British Airways outsources its Amsterdam airport lounge – which is good news

There is good news for British Airways passengers flying out of Amsterdam Schiphol.

BA has handed over control of the (fairly recently) refurbished British Airways lounge to Prima Vista Group.

As per Ground Handling International:

British Airways customers travelling from Amsterdam can look forward to a new premium lounge experience. Prima Vista will refresh the food and beverage menu with an innovative, high-end offering, and a different menu will be exclusively designed by a professional chef each season.

From July 1, every passenger that visits the British Airways Schiphol lounge will be able to enjoy special monthly events with the latest technology and food and beverage experiences, such as to bartender and barista events, offering new drinks.

“We are very proud to develop this partnership with British Airways and IAG Group as their customer care vision perfectly matches Prima Vista Group’s philosophy,” said General Manager of Prima Vista Group, Italo Russo Silva. “We are convinced that the Amsterdam lounge is going to be really successful and that it will be the beginning of future global agreements.”

This does seem to be a positive move.  Whilst the BA lounge looks OK, the offerings were – to put it mildy – very poor indeed.  I would generally grab a newspaper and then move on to the Aspire Lounge next door with my Priority Pass, which was far better.  Feedback so far is that there are genuine improvements to the food offering.

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How to get FREE airport lounge access via UK credit cards (September 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.

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

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 22nd October 2024, the bonus on American Express Business Platinum is increased to up to 80,000 Membership Rewards points, worth 80,000 Avios. You will receive 8 points per £1 spent for the first three months, on up to £10,000 of spending. Click here to read our full card review. Click here to apply.

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.

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.

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