You can use your British Airways Gold or Silver card at the Aer Lingus lounge in Terminal 2

Over the next couple of days I will be writing some pieces on the new Heathrow Terminal 2.  I finally had the chance to try it out last week.

My timing was rubbish.  I was flying to Dublin on Aer Lingus.  Aer Lingus moved to Terminal 2 on July 9th.  Due to construction delays, their brand new Gold Circle lounge was not ready by then.

It finally opened last Thursday afternoon.  I was in Terminal 2 on Thursday morning!

(Instead I went to the United Club using my Priority Pass which I get via my American Express Platinum card.  This was very impressive – look out for my review.)

A lot of British Airways Gold and Silver cardholders do not know that they can access Aer Lingus lounges.

There was some talk that this arrangement may stop with the move to Terminal 2.  Reports on Flyertalk since Thursday afternoon show that BA elite members are still being allowed access.

This arrangement has a complex history.  For a number of years BA did not fly to Dublin.  Instead, they had a codeshare arrangement with Aer Lingus.  As part of this deal, Aer Lingus let British Airways elite members use their lounge in Terminal 1 when flying Aer Lingus.

When BA bought BMI, it inherited BMI’s Dublin services and kept them going.  The Aer Lingus codeshares remained.  British Airways is also a codeshare partner with Aer Lingus on some other routes such as Shannon where BA does not fly.

For Aer Lingus, letting BA elite members use their lounges is sensible marketing.  For such a short flight, lounge access is disproportionately important.  I doubt I would use Aer Lingus without lounge access if the alternative was a BA flight from Terminal 1 (soon Terminal 5) with the lounge.

Note that you do NOT need to be on a BA codeshare ticket to use the Aer Lingus lounge in Terminal 2.  Any Aer Lingus ticket is acceptable.

Annoyingly, I cannot find any photographs of the new Terminal 2 lounge so far.  The Aer Lingus website does have this to say about it:

Our new lounge is now open and centrally located within the main departures area. Guests can enjoy a bigger, brighter lounge. It will be purpose built with lots of natural daylight, floor-to-ceiling windows and panoramic views of the southern runway.

Lounge highlights include:

• A warm open reception area with a backdrop of white oak walls.
• High specification male, female and mobility impaired accessible toilets and showers.
• Buffet style selection of dry foods and selection of beverages.
• Quiet meeting rooms and working zone with full complement of ICT services.
• Open plan seating selected for comfort and style.
• Separate quiet rest area for up to 30 persons, which includes specially selected chaise lounge style seating.
• Palate of finishes and colours inspired by the Irish landscape, all continuing the theme of the Dublin Aer Lingus flagship lounge.
• A special feature of the new T2 Heathrow Lounge is the 5m high external glass wall offering relaxing views to the airfield.

If any Head for Points readers are in there over the next couple of weeks, please take a couple of pictures on your phone and email them to me!

I won’t review my Aer Lingus flight as it was a) very short and b) exactly what you would expect from a one-class flight.  The buy-on-board catering menu was quite impressive – you need to think whether BA should ditch its ‘free pack of biscuits’ approach for proper, paid, food.  It doesn’t, in reality, make a lot of difference on a hop to Dublin though.

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2025)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

Get 5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £15,000 Read our full review

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, and the standard card is FREE. Capital on Tap cards also have no FX fees.

Capital on Tap Visa

NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review

There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:

British Airways American Express Accelerating Business

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

American Express Business Platinum

50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold

20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.