- OneWorld Welcome: Introduction
- OneWorld Welcome: American Airlines Flagship Lounge New York
- OneWorld Welcome: American Airlines Business Class New York to London
- OneWorld Welcome: American Airlines Arrivals Lounge London
- OneWorld Welcome: Malaysia Airlines First Class Golden Lounge London
- OneWorld Welcome: Malaysia Airlines First Class London to Kuala Lumpur
- OneWorld Welcome: Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur
- OneWorld Welcome: Malaysia Airlines First Class Golden Lounge Kuala Lumpur
- OneWorld Welcome: Malaysia Airlines First Class Kuala Lumpur to London
- OneWorld Welcome: Hilton London Heathrow Terminal 4
- OneWorld Welcome: American Airlines Flagship Lounge & British Airways Galleries First Lounge Terminal 3 London Heathrow
- OneWorld Welcome: American Airlines Business Class London to New York
We had a fairly long connection in London and rather than just making an airside transfer to terminal four we decided to clear customs and immigration, check out the American arrivals lounge, and then head to terminal four for our flight to Kuala Lumpur.
We landed around the same time as the Qantas A380 flight from Singapore so it was a bit of a marathon to immigration, though after a roughly 15 minute walk and 10 minute queue at immigration we found ourselves in the arrivals hall.
The arrivals lounge is located on the second level in the arrivals hall, and can be accessed by elevator.
Arrivals hall
Elevator to arrivals lounge
At the entrance we presented our boarding passes and were given keys for shower rooms.
Arrivals lounge entrance
Arrivals lounge reception desk
To the left of the reception desk was the breakfast area, with about a dozen tables.
Breakfast area
Behind that was the buffet spread, which consists of a fairly extensive buffet with both hot and cold options.
Buffet
Buffet
Buffet
Buffet
Buffet
Buffet
Buffet
Adjacent to the breakfast area was another small room with some computers and more seating.
Lounge seating
Computers
The showers were located to the right of the reception desk, and I was surprised by how many there were. There must have been at least two dozen.
The shower rooms were a decent size, though the controls were almost a bit too complicated for my stupid self control. There were dispensers in the shower with shampoo, conditioner, and body wash.
Shower room
Shower room
Shower room
Toilet in shower room
While an arrivals lounge will never win an award for best airport lounge, ultimately it is still a great feature to have, and American makes it available to all first and business class passengers, as well as OneWorld Emerald members traveling on American.
If you have to go to work it’s a great place to freshen up, or for that matter if you’re staying in the city and can’t check into your hotel till the early afternoon, it’s also a great place to kill a few hours using free Wi-Fi.
After a quick shower we took the Heathrow Express over to terminal four to check in for our flight to Kuala Lumpur.
Since you fly AA so much, can you please review the Arrivals Loung again? It just reopened in September 2016 after a renovation.
Thanks for this.
i dont have eligibility for complimentary access, but looking at the photos the 90 dollars plus tax is really not worth it. Does anyody know any other way or method to get that cost down ?!
The No. 1 lounge is so much nicer and cheaper in T3 departures, but for arrivals AA have a monopoly :(
Awesome - thanks!
Flying DFW-LHR in First this Friday in the 777-200. So, it's great to know about this. I assume this only after you collect your checked bags and go through customs and immigration? So, is there a place to store luggage in the lounge itself? Just wondering how easy it will be to navigate with a bulky suitcase. The breakfast seems okay, although I will get this on the flight as well so may not need much food. Nice to have, though!
@ Joe -- Yes, there should be a place to store your checked bags near the entrance.
For a $90 entrance fee you can sit at rather basic seats and tables while eating generic cafeteria food. I do like the access to showers right after your flight, but it's hard to see them as being worth $90 when NRT can supply them to virtually anyone for closer to $5.
I got it free from being in a First Class AA seat so my poo pooing it may be reflective that I found the whole AA First Class experience a bit second class...........but they were about to go into bankruptcy and that may have something to do with it..........but that said it still looks it is in the same cramped space with college dorm food.........
@ Cook -- The fee is a hefty $90USD plus tax.
Big Kudos to AA for the Arrivals Lounge at LHR! Even if the flight hardware was not ideal, the sparse but functional lounge - good breakfast options and more than ample shower options has got to be worth a lot! Do you have any idea what their single admission fee is, for otherwise non-qualified pax? (After suffering through a coach seat on a flight like that, with little or no food, that hefty breakfast and...
Big Kudos to AA for the Arrivals Lounge at LHR! Even if the flight hardware was not ideal, the sparse but functional lounge - good breakfast options and more than ample shower options has got to be worth a lot! Do you have any idea what their single admission fee is, for otherwise non-qualified pax? (After suffering through a coach seat on a flight like that, with little or no food, that hefty breakfast and a freshening shower before greeting London may be an excellent investment! Your thoughts, please. -C.
This lounge is passable but NOT MUCH MORE..........we are talking about a company that is still in bankruptcy so let's be realistic about how fresh the orange juice is going to be.........First Class or not after flying 2 in First and two in Business on a family I'm free of cancer trip American First Class to Europe gets a big big yawn............
It's nice that BC passengers get access. Then again, it does seem to be a very nice BC level lounge ;)
Take a look at the picture of the shower room, that's quite a door!
That's because there's a passthrough to have your clothes pressed. You undress, put your clothes in, close the cabinet. Push a button on the right, someone comes and takes your clothes out the other side. Presses them. Then returns them. After your shower you open the passthrough portion of the door back up, remove your clothes, wear them...
Coffee in the...
Take a look at the picture of the shower room, that's quite a door!
That's because there's a passthrough to have your clothes pressed. You undress, put your clothes in, close the cabinet. Push a button on the right, someone comes and takes your clothes out the other side. Presses them. Then returns them. After your shower you open the passthrough portion of the door back up, remove your clothes, wear them...
Coffee in the lounge is really quite good and love the hot food options, much better than say the AF arrivals lounge at CDG (which isn't bad).
And the official number of showers is 29. :-)
@ jon -- Good point, I updated the post to indicate it's only for OneWorld Emerald members traveling certain carriers.
@lucky: Ah, so it's OWE travelling AA. Anecdotally, access is also provided to J/F passengers travelling QF (and possibly BA as well) - not sure about other OW airlines.
@ SanjayK -- Thanks for reading! I'm at home maybe half the time. Some months more, some months less. The goal of my travels is to share my experiences/tips here. On planes I usually either work best I can (with or without wifi) or watch some movies and TV shows. Or best of all, I try to catch up on sleep!
@ jon -- I should have been clear. It's available to OneWorld Emerald members through American, British Airways, and Iberia, per this page:
http://www.americanairlines.co.uk/i18n/travelInformation/Heathrow_airport.jsp&locale=en_GB#
I enjoy your blog a great deal and enjoy your detail from all your trips, but you sure do travel a whole lot. how much time are you able to spend at home? do you have a goal with all the traveling you do? what do you do on the plane to pass time? Keep up the good work! :)
I'd have to say it looks pretty underwhelming...
Hmm, is that right that it's available to OneWorld Emeralds? My understanding was it's available to F/J passengers of (some?) partner airlines but not OWEs specifically.