Review: Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse Washington Dulles Airport (IAD)

Hi Ben, what do ANA passengers get for free when visiting please?

Thank you.

"Grabbing one of the seats by the windows was a great place to set up my “office.”"

Personally, "workstation" would've been a better word than "office," but that's just me. 😉

@ David -- I don't think they get anything beyond what Priority Pass members get.

We would all like something fabulous. But, absent a lounge being a crowded dump, virtually any lounge is a better experience than the concourse. For that, I'm grateful.

Also be wary of the listed priority pass hours for this lounge, as this location is extremely prone to arbitrarily cutting off priority pass entry. I've only ever heard of PP entry during the most extremely off of off hours (such as an earlier morning visit like this review). I've flown through IAD dozens of times and never once been able to access this lounge.

Wouldn’t ANA folks simply go to the Polaris lounge?

It really is not convenient to get to Polaris from where ANA departs. So unless you have a very long layover it would not make much sense.

It's giving 2001 employee break room.

As a previous posted noted, ANA business class passengers can go to Polaris lounge. Also - Star Gold passengers can use either the lufthansa lounges (better food, showers, though spartan decor) or the Turkish lounge. As noted, this is a good lounge for a quiet space to get work done at the right hours....any maybe a soft drink. Nice views though. Priority pass only travelers are better served at the Air France Lounge further along Concourse A - but the AF lounge is more crowded and often closes to Priority Pass members

Speaking of IAD and lounges, will you talk about UA's new lounge projects.

They're building a ton of huge new lounges, and their director in charge says this is how they're addressing the crowding. Rather unlike DL which is removing access.

I’ve been to this line many times, but never in the morning.

That’s far more food than I’ve ever seen in it.

Same, just a bunch of crackers and stuff last time I was there.

It's not that inconvenient. And the Polaris lounge is literally 5000x better than this lounge.

The VS IAD lounge first opened in 1998 - I'm always impressed at how well it’s held up over the years. For sentimental reasons, it’s my favorite lounge at Dulles. Hear’s to another 25+ years.

How big is it? Because it looks very small

It is indeed quite small. And the upper area that Ben wasn't able to visit is also really small. The upstairs area is a loft, meaning it shares the same ceiling as the main room of the lounge. It's only about 1/3 to 1/4 the size of the regular floor open area, and there is only additional seating upstairs. This lounge's footprint is comparable to the space taken up by a small gate area. It is quite cute for what it is though. But it has always been very crowded every time I've visited (which has never been in the mornings).

Cheers to that, it’s stood the test of time and the staff are always welcoming. Not sure if you also go through the LHR Clubhouse on a regular basis but the staff were telling me last week that it’s getting a full refurbishment this year, in 2 parts so a smaller offering and some temporary entry criteria will have to be introduced.

It's a little austere.

This lounge is horrible when using Priority Pass. To call this a "lounge" is an overstatement. I am surprised Priority Pass has not dropped them for the awful service and food options. Then again, Priority Pass in the US is mostly a scam.

Hi Ben, you might want to blur the QR codes, because it seems like some jokester may be able to order food for table 17 using that code...

ANA used to always use the gate by the TK lounge so they could board directly from the TK lounge. Not sure whether this is still the case.

Humm, suppose to fly VS and go through LHR Clubhouse the 22nd next month. Hopefully it’s in tact for that visit. They’re another trip this August, I’m guessing they’ll be in full construction swing by then. Thanks!

I think the lack of any complimentary alcoholic beverages or specialty coffee drinks and very limited food makes this the worst Priority Pass lounge in the US, among many strong contenders

Ben, if you just want a quiet place to look out at the runway in the IAD A/B terminal, you can find that at almost any gate, as almost half the gates in A/B are completely unoccupied at any given time. And the entire terminal has beautiful floor to ceiling windows. Therefore, that is not a good reason to rate this lounge so highly given the dismal food and beverage selection.

I know PP standards are pretty low, but this should really be removed from the network.