengers to the KE lounge hahaha.

But either way, I'm glad they don't use the KE lounge given how sub-par it is. It definitely made my day at check-in when the AF agent told me I would have access to the OW lounge.

@Lucky thanks for the tip. Have a couple hours and don’t want to swap lounges. I’ve had great domestic lounge access thanks to your Safar Flyer Gold article. I’d prefer the terminal to most admirals clubs but the Flagships are pretty great.

An anomaly of this lounge is that you can get access if you're flying premium economy on Japan airlines. Pretty good perk for those looking for a small upgrade.

Can anyone tell me if this lounge has views of the aircraft on the ramp, some of the comments leave me wondering if its a dark lounge with little or no natural light

No views of aircraft.

Note to any coffee nerds that visit this lounge: while I appreciate that they have caf and decaf options, and Ben is right that the barista-made coffee is better than the machine-made coffee in the lounge, I wouldn’t accept the coffee they serve here in a real cafe. If you know your way around an espresso machine, you’ll notice that the milk steam wand is crusted on with scalded milk, which means it isn’t cleaned properly. The grinder isn’t dialed in, so expect an over-extracted coffee. Its OK if you need the caffeine, but its not good.

It is true that the lounge feels very dark even in the evening, almost dungeon-like, it is considerably darker than the Star Alliance Lounge. The lounge was quite packed when I arrived at 8pm with mostly pax leaving for Australia. I had to wait a good 40 minutes for a shower which was a decent experience. The buffet food was forgettable and don't bother with the $10-range wine and cava, just order a cocktail from the bartender instead.

Breakfast is definitely better at the Flagship IME. Haven't tried the rest of the meals at the OW Business though. Love to see a review of that.

Is it possible to purchase a day pass if I’m flying internationally on Iberia premium economy?

Am a member of American Airlines admirals club. Can I tsk advantage of the club at LAX even though I will be flying EVA air?

I would like to commend the staff especially Miriam Sarceno. She was so attentive to us making sure we were comfortable. I’m at the LAX one world lounge. She is the epitome of customer service. She is one that truly cares for all guests of this lounge.

We are flying Cathay Pacific First Class to HK this week. Thoughts on lounge strategy? I assume Quantas First Class, but should we also visit the Flagship Lounge? Thanks, we are excited, first international first class flight!