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Review: the Causeway Lounge at Belfast International Airport

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This is our review of the Causeway Lounge at Belfast Airport.

This is part of our series of reviews of airport lounges across the UK.  You see all of the reviews here.

Reader Gordon kindly sent in some photographs and a brief review of the Causeway Lounge at Belfast Airport:

Causeway Lounge Belfast International Airport

“The Causeway Lounge is managed by the airport.  It is located as you pass through duty free shopping and turn left past Starbucks walking up the ramp towards gates 16/17. Access to the lounge is available via Priority Pass, Lounge Club and by direct booking.

causeway lounge belfast airport

The lounge was completely refurbished in 2016 with all new seating in a range of styles. Entry is via double doors with the reception in front, the lounge to the left and toilets to the right.

According to the airport website the lounge “reflects the shape of the iconic north coast landmark”. It is hexagonal shaped with 5 glass walls looking out towards the runway and a curved wall which sweeps round from reception forming the 6th wall

causeway lounge belfast airport 2

There is a range of seating with sofas and coffee tables around the glass walls, tow and four person tables plus some high tables with stools to the left of the food and drinks area. The lounge is well served with UK power points and wifi is via the airport’s public wifi.

causeway lounge belfast airport 3

I visited in the early morning when breakfast was available. This consisted of bacon and mini rolls for you to make your own, bread for toast, fresh yoghurt with fruit and pastries. There were also snacks including biscuits and crisps. Drinks included a range of soft drinks, tea, coffee, a couple of beer options and a limited wine choice.

A notice states that guests are allowed up to three complimentary alcoholic drinks with beer, wine and spirits priced at £3 thereafter. No spirits were available at the time I was in the lounge and as the drinks are self service it’s unclear how charges would be collected.

The Macco coffee machine played classical music with each coffee served.

causeway lounge belfast airport 4

This was the selection of pastries.

causeway lounge belfast airport 5

Reading material is limited with only a few newspapers and a couple of local magazines.

The lounge is open between 05:00 and 21.15.

Conclusion

I’ve visited the lounge at different times and it’s rarely busy despite being the only lounge at the airport. It offers good views of the runway and has a range of seating options.

The airport itself is quite small and has limited seating away from Starbucks and the bar areas. As such the lounge offers a comfortable retreat.

It’s perfect if you have complimentary access via a card.  If they do impose an additional charge after your third drink I’m not sure it’s worth the £20 cash booking fee.”

Thanks Gordon.  If you want to prebook a cash visit to the Causeway Lounge, you can do so via this website where the £20 on-the-door price is reduced to £17.


Getting airport lounge access for free from a credit card

How to get FREE airport lounge access via UK credit cards (October 2024)

Here are the four 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.

The Platinum Card from American Express

40,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

If you have a small business, consider American Express Business Platinum instead.

American Express Business Platinum

Up to 80,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit 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.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 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

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

Comments (24)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • Frankie says:

    Seems good value even at the three free drinks limit if you add in some food, coffee, soft drinks, views and peace and quiet. A glass of wine is 6 or 7 pounds in the public bars.

  • MoNkEyMaN says:

    The musical coffee machine is a bizarre experience.

    • CV3V says:

      The Emirates lounge(s) in Dubai has a similar machine (playing classical music), its even more bizarre at 2 am in the morning in a huge empty lounge. Needs a mute button.

  • Steven says:

    I really like this lounge; the terminal itself is horrific and you can get a bit of peace and quiet here. Never had a problem getting a seat and they have decent food. Tend not to drink that much in the lounges so the alcohol restrictions don’t really bother me that much.

  • Ian says:

    Lest your principal readership be duped, the name of this BFS airport is wholly misleading. It is nowhere near Belfast. It is 19 miles away. And it’s grim.

    Whereas BHD (Belfast City) is “in” Belfast.

  • JOHN MUNN says:

    Now the United Belfast to Newark flight is no longer operating, I can’t think of any business class travel from BFS as it’s all Easyjet, Ryanair, Jet2 and charter flights.
    With that in mind, I wonder if the the lounge can sustain itself on the people paying to use it?
    I used it a couple of years ago to use my free Amex Gold Lounge Club passes (before the recent refurb, admittedly) and it was grim. There was no food during the day and the clerk encouraged us to get food in the terminal and bring it back to eat! There were only 2 of us in the lounge. We didn’t stay more than 10 minutes. I suppose it is maybe worth it if you want to get a drink before a flight (but £17 could get you 3 Burger King meals in the terminal).

  • Memesweeper says:

    This airport is in fierce competition with Stansted for the UK’s worst airport. This lounge is a great relief from the dreadful airport, and, since the refurb, is good value even if you’re paying cash IMO. No-one policed me to three spirits on my last visit, YMMV.

    Confusingly BFS refers to itself as BIA, even though the BIA airport is in Corsica.

  • Ian says:

    You guess incorrectly Mr Tangey. We both appreciate that the airport (known as Aldergrove) was originally a military base. But lets not bore the HfP readership.

    Lets just agree that Belfast International Airport is a misnomer.

    PS – Gatwick is in London, as is Heathrow, whereas I can assure HfP readers that BFS is NOT in Belfast.

    • zsalya says:

      Heathrow is inside the M25, so we can call that London.
      Gatwick is not – it’s near London.

      • Alex W says:

        What about “London” Luton airport – 34 miles from London according to Google maps!

        • Genghis says:

          Or London Oxford Airport?

        • Lady London says:

          That’s pushing it. “London” Luton was always a joke. Especially when the railway line that was sold as going to Luton airport, stopped and everyone from the train had to wait for a bus, then haul their luggage onto the bus and mostly stand up and be thrown round corners all the way to the terminal….London Luton airport, indeed 🙂

    • AC says:

      Gatwick is in London? Hahaha

      • the real harry1 says:

        I see Gatwick as London plus a couple of minutes, nothing much extra in journey time to worry about

        there are plenty of cities in the world where LHR, Gatwick, Luton, Stansted would obviously be seen as ‘capital city’ airports – 30-40 miles in any direction is irrelevant if the connections are good

        Boris was probably correct all along – Boris Island or an improvement on the idea (5 miles closer?) could have been a new ‘New HK Airport’ – built from scratch so shiny, perfect, new, 40 mins from central London, annoying very few people with noise & all the runways you need for the next 50 years – plus frees up LHR for more divers flying uses :mrgreen

        • Joe says:

          Ok ok! At least I’ve clearly piqued the interest in this previously quiet article!

          I will add however, the public transport links to this airport, 19 miles from Belfast, are farcical.
          (only option being a draughty ‘bus’ which takes almost an hour)

        • Brendan says:

          BHD transport links aren’t ‘much poorer’. The bus from the Europa (same place as bus to BFS) goes every 20 mins at peak times and takes less than 15 mins. Anyway, for the practically the same price as a single bus ticket to BFS (£7.50), you can get a taxi to BHD from anywhere around the city centre that takes 5-10 minutes.

          • IanBeale says:

            As long as you’re first off the plane with no luggage checked. Otherwise a wind-swept taxi queue awaits.

  • Joe says:

    Ian “My name is Joe”

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

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