Emirates Airline has just unveiled its next-generation global lounge concept, which we can expect to be introduced at more lounges as time goes on. While Emirates is a high quality airline, the carrier’s global lounge network has always left a little to be desired, in my opinion, so I’m delighted to see these changes. I’ve written in the past about my disappointment with Emirates’ outstation lounges, and the airline addressed every one of my criticisms… except one.
In this post:
Emirates updating lounge concept with new design & amenities
Emirates loves to control its passenger experience as much as possible, and as a result, the airline operates a larger lounge network of lounges at foreign airports than any other airline. The airline even operates lounges in some airports that only have once daily flights, which represents a massive investment.
Anyway, Emirates’ new lounge design concept is debuting in Frankfurt (FRA) and Munich (MUC), and those lounges serve as a blueprint for the new brand standard concept going forward. After that, we’re expected to see the concept rolled out in Manchester (MAN) in July, in Mauritius (MRU) in August, and in Istanbul (IST) in October.
With these updates, we’re seeing the lounge aesthetics change greatly, to reflect Emirates’ latest cabin interiors. Emirates has moved away from its “1990s Las Vegas casino chic bling” design to something a bit more understated, and we’re going to see that in lounges as well. Here’s how the airline describes that:
Inspired by the elegant palette of Emirates’ cabin interiors and the flagship lounges of Dubai, customers will benefit from more than 50 design enhancements, including distinct zones for relaxation, work, socialising and dining. The new signature lounges display an unmistakably Emirates aesthetic, with discreetly integrated lighting, herringbone floors throughout, accents of marble and gold, and the signature backlit Emirates Ghaf Tree motif – a nod to UAE culture highlighting the national tree.
In terms of changes to the guest experience, what all should we expect?
- When it comes to dining, updated Emirates lounges will feature live cooking stations with a la minute dishes, a special “Made In” area highlighting the best of local cuisine, and a dedicated bread oven where pizzas, flatbreads, and manakeesh, will be prepared
- In addition to the current beverage offerings, we’re going to see a new barista bar concept, along with a dedicated mixologist offering locally inspired cocktails, mocktails, and more
- Lounges will increasingly have more clearly defined zones, including areas for working and productivity, areas for dining, and areas for relaxing
- We’re also going to finally see power access at every seat and wireless charging, which you’d think would already be a standard, but it hasn’t been
- Emirates lounges will get updated shower suites, as well as quiet zone relaxation areas, featuring plush seating, soft lighting, and sleep amenities like blankets, eye masks, and ear plugs
Emirates has so far shared pictures of the new lounge in Munich, which you can find below.
Emirates nailed it with these changes, with one exception
In the past, I’ve often written about my confusion with Emirates’ outstation lounges. The airline invests a massive amount of money in these and really doesn’t monetize them (in terms of opening them up to those on other airlines, extending hours to open them up to Priority Pass, etc.).
Of course these lounges have been better than the typical Priority Pass or contract lounges, but that’s about all I could say. It just seems like if you’re going to invest so much money in these lounges, they should have a “wow” factor, like Qatar Airways’ out station lounges.
These lounges generally had a lot of (uninspiring) seating, and buffets with a solid selection of food. But beyond that, these lounges have been really underwhelming, in my opinion. The airline had a high end liquor selection, but then didn’t have a bartender. There was no barista coffee. The food just felt the same everywhere, with no effort made to make dining experiential. The showers were typically terrible, and were just little rooms with no toilets or sinks, inside the gender segregated restrooms.
So I have to give Emirates credit, as these changes look excellent. I think the new design aesthetic looks beautiful, and it’s distinctly Emirates while being less gaudy and more modernized. The food and drink selection seems massively improved. I love the concept of zones for relaxation, and improved shower suites. Emirates really listened to feedback here, so great job.
There’s only one thing here that I’m sort of disappointed by — why can’t Emirates add a small, separate first class section in these lounges? Emirates has by far the world’s largest first class network, so it really doesn’t seem complicated to add a separate room with improved dining, a higher end selection of alcohol, etc. This seems like an easy way to differentiate the first class experience, but it seems like that’s not happening.
Bottom line
Emirates has just unveiled an all-new lounge concept, which will over time be introduced at outstation lounges around the globe. It’s impressive how many lounges Emirates has, though I think there have been some easy misses in terms of really elevating the guest experience.
With this redesign, we’re seeing them greatly modernized, which is overdue. Beyond that, though, we’re seeing some really fantastic changes, ranging from the introduction of bartender drinks and barista coffee, to live cooking stations and a la minute dining, to dedicated rest areas, to better shower suites. These are all great changes… I just wish we’d also see a dedicated first class section!
What do you make of Emirates’ updated lounge concept?
Cool. EK needs to stop resting on its laurels and actually update its lounges at DXB. Why not take the down-time in the ME to do it!
I'm a bit confused by the statement: "Inspired by the elegant palette of Emirates’ cabin interiors and the flagship lounges of Dubai..." - I was in the Dubai (business) lounge recently, first time in many years, and it looked anything but elegant: bland seating, poor lighting, no herringbone floor in sight. In fact it looked every bit as tired as the Emirates lounge I started in at HKG, which has got to be the worst lounge in that airport.
Another proud triumph for International Beige. Boring.
More buffet slop lounges. Emirates really doesn't differentiate itself at all at the business class level.
Certainly their F product is impressive, but their business class is probably worse than both Etihad and Qatar if we talk about the actual product.
A la carte dining should be table stakes for any new business class lounges these days. Even AA is bringing it to their Flagship lounges.
@ yoloswag420 -- I agree with most of what you say, though I do think we have to differentiate between true restaurant-style dining (like in Delta One Lounges, where there's a server, and the environment almost feels like that of a restaurant), and just QR code ordering (where you're sitting in a random chair, and someone just brings you a plate, with no further interaction).
Sure, I think at a bare minimum though the food quality needs to be much higher, Virgin's Clubhouses have QR code dining, but I think most people would be satisfied with the quality of food and service at those lounges.
Delta One lounge service is much higher level, given the better staff to passenger ratios and attention to detail. Polaris lounges also have a "dining room", but it's really just a means to order from...
Sure, I think at a bare minimum though the food quality needs to be much higher, Virgin's Clubhouses have QR code dining, but I think most people would be satisfied with the quality of food and service at those lounges.
Delta One lounge service is much higher level, given the better staff to passenger ratios and attention to detail. Polaris lounges also have a "dining room", but it's really just a means to order from a menu, the actual service amounts to putting food on the table for you.
Your comment is a little disingenuous - yes, QR code is a level below full waiter service but is still many mlles ahead of no table service at all. Maybe I have misinterpreted something but it is like saying it is ok to have chauffeur service in a Trabant because an Audi is inferior to a Bugatti.
A word to the wise - business class isn't special. Think of it as being "second class", with second class hard & soft product on board, second class ground handling, and second class lounges. It's still significantly better than either flavor of economy class, but as I sometimes have to remind people, the first rule of business class is that it's not first class.
@PeteAU, that's too complicated - most people aren't super familiar with first class and some F products (e.g. BA, AA) are rather underwhelming anyway.
I think that the simplest way of recalibrating someone's perception of business class as a luxury service is to stress that it's just public transport.
When you say you're not keen on their outstation lounges, you seem to miss the point that they're the only airline in the world operating its own lounges in more than a handful of countries.
People rave about places like the Lufthansa FCT, but you can spend €12k on a ticket from GRU and get sent to a lounge mostly populated by holders of local credit cards which can be obtained with an annual...
When you say you're not keen on their outstation lounges, you seem to miss the point that they're the only airline in the world operating its own lounges in more than a handful of countries.
People rave about places like the Lufthansa FCT, but you can spend €12k on a ticket from GRU and get sent to a lounge mostly populated by holders of local credit cards which can be obtained with an annual income that's less than the price of your ticket (by the way, I'm not saying it's a bad lounge, it's just not exclusive at all).
That's because they have more of a need to. Emirates isn't a part of any major alliance, so they choose to open up their own lounges in many markets. Other airlines have alliance lounges to offset this. And to be honest, the fact that they do, and don't offer a very strong lounge product is such a waste.
I would rather Emirates have fewer outstation lounges and better ones like Qatar's Premium Lounges, which are extremely high quality.
I don't agree re alliance lounges. If I'm flying UA from LIS, they'll send me to the broom cupboard that's the Atlántico lounge, and that's only because it's a major hub. If I fly them from OPO, it's the rubbish ANA lounge where I may struggle to even find a seat. The dozen *A carriers at MAN send their passengers to depressing facilities like Aspire, whereas EK has a lounge to itself. The alliance's lounge...
I don't agree re alliance lounges. If I'm flying UA from LIS, they'll send me to the broom cupboard that's the Atlántico lounge, and that's only because it's a major hub. If I fly them from OPO, it's the rubbish ANA lounge where I may struggle to even find a seat. The dozen *A carriers at MAN send their passengers to depressing facilities like Aspire, whereas EK has a lounge to itself. The alliance's lounge at AMS is before passport control, the distance is enormous, and anyone flying TK etc has to leave a good hour before their flight departs. And then you have the likes of DL/VS who don't even allow top elites to visit their contract lounges, and Copa who often don't bother with contracting in the first place!
I am not saying that the Emirates outstation lounges are amazing, but they do guarantee a consistent level of service which no other airline can offer.
@ Throwawayname -- I agree with that point, and I think I emphasized that in my post. Of course an Emirates Lounge is better than your typical Priority Pass or contract lounge. My point was just that if you're going to make this huge investment in the lounge experience, it seems you might as well spend a little more to truly "wow" people and create a memorable experience, rather than making the goal to just be better than a contract lounge.
@Ben , I don't necessarily disagree with the premise of that, but the scale of the EK lounge network means it's very hard to balance consistency with the wow factor!
Just wondering how you compare the aesthetic to Cathay? It certainly does give off an Emirates vibe for sure.
As far having a small First Class section, I think it only makes sense for certain ports like Heathrow, JFK and similar premium routes.
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@ Mike O. -- Fair point, though Emirates does have eight to 14 first class seats on a vast majority of flights, and then you also have Skywards Platinum members. That seems like a fair number of people for which to create a differentiated experience, even outside of key markets. After all, it's not like this would be expensive to offer -- you'd just dedicate a portion of the existing lounge to these passengers.
From the renderings, it looks nice, but Cathay lounges are on a different level, a lot of which has to do with the use of premium materials, careful detailing, and original designer furniture throughout, all the work of London-based Ilse Crawford. Kudos to CX management sticking by the concept for years now, despite the cost of both building and maintaining such high-quality lounges.
I guess since its emirates they will likely enact these updates on about 9 of their 100 lounges and call it a success?
@ Harold -- Hah, totally fair, and if anything, you're being generous, since it would be more like nine out of 250. :p
But credit to Emirates, it sounds like five total lounges will get redone between June and October, so five lounges in four months is very impressive. Meanwhile American has four new style Admirals Clubs after nearly four years.
Whilst you have a point regarding seats onboard, this is not really a valid comment at all, sorry.
Emirates is all about lounge consistency (it’s too much about it, if anything) and so I’m fairly sure this will be rolled out widely. Emirates also typically moves very quickly to open new lounges. Many examples of this.
At Bangkok, the Emirates Lounge in the new satellite terminal opened a couple of years ago and remains the...
Whilst you have a point regarding seats onboard, this is not really a valid comment at all, sorry.
Emirates is all about lounge consistency (it’s too much about it, if anything) and so I’m fairly sure this will be rolled out widely. Emirates also typically moves very quickly to open new lounges. Many examples of this.
At Bangkok, the Emirates Lounge in the new satellite terminal opened a couple of years ago and remains the only airline operated lounge in the terminal, Qatar meanwhile hasn’t even started construction two years later. Stansted lounge opened rapidly after announcing it, etc, etc.
@ Tom -- I appreciate the concept of consistency, but I've found the selective lounge investments to be a bit confusing, historically. By far the biggest expense of operating a lounge is the rent paid and the staffing costs, and not the incremental cost of food & drinks.
So it really seems like Emirates has been investing for the sake of consistency to make people happy, when an extra 10% investment would leave people...
@ Tom -- I appreciate the concept of consistency, but I've found the selective lounge investments to be a bit confusing, historically. By far the biggest expense of operating a lounge is the rent paid and the staffing costs, and not the incremental cost of food & drinks.
So it really seems like Emirates has been investing for the sake of consistency to make people happy, when an extra 10% investment would leave people delighted rather than just moderately happy. It has been a missed opportunity up until now, as I see it.