The new British Airways Business lounge for Club passengers and First lounge is open at London Gatwick’s South Terminal, and it is an absolute cracker. Following a late opening due to electrical teething troubles, the lounge is now fully functional if a little hot. While I was there, the air conditioning was clearly not working, and the room was a balmy 24’C ish – not a problem for me, but another passenger complained that the heat was “disgraceful”. Other than this issue, the lounge really was rather good.
You find the lounge by walking up a maze of corridors leading up from the ground floor or upper level (next to Dixons), then after more windy corridors, you come to the rather snazzy reception pictured above. Actually, if you turn left straight after security, just before the escalators down to the duty-free, access is much quicker. I got confused and took the long route!
To the right of the reception was the Business or Club lounge for Club Europe and Club World passengers (along with those holding a Gold or Silver British Airways card). To the left was the quieter First lounge for First Class passengers and those holding a Gold British Airways Card.
Layout Of The Gatwick South British Airways Lounge
Once inside the lounge, there was a split-level layout in a large double-height oblong space. In the center was the buffet area, and above the buffet was a floating level with another coffee area. To your right, as you entered the lounge, were a number of shower rooms and a business facility with a printer. If you kept walking right to the end of the room, there was a kids’ play area with table football and movies before the toilets.
Two sides of the room offered double-height floor-to-ceiling glass windows with views across the airport. The sitting areas were segmented into sections which made them quite private and intimate. There is an impressive array of newspapers and magazines – pretty much anything you could wish for – and of course a large food buffet.
Food Menu In The Gatwick South British Airways Lounge
We arrived around 12 and got the lunch offering which was an excellent choice which included these hot dishes:
- Green Thai chicken (which I am sure I’ve had at the Galleries Lounge in Heathrow)
- Moroccan Spicy Beef
- Peperonata Penne Pasta
- Rice, baked potatoes and baked beans
There was a table of salad (tomatoes, potato salad, coleslaw, etc.) and a selection of fresh buns, and there was yet another table with some tasty-looking cakes. Drinks on offer included wine, spirits, beers, coke, juices, water, etc., with crisps and nuts and, of course, a coffee machine with tea and coffee options.
Conclusion
I really liked The New Gatwick South British Airways Lounge. The food offering was similar to the other Galleries lounges (although this lounge is officially named a “Business” lounge rather than a “Galleries” lounge) I have experienced, but the intimate size of the lounge, when compared to the vastness of Heathrow Terminal 5’s North and South lounges, means that it had a nicer feel. I used to choose Heathrow terminal 5 over Gatwick as I think it is such a stunning airport. Gatwick remains a tatty hotchpotch of buildings skewed towards charter flights and has a more provincial feel than Heathrow, but I really liked the new lounge, and for the first time, I wouldn’t find it a drag to fly out of Gatwick on British Airways… as long as I had access to the serene escape of the BA Gatwick South lounge.
British Airways features in our top Business Class Airlines and we compare British Airways Club World vs. Virgin Atlantic Upper Class including the Galleries Lounges vs. Virgin’s Clubhouses.
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