Swissport lounge in Heathrow Terminal 3 is closing

If you remember my ‘five lounges in three hours’ tour of Heathrow last year, you will remember my review of the Swissport Terminal 3 lounge.

It was my most depressing UK lounge visit since the bad old days of the Servisair lounge in Heathrow Terminal 1.

Whilst I doubt my review had any impact on the decision (!), the Swissport lounge will be closing on 1st September due to ‘terminal development’.  It is possible that No1 Traveller will use the extra space for further expansion.

One reader was told by a staff member that an Aspire lounge is in the works.  I can’t find any reference to this so I doubt it is opening in the short term.  I’ll let you know as soon as I hear anything.

The only losers from the closure of the Swissport lounge are Lounge Club holders.  Whilst the No 1 Traveller lounge is a member of Priority Pass, it does not accept Lounge Club.  Anyone with an American Express Gold will now have nowhere in Terminal 3 to redeem their free Lounge Club visits.

That said, only in desperate circumstances – ie they were about to expire – would I have recommended you use them in Terminal 3 anyway.

Changes to the LoungeMiles programme

Apart from Terminal 3, Swissport operates a number of independent airport lounges across the UK under the Servisair and Aspire brands.

There is a loyalty scheme for these lounges called LoungeMiles.  To join, you simply need to pick up a card next time you visit a Servisair or Aspire lounge and get it stamped.  You get one stamp per visit.

Importantly, you earn a stamp even if you get into the lounge for free using a Priority Pass or similar card.

These are the UK airports where you can collect LoungeMiles stamps as far as I know:

Aberdeen – Servisair Lounge

Belfast City – Aspire lounge 

Birmingham (Terminal 1) – Aspire Lounge

Bristol – Aspire Lounge

Durham Tees Valley – Servisair Roseberry Lounge

Edinburgh – Aspire Lounge

Humberside – Servisair Lounge

Inverness – Servisair Highland Lounge

Liverpool John Lennon – Aspire Lounge

London Gatwick (North Terminal) – Aspire Lounge

London Heathrow (Terminal 3) – Servisair Lounge (closes 31st August)

London Luton – Aspire Lounge

Manchester (Terminal 1) – Aspire Lounge

Manchester (Terminal 2) – The Styal Lounge

Newcastle – Aspire Lounge

Heathrow Terminal 5 is excluded as are lounges outside the UK.  Note that you can no longer collect stamps at Servisair or Aspire lounges outside the UK.  You also cannot earn stamps at the Cardiff and Glasgow lounges because they are not directly owned by Swissport.

There were historically two ways of redeeming LoungeMiles:

post in a card with seven stamps and receive a £5 High Street shopping voucher

redeem a card with five stamps for free entry to a participating Servisair or Aspire lounge

Unfortunately, in late June, the company supplying the £5 High Street vouchers went into receivership.   For the time being, the only redemption option is a free lounge visit.

There is some upside.  If you had a card with seven stamps ready to post off, LoungeMiles has a deal for you.  Redeem a seven stamp card for a free lounge visit and you will receive a free glass of prosecco on top.  This is a very good deal.

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How to get FREE airport lounge access via UK credit cards (April 2025)

Here are the five options to get FREE airport lounge access via a UK credit card.

The Platinum Card from American Express comes with two free Priority Pass cards, one for you and one for a supplementary cardholder. Each card admits two so a family of four gets in free. You get access to all 1,500 lounges in the Priority Pass network – search it here.

You also get access to Eurostar, Lufthansa and Delta Air Lines lounges.  Our American Express Platinum review is here.

You can apply here.

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.

The Platinum Card from American Express

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

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold is FREE for the first year. It comes with a Priority Pass card loaded with four free visits to any Priority Pass lounge – see the list here.

Additional lounge visits are charged at £24.  You get four more free visits for every year you keep the card.  

There is no annual fee for Amex Gold in Year 1 and you get a 20,000 points sign-up bonus.  Full details are in our American Express Preferred Rewards Gold review here.

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.

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

HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard gets you get a free Priority Pass card, allowing you access to the Priority Pass network.  Guests are charged at £24 although it may be cheaper to pay £60 for a supplementary credit card for your partner.

The card has a fee of £290 and there are strict financial requirements to become a HSBC Premier customer.  Full details are in my HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard review.

HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard

A good package, but only available to HSBC Premier clients Read our full review

Got a small business?

If you have a small business, consider American Express Business Platinum which has the same lounge benefits as the personal Platinum card:

American Express Business Platinum

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

You should also consider the Capital on Tap Pro Visa credit card which has a lower fee and, as well as a Priority Pass for airport lounge access, also comes with Radison Rewards VIP hotel status:

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

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

PS. You can find all of HfP’s UK airport lounge reviews – and we’ve been to most of them – indexed here.