Review: the Yorkshire, White Rose and 1432 Runway Club lounges at Leeds Bradford Airport

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• barnaby100 says:

  25 May25 May 07:39

  I go to LBA at least weekly. The 1432 is rarely open although they do let you sit in it if there are large crowds of drinkers in the White Rose (which there often are). On the occasion that the 1432 is open is stag and hen central- how much booze can you get down your neck in 3 hours. Yesterday there was a guy being dragged out by his girlfriend as his plane was boarding with him shouting something about having to get more drinks in as he had paid. Sadly the lounge offer is much worse than before it was moved. The white rose launched with fever tree and slings by gin, now it is gordons and britvic. They have finally put more sockets in the white rose, but still not enough, Yesterday we arrived at about 4pm, the tables were overflowing with empty glasses and the floor was covered with food. Its as still like that when we left for the delayed BA 3 hours later. I am surprised that you can pay £10 to upgrade to 1432, that must be new as I asked when it opened and was told you couldn’t. That said it really is a booze fuelled place and really not pleasant (you can see in and hear).

  • James Ward says:

    25 May25 May 08:23

    On both my visits, the 1432 was roped off, but not closed. They seem to leave the rope there permanently; presumably to discourage people walking in accidentally. Also, both of my visits were when the airport was very quiet, so didn’t experience the issues you’ve described… but doesn’t surprise me!

• barnaby100 says:

  25 May25 May 08:20

  You say- At the time of my visit I was the only passenger in the lounge. Despite this, the food service was a little slow as the chef was on a break.

  Did they know that you were reviewing it? I suspect that they opened it just for you if so as it is almost always closed when I am in there (for the early morning BA). There are sometimes people who have booked the 1432 being told it isn’t open when they arrive.

  I forgot the best bit. In the White Rose they used to have bags of crisps. Now they open the crisps from the single bags and put some in a white bowl (not a whole bag) . Crisps are available only on request- they have empty bags on display in holders. Environmentally unfriendly – creating extra washing up.

  Sadly we can’t add photos as I have lots that show the true picture of what you can expect in the white rose. They used to have big posters at the entrance describing it a business lounge. After a particularly hairy visit with large crowds downing round after round at 8am and no seats or access to sockets I raised this with them, they said it wasn’t a business lounge. I showed them the poster, which was gone shortly after. They need to give the white rose a proper identity as a business lounge. More sockets, better seating for singles and stop the big boozy groups.

  • James Ward says:

    25 May25 May 08:27

    It seems to be roped off all the time, even though it’s open. Another couple arrived as I was leaving, so they hadn’t opened it for me. They did know I was writing a review.

    I did notice the discrepancy in the crisps – only the 1432 offered bags. The other two lounges offered bowls.

    • barnaby100 says:

      25 May25 May 08:33

      No, it is definitely closed. I sit in there from time to time to work or if I need to make calls as the white rose is often noisy and overcrowded. Regulars just let themselves in to sit and the staff don’t object and sometimes offer it.

      • James Ward says:

        25 May25 May 08:43

        Well, all I can say is what the reception staff and lounge hosts told me… that it’s open the same hours as the other lounges, subject to its own access rules.

    • barnaby100 says:

      25 May25 May 08:42

      I have just looked at the recent tripadvisor reviews for the yorkshire lounge. They are dire. The positive one is from a man who had a pint in the bar before he went in and then 4 pints in the lounge- which made it good value in his opinion. Those reviews suggest that they sometimes close the yorkshire lounge as well and so upgrade people to the white rose- which may explain why it is sometimes full of big groups of drinkers.

  • Ken says:

    25 May25 May 11:19

    With the state of the toilets, crisps in a finger bowl sounds really appealing.
    Difficult to imagine what’s left to cut back on when they ration the crisps.
    Empty packets on display – real classy.

  • Lady London says:

    25 May25 May 11:32

    Sounds like hell.

    • guesswho2000 says:

      25 May25 May 14:29

      Agreed, ‘it’s grim up North’ springs to mind!

      In all seriousness, these comments make Qantas Pubs sound civilised!

• LBAd says:

  25 May25 May 08:48

  I was in the white rose lounge with BA status and it was awful. Food was dreadful. Every 30 minutes or so they’d bring out a plate of 4 or 5 bacon sandwiches which would be immediately grabbed by the nearest person, leaving another 10 people returning to their seats empty handed. Tables were all covered with dirty plates. It was crowded. Not comfortable or private. No mention of paid upgrades, in fact staff at the reception were very unhelpful, almost rude. The sort of people who act like you, the customer, are interupting and inconveniencing them.

  • barnaby100 says:

    25 May25 May 09:07

    I often don’t even bother to go in these days. Just sit for a couple of hours in a seat on the concourse as it is preferable. They also seem to have some kind of scam running where if you are a BA gold flying in CE they insist that you enter via your gold status rather than as a CE passenger which takes longer and they have to access your number in the app rather than just scanning the boarding pass. When I asked why they did this they muttered something about it being a new management rule as it was better for them.

    • Ken says:

      25 May25 May 10:11

      Presumably BA Gold pays a little more ?

      • TGLoyalty says:

        25 May25 May 13:46

        Maybe BA gold pays for a better lounge and you don’t actually get access to it?

• barnaby100 says:

  25 May25 May 09:27

  My husband only flies through twice a month. I have just asked his opinion.

  He likes the bar but the current drinks on offer are not worth having.
  The toasted tea cakes are 10/10, likes the cheese with digestive biscuits (it is Yorkshire) but the rest of the food is 0/10.
  The view of Ingleborough is great.
  The place is filthy.
  Good view out of the window.
  Can mostly get a seat.
  There is an interesting range of people.
  Some of the staff are friendly.
  The 1432 is never open.

  • Lister says:

    25 May25 May 10:07

    It certainly isn’t filthy. They can be slow to clean up etc but general housekeeping is quite good.

    I use the WR most Friday evenings as I did yesterday. The last few week they have had a sign that due to increase in demand PP & LP can’t gain access. Likely to last the whole of the summer. BA Silver/Gold or a BA CE ticket is fine.

    While I like the view of the runway the old business lounge was far more relaxing and I preferred the self service drinks to the bar service. LBA is a bit of a zoo at this time of year, especially on a Friday afternoon.

    • barnaby100 says:

      25 May25 May 10:14

      The women loos are filthy, if you go in and there is no urine/loo roll on the floor it is a bonus. There is an open white loo brush holder (so no lid over the brush- a £1 ikea type) The brush and holder are covered in excrement (and it has been the same for at least a year)

    • Lady London says:

      25 May25 May 11:36

      Quite clear PP and LP aren’t paying the various lounges that are doing thi, enough then

• Ken says:

  25 May25 May 10:07

  I like a good drink, but I never understand people caning it at 7am in the morning.
  What possesses people to want to get to the airport 3 1/2 hours before their flight so they can have full 3 hours in a lounge to maximise the free ale and food?
  It seem like a competition between lounge companies trying to gouge passengers who in return feel obliged to drink and eat as much as possible, regardless of the quality.

  • Julian says:

    25 May25 May 11:00

    Presumably these are people on some major life landmark trip who don’t normally ever use airport lounges but have paid extra for the privilege and/or have a one off lounge pass to use up.

    One thing that strikes me about most British airport lounges is that they offer nothing special food and drink wise and are actually an active inconvenience by requiring you to arrive significantly earlier for your flight to experience the supposedly massive special benefits and privileges………..

    • Ken says:

      25 May25 May 11:15

      Major life landmark?
      More like a weekend in Magaluf or anywhere in Eastern Europe.
      People make the rational choice that if they are having 5 or 6 pints before boarding, why not book a lounge. A couple of hours kip on the plane and you are ready to go again.

    • guesswho2000 says:

      25 May25 May 14:37

      With the exception of LHR, where the lounges are actually worth spending time in, for the most part. The worst was probably the old T3 Servisair lounge, but even there you could get a can of Guinness (and then leave to one of the many other lounges in T3).

      • Rob says:

        25 May25 May 14:52

        It was dire – we reviewed it once. As was T1 Servisair …

  • Peter K says:

    25 May25 May 13:27

    Some places I’ve stayed at you have people queuing at the bar at 11am when the free drinks start.
    You also get those who go to the chippy across the road from one place I work that are queuing outside ready for when it opens at 4pm.
    Having said that, I have found the UK lounges I’ve been to better than most reports I’ve read about them, and I will usually have one drink at most.

  • Rooster says:

    25 May25 May 16:21

    People who like to drink a lot and the fact it is free makes it 10x better for them, still there are also plenty paying in the airport bars at 10am for beer :/

• Darren Sykes says:

  25 May25 May 11:21

  I visit the White Rose a couple of times a month and get access with KLM Gold. The only time that I have seen the 1432 open is as an overspill due to large drinking groups necking as much Prosecco and G&T as possible. I would be very surprised if anyone had been refused service due to being drunk, which undoubtedly some are. Sometimes it can be a pleasant, relaxing experience, but this is usually later in the day after the early morning holiday flights have departed.

• Mike says:

  25 May25 May 12:22

  Am I the only person here who noticed how filthy the chairs appear to be in the Yorkshire lounge?

• Ian says:

  25 May25 May 12:57

  I have to also disagree with the review of the WR “lounge” and agree with all the negative comments above. It is a canteen with nothing remotely “classy” that I could see. I was there at 09.00 last Sunday, when it was full of customers going to (I’m guessing) holiday resorts and trying to see how many pints of lager they could down before their flights. The food offering was minimal except that the bacon rolls were good: large northern baps instead of the little rolls at LHR Galleries lounges.
  Luckily the BA flight was on time (early in fact) so I was spared a longer stay in the WR. On the way out I passed the YL which the receptionist indicated I was welcome to use. I thought it looked better but I was on my way. I expressed the view that the old lounges were very much better and she told me many customers had said the same thing.

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