- Introduction: Christmas Markets With A Touch Of Garuda
- Review: Lufthansa First Class A330 Dallas To Frankfurt
- Review: Lufthansa First Class Terminal Frankfurt
- Review: Lufthansa Business Class A321 Frankfurt To London
- Review: Sheraton Grand London Park Lane
- Review: No1 Lounge London Heathrow Terminal 3
- Review: Garuda Indonesia First Class 777-300ER London To Jakarta
- Review: Garuda Indonesia First Class Arrivals & Chauffeur Service Jakarta
- Review: Keraton At The Plaza Jakarta
- Review: Garuda Indonesia First Class Lounge Jakarta
- Review: Garuda Indonesia First Class 777-300ER Jakarta To Singapore
- Review: Dnata Lounge Terminal 3 Singapore Airport
- Review: Garuda Indonesia First Class 777-300ER Singapore To London
- Review: Lufthansa Lounge London Heathrow Airport
- Review: Le Meridien Munich
- Review: Park Hyatt Vienna Park Suite
- Lufthansa First Class 747-8 Frankfurt To Boston Review
- Review: Aloft Boston Seaport
Over the past decade I’ve visited the Lufthansa First Class Terminal in Frankfurt a countless number of times, and it certainly ranks as one of my favorite first class lounges in the world. However, it has occurred to me that I haven’t actually reviewed it since 2012, so it’s probably time to revisit it. In 2014 I wrote a primer on the lounge, including access rules, how to get there, etc.
Anyway, shortly after 9AM we were dropped off in the transit area at Frankfurt Airport. The First Class Terminal is intended primarily for passengers originating their travels in Frankfurt, since you can drive directly up to it and skip the airport altogether. It’s not quite as seamless if you’re connecting, since you have to walk to the FCT on your own.
After a transatlantic flight we were happy to get a bit of movement, so didn’t mind the walk. Regardless of what terminal you arrive at, you’ll want to clear immigration and then go through baggage claim. Once on the outside roadway of the airport, start walking left until you’re at the very end of the terminal.
There you’ll see the taxi stand, and then past that is the First Class Terminal in the distance.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal exterior
If you’re coming from the main terminal, the fastest way to enter the FCT is through the lower level. Just cross the street once you’re at the taxi stand, and you’ll see a door with an elevator inside of it. Take the elevator up a level.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal exterior
Once we were on the main level of the FCT we were greeted by our “PA” (personal assistant — it’s a weird term, but that’s what they’re called), who verified our boarding passes and then led us through the security checkpoint. While security in the main terminal at Frankfurt Airport can be a pain, it’s totally seamless in the FCT, given that there’s never a wait.
Just a couple of minutes after arriving at the FCT we were already through security and invited to enjoy ourselves.
Just past the security checkpoint is a duty free shop.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal duty free shop
Past the duty free shop is a set of double doors, which leads into the rest of the lounge. On the left is a huge variety of magazines and newspapers.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal entryway
The FCT isn’t as big as some people imagine it to be, though fortunately it wasn’t especially crowded for our visit, and was beautifully decorated for Christmas.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal
Lufthansa First Class Terminal
The centerpiece of the lounge is the bar, which has several high-top seats. There’s also another communal table parallel to it.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal bar area
Lufthansa First Class Terminal bar area
The selection of drinks available in the FCT is damn impressive.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal bar
They even had a quirky display with six kinds of gummy bears on the bar.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal bar gummy bears
Next to the bar is the restaurant area, which has about a dozen tables. There’s both a menu as well as buffet, though I’ll talk more about the food a bit later.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal restaurant
Lufthansa First Class Terminal restaurant
The rest of the lounge consists of areas to relax, and there’s a great variety of seating arrangements.
There are several “traditional” lounge seating arrangements, with leather chairs facing one another.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal seating
Lufthansa First Class Terminal seating
Lufthansa First Class Terminal seating
Lufthansa First Class Terminal seating
Along the windows of the lounge are chairs with ottomans, which are great for relaxing.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal seats with ottomans
Then in the far corner of the lounge are three swaying chairs with blankets.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal reclining seats
A few of the seating areas have TVs, though fortunately the TVs are kept at a low volume, so they’re not disruptive.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal seating
Near the entrance to the lounge are about five fully enclosed offices. As far as airport lounge workspaces go, these are tough to beat, given that they have doors that close.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal offices
Then on the other side of the lounge, opposite the dining room, are the nap rooms, cigar bar, showers, and bathroom.
The lounge has two nap rooms, which are available on a first come first serve basis, and can be reserved with the shower attendant.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal sleeping rooms
Both of the nap rooms were occupied during our time in the lounge, though below is a picture of one of the nap rooms from a past visit. As you can see, it’s more of a daybed than anything else, and isn’t nearly as comfortable as the bedrooms in the Swiss First Class Lounge Zurich or Qatar Airways Al Safwa Lounge Doha.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal nap room
Past the nap rooms is the shower reception desk, where you can request a shower, nap, etc.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal shower reception area
Perhaps most importantly, the shower attendant is also the lounge’s duck-keeper. As many of you may know, Lufthansa has special first class ducks, and sometimes they even have specially themed ones. Technically they’re intended for those who take a bath, but in practice I’ve never been denied when I just asked the attendant nicely, in the nerdiest way imaginable.
In this case they had a really cute Christmas duck.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal Christmas duck
I took the opportunity to shower. The shower rooms in the lounge are great — they’re spacious, the water pressure is great, and they have top notch amenities.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal shower room
Lufthansa First Class Terminal shower room
Lufthansa First Class Terminal shower room toilet
Lufthansa First Class Terminal shower
As you can see, toiletries are provided by Etro.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal shower toiletries
If you’re interested in taking a bath, there’s one shower room that also has a bathtub. I used to love taking a bath in it, until a reader a few years ago left a comment along the lines of “hey, isn’t it funny how we’ve all taken a bath in the same exact tub?”
My dad’s favorite FCT amenity, no doubt, would be the cigar bar, which is between the shower rooms and dining room. It’s spacious and even has its own self serve bar.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal hallway
Lufthansa First Class Terminal cigar bar
Lufthansa First Class Terminal cigar bar
Lufthansa First Class Terminal cigar bar
Once out of the shower I joined Ford back in the lounge. I love how each table has a gorgeous setup with lots of nuts. It looks beautiful, though as a germaphobe I spend a lot of time thinking about those nuts. Given that the canisters are always full, how often do they add nuts to the top? Perhaps more importantly, how long have the nuts at the bottom been there? And most important of all, how many people have touched some of those nuts? Blech!
Lufthansa First Class Terminal table setup
There’s table service in the lounge, as the servers in the lounge come around every 10 minutes or so to see if anyone wants anything. I just had a cup of coffee and glass of water at first.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal coffee & water
Later on I ordered an iced coffee, and Ford had a smoothie.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal iced coffee
The drink list in the lounge is damn impressive. The list is too long to post here, but just to give an example, here’s their water menu:
So I’m trying to be healthier and drink less when traveling in general (it’s tempting to just always have champagne, but…), so I love the concept of being able to choose the type of water you want. It makes drinking water fun! At the same time, I felt like a total douche asking for a specific type of water — it’s water, after all. But still, somehow I got a thrill out of it.
Perhaps more importantly for many, here’s the champagne list:
There were menus at all the tables, though in practice most people choose to dine in the restaurant. Here’s the breakfast menu:
Meanwhile the menu for the rest of the day read as follows:
While I didn’t eat anything, I had a look at the breakfast buffet, which looked great, especially since you can also order something off the menu to complement it.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal breakfast buffet
Lufthansa First Class Terminal breakfast buffet
Lufthansa First Class Terminal breakfast buffet
Lufthansa First Class Terminal breakfast buffet
Lufthansa First Class Terminal breakfast buffet
Lufthansa First Class Terminal breakfast buffet
Lufthansa First Class Terminal breakfast buffet
Lufthansa First Class Terminal breakfast buffet
Lufthansa First Class Terminal breakfast buffet
The wine selection didn’t look bad either.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal wine selection
I spent the rest of my time in the lounge getting caught up on work. The Wi-Fi in the lounge is easy to connect to and fast, which I appreciate. My one constructive criticism of the FCT is that I wish they’d have some sort of background music or ambient noise. That might sound crazy, but the lounge is so quiet that you could hear a pin drop, and the only sound you hear most of the time is that of the employees’ heels “clicking” on the ground.
Boarding for our 12PM flight to London was scheduled for 11:30AM, so at 11:35AM our PA came to fetch us. Fun fact — there’s a departures monitor next to the elevators, and it only lists destinations that passengers in the lounge are traveling to. At least that’s my understanding. I sort of love that, since it gives you an idea of where everyone else around you is headed.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal departure monitor
The FCT is disconnected from the rest of the terminal, so the only way to get to your plane is by car. To get there you take the elevator down a level from the main part of the lounge.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal elevators to departure level
On the lower level there’s an immigration officer who checks your passport (if you’re traveling out of the Schengen zone), and then you bring your boarding pass to the person at the desk, who checks off your name and introduces you to your driver.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal departures area
There are a few kinds of cars used to transport people from the FCT, including a Porsche Cayenne, Mercedes S-Class, and a Mercedes van if there are several people who need to get from the FCT to your flight.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal cars
Fortunately we were alone, and got a Porsche.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal Porsche transfer
As an aviation geek there’s simply nothing like being driven across the tarmac in a private car. Driving under the tails of all kinds of planes is just so fun.
Being drive to plane at Frankfurt Airport
Being drive to plane at Frankfurt Airport
Our drive to the plane took only about five minutes. This time around our flight was departing from a gate rather than a remote stand, so we parked between a 747 and the A321 that would be taking us to London.
Lufthansa 747 Frankfurt Airport
Our plane to London
Our plane to London
When you depart from a gate rather than a remote stand, you take an elevator up a level to the jet bridge, and then the driver is supposed to escort you to the door of the plane. This driver was probably the least fun one I’ve ever had from the FCT (often they’re fun and joke around), so he bid us farewell as soon as we got out the elevator.
Lufthansa First Class Terminal bottom line
It goes without saying that the Lufthansa First Class Terminal in Frankfurt is one of the world’s best airline lounges. For passengers originating their travel in Frankfurt, it’s so convenient to be able to skip the main terminal altogether, and be sitting in a comfortable lounge a minute after you arrive at the airport.
If I had to provide some constructive criticism, I wish that Lufthansa would make the experience more seamless for connecting passengers. When you’re in first class and connecting you’re on your own. I’m not even saying they should necessarily drive you to the First Class Terminal (though it would be nice), but rather to any of their other first class lounges.
Overall, though, this remains one of the world’s best first class lounges, and I always enjoy my visits here.
So they are not picking me up from the plane with a car and take me to any lounge, if im connecting there??
Hi Ben
Would like to see an updated review comparing the FC lounge between terminals. From these photos they all look similar. One of the inside terminal lounges has a spa the other does not. They all give out different ducks everything else looks similar.
My biggest frustration as Ben said, when you arrive at a gate you do not really know where to go. I walked for a long time before I found...
Hi Ben
Would like to see an updated review comparing the FC lounge between terminals. From these photos they all look similar. One of the inside terminal lounges has a spa the other does not. They all give out different ducks everything else looks similar.
My biggest frustration as Ben said, when you arrive at a gate you do not really know where to go. I walked for a long time before I found the proper lounge. You really need an education of where to go. Last, i thought the Lufthansa 1st class lounge was one of the nicest I had been to until I stopped at LHR Concord lounge in Terminal 5.
@Robert, he was only there for a connection, and so probably wasn't there long enough to eat a full meal.
What in the FCT makes it worth the trek on a connection, rather than just using the FCL?
I'm flying LAX-FRA-MUC next week, and I'm just not sure I want to make the walk outside and over again.
Wait...dozens of bottles of Scotch, Bourbon, and Rum, all retailing at $100/$200 a bottle at the bar, along with great DO&CO food, and you just had a glass of water and a coffee? Not even a pretzel? I've been reading this blog so long I remember when you wanted to live in the FTC full time. Now it seems you just briefly stopped by to pick up another duck.
Last visit we had one...
Wait...dozens of bottles of Scotch, Bourbon, and Rum, all retailing at $100/$200 a bottle at the bar, along with great DO&CO food, and you just had a glass of water and a coffee? Not even a pretzel? I've been reading this blog so long I remember when you wanted to live in the FTC full time. Now it seems you just briefly stopped by to pick up another duck.
Last visit we had one of the best omelets we've ever had for breakfast, then a fabulous Filet Mignon for lunch. And being there for half a day, I got to try several, and I do mean "several", of those afore mentioned spirits. Can hardly wait to do that all over again next September. :)
OK, so you are trying to "be healthier and drink less when traveling in general"; so skip the squares of cheese and the Bud Light in the Admirals Club. But hey, this is the FCT ! And it's guaranteed that the food in the FCT will be SO much better than what you will get on the plane. Skipping all of the wonderful food and incredible spirits in the FTC is like flying SQ Suites and passing up the Dom and the Book The Cook in favor of some crudités and a Diet Coke. What ever happened to the wonder and awe this blog used to inspire us with? Sigh......
I gave my sister a ticket in LH's F to return to europe next week, although as it was booked with Avianca Brasil's Amigo I couldn't add a second segmente in business to get to Lyon, so she will go by train.
Can she spend a few hours at FCT, even that her LH ticket finishes at FRA?
Thanks Lucky, another nice report
When I was in the FCT nov 27, there were no complementary cigars were offered nor had been for a few months because the FCT was renegotiating the contract with their supplier, all this is according to my attendant.
To the FCT's credit, they tried to get me a complementary cigar from duty free, but to no avail due to "tax reasons"
Hope they fix their cigar situation soon. Otherwise, the cigar lounge...
When I was in the FCT nov 27, there were no complementary cigars were offered nor had been for a few months because the FCT was renegotiating the contract with their supplier, all this is according to my attendant.
To the FCT's credit, they tried to get me a complementary cigar from duty free, but to no avail due to "tax reasons"
Hope they fix their cigar situation soon. Otherwise, the cigar lounge is a colossal (literally, it takes up so much space in the terminal) waste of space.
How good is the selection of cigars?
I know you say you are a germaphobe, I am as well. I am wondering if you carry Clorox wipes with you and wipe down the seat and tray table when you get on an airplane. I always do and think it is a reason why I don't get sick on planes
What type of water did your order? I think I would have gone with Voss. Surprised to see there isn't an Icelandic option. I sound like a water snob...yuck
I had a good laugh at the bathtub comment...how can you even sleep in a hotel bed given that the pillow and the comforter have most probably not been laundered for weeks? The casings are fresh, but beneath...and dont even start thinking about the mattress. Or the carpets. Or glasses and cups in the room. (Youre welcome indeed. I do carry desinfectant wipes for certain items in hotel rooms). :)
If I arrive in SQ F but then connecting with LH F to SIN, will I still have access to the LH FCT? What if I arrive in LH F, but connecting with SQ F to SIN?
That's good to know. Thanks!
@yyc,
Yes, any time you arrive in LH F (or even if you had an earlier F segment into MUC or on LX into ZRH and then connected MUC-FRA or ZRH-FRA) and have any LH Group connection (LH/LX/OS) in any class of service, you can use the FCT.
The other day I flew BHX-FRA-JFK in F. The BHX-FRA arrived at a remote stand so I was picked up in an S Class. The driver...
@yyc,
Yes, any time you arrive in LH F (or even if you had an earlier F segment into MUC or on LX into ZRH and then connected MUC-FRA or ZRH-FRA) and have any LH Group connection (LH/LX/OS) in any class of service, you can use the FCT.
The other day I flew BHX-FRA-JFK in F. The BHX-FRA arrived at a remote stand so I was picked up in an S Class. The driver at first said she would bring me to the B concourse, but I told her since I had a long layover I'd like to go to the FCT. So she drove me right to immigration in A where my passport was stamped and then I exited the airport and walked the 2-3 minutes to the FCT. Fantastic service.
I do wish LH would be more seamless like AF for their F passengers.
@Lucky, does that also apply when you connect to an international long-haul flight with first class cabin? Suppose I arrive in first class and connect to another LH flight in business class (eg FRA-JFK), can I still access the FCT?
The FCT is one of those bucket list things you have to try (like the showers on Emirates)!!!
If you are a connecting passenger though, make sure you have enough time. I did the FCT once with a 60 minute layover and it was not enough time. I did it, but it was a race. For shorter layovers staying in the main terminal may be the better idea?
The LH first class lounges in...
The FCT is one of those bucket list things you have to try (like the showers on Emirates)!!!
If you are a connecting passenger though, make sure you have enough time. I did the FCT once with a 60 minute layover and it was not enough time. I did it, but it was a race. For shorter layovers staying in the main terminal may be the better idea?
The LH first class lounges in the main terminals at Frankfurt don't carry quite the cache, but they are not bad for connecting passengers. The design and layouts are similar to the FCT, and all the same amenities are in place in terminal. Staying in terminal you don't get the car ride and the private security (you are already passed security), but the menus are the same and the PAs are there to serve you.
PS, last time I was in the LH first class lounge in the main terminal I get to hang out with Gene Simmons from Kiss for a couple of hours! That's cache! Rock on all you other old dudes!
Happy holidays to all!
I'm confused. Their lounge access page is worded to say that the FCT can only be accessed *before* their FC flight, or if they're connecting to it from another city. The fine print specifically says it's not permitted for arriving passengers. What are the "real" rules with regard to access?
"First Class boarding pass for an arriving/departing LH/LX flight on the same day"
"Access to the First Class Terminal at Frankfurt Airport is only possible...
I'm confused. Their lounge access page is worded to say that the FCT can only be accessed *before* their FC flight, or if they're connecting to it from another city. The fine print specifically says it's not permitted for arriving passengers. What are the "real" rules with regard to access?
"First Class boarding pass for an arriving/departing LH/LX flight on the same day"
"Access to the First Class Terminal at Frankfurt Airport is only possible with a confirmed same-day departing First Class flight on Lufthansa or SWISS. HON Circle Members may access the First Class Terminal with a same-day departing flight on Lufthansa, SWISS or Austrian Airlines. Access to the First Class Terminal is not permitted for arriving passengers.
Your First Class boarding pass on a Lufthansa-operated flight on the same day will give you access to the First Class Terminal. Passengers who are catching a connecting flight to their First Class flight have access to the First Class amenities provided that their First Class journey was a through booking."
@ Tennen -- You can use it if you're connecting to another Lufthansa flight in business class same day. The point is that you can't use it if you're arriving and don't have a connecting flight on Lufthansa/Swiss/Austrian.
Love the terminal. Enjoyed the daubed room & showers. But most fun sampling gins at the Bar. Monkey 47.
Ben seems like the pictures on this review have missed your regular quality benchmark
Unless you have dated just one person in your entire life who themselves have dated just you, being worried about taking a bath in the same tub as other people is hypocritical.
This is a general comment about self professed hygeine fiends and not specific to you.