Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

Exclusive pictures of the new Qatar Airways lounge at Heathrow

Links on Head for Points may support the site by paying a commission.  See here for all partner links.

For anyone wondering if Qatar Airways will be moving back to Heathrow Terminal 4 when it re-opens in the Summer, I have some evidence that it might.

I have got hold of two photographs of the newly refurbished – and I believe expanded – Qatar Airways Premium Lounge in Heathrow Terminal 4. It wasn’t clear if work on this project had continued over the pandemic or not.

See here:

New Qatar Airways lounge Heathrow Terminal 4

and here:

New Qatar Airways lounge Heathrow Terminal 4

Note the British Airways aircraft parked up at Terminal 4 for some reason!

This was always the classiest business class lounge at Heathrow. I would put it neck and neck with the Cathay Pacific First Class lounge for the title of classiest Heathrow lounge, full stop.

The lounge is looking good, and I look forward to checking it out once Terminal 4 is open.

Our most recent review of the Qatar Airways Premium Lounge at Heathrow is here.

PS. If you are not a regular Head for Points visitor, why not sign up for our FREE weekly or daily newsletters? They are full of the latest Avios, airline, hotel and credit card points news and will help you travel better. To join our 70,000 free subscribers, click the button below or visit this page of the site to find out more. Thank you.

Getting airport lounge access for free from a credit card

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

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

Your best value option (but no points):

The cheapest route to a Priority Pass airport lounge card is via the Lloyds Bank World Elite Mastercard.

The credit card has a fee of £15 per month, and comes with a Priority Pass which gives unlimited free access for the cardholder. If you add a free supplementary cardholder, they will also receive unlimited free access.

Unlike the version of Priority Pass you receive with American Express, the Lloyds Bank version also lets you access £18 airport restaurant credits.

Even better, the credit card has 0% FX fees and comes with 0.5% cashback. Full details are in my Lloyds Bank World Elite Mastercard review.

Lloyds Bank World Elite Mastercard

A Priority Pass, 0% FX fees and up to 1% cashback for £15 per month Read our full review

Lounge access via American Express cards:

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 in-depth review of The Platinum Card from American Express is here.

You can apply here.

The Platinum Card from American Express

50,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

The American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card 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 Credit Card review here.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

Lounge access via HSBC Premier credit cards (Premier account holders only):

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 The American Express Business Platinum Card which has the same lounge benefits as the personal Platinum card:

The American Express Business Platinum Card

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.

Category

Qatar Airways and Privilege Club

Comments (17)

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

  • Andrew J says:
    9 Mar9 March 04:54

    It’s worth remembering that the QR Premium Lounge isn’t actually a business class lounge – it’s a hybrid lounge for some business class tickets and first class tickets. It’s not accessible for basic business class tickets or for status passengers who’s ticket type doesn’t facilitate access.

    • BJ says:
      9 Mar9 March 06:34

      It was a great lounge and food was good but the staff were so annoying when the lounge was quiet. They watched your every move and always seemed to be looking over your shoulder. I know they were just being attentive but it was way too much.

      • Lady London says:
        9 Mar9 March 11:21

        This is also why I will never consider a hotel 5-star either if staff do this. It annoys the h*** out of me. Like silly hotels that go into your room unasked and do daft stuff like putting rose petals on the bedcovering or chocolates on the pillow. If I’m aware a hotel may be doing this, I put a stop to it.

        True good service is never seen until you knew you wanted it but then it appears.

        • BJ says:
          9 Mar9 March 14:55

          They can keep the roses but I’ll be happy to receive chocolates or a fruit platter anytime they want 🙂

    • Rob says:
      9 Mar9 March 08:32

      Did ‘basic business’ exist when covid hit? Status pax do get sent upstairs to Plaza Premium.

  • The Jetset Boyz says:
    9 Mar9 March 06:12

    “Note the British Airways aircraft parked up at Terminal 4 for some reason!”

    At the height of the pandemic BA parked several of their planes at T4.

  • SamG says:
    9 Mar9 March 07:22

    I believe Iberia Express will be from Gatwick, Heathrow being “mainline”

    • elguiri says:
      9 Mar9 March 11:22

      Thanks for pointing out, you are indeed correct. I was just checking if I need to cancel my RFS with 241 for this, but Gatwick is a lot more hassle for me, so won’t bother.

  • JoR says:
    9 Mar9 March 10:08

    Iberia website not applying the discount even though they show it at the first step. Is anyone surprised?

    • Sven says:
      9 Mar9 March 11:29

      I got the same, no surprise, I live in Spain and I’m getting used to this sort of thing. There are six mileage + fees options available, just not the one offered at 4,900. Anyway, it looks as if fees will be £30 for a flight that you can currently buy for £39, so not very good value for your 4,900 avios anyway!

      • Gavin454 says:
        9 Mar9 March 14:44

        Yes, I’ve never seen good value in Avios flights to Spain whenever I’ve looked. Cash fares are usually disproportionally cheap for the distance compared to most other places in Europe.

  • Peter says:
    9 Mar9 March 12:38

    I was actually really disappointed with Qatar to HKT last week, they changed the 777 and A350 with Q-Suite to A380 and A330. The A380 was okay but nothing compared to business class with Emirates or Etihad in their A380. The A330 business class was horrible, especially for an 8-hour flight, with 6 seats per row it was very cramped. Service was slow, took over 2 hours to finish meal service on the A330. Food quality on Emirates and Ethiad were also much better. I should have cancelled when they changed it to an A330.

  • Dev says:
    10 Mar10 March 07:57

    Will be interesting to see if the Qatar lounge is revamped or expanded. The Martini Bar was a good central focal point and you cannot see if from the pictures posted above…

  • john says:
    10 Mar10 March 10:07

    Liked the Qatar lounge when we flew with Malaysia Airlines in business. FAR superior then their lounge at LHR!

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

New to Head for Points?

Welcome!  We’re the UK’s most-read source of business travel, Avios, frequent flyer and hotel loyalty news. Let us improve how you travel. Got any questions? Ask them in our forums.

Get 25,000 Avios with the Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

GET A SIGN-UP BONUS OF 18,000 VIRGIN POINTS!

Latest Forum Posts

Get 50,000 bonus points (worth 50,000 Avios) and £400 of dining credit with The Platinum Card

Check reward flight availability instantly for free!

See a whole year of reward seat availability on one page at SeatSpy.com

Special offer: Get 30,000 bonus Hilton Honors points until 14th August 2025

Booking a luxury hotel?

Our luxury hotel booking service offers you GUARANTEED extra benefits over booking direct. Works with Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, The Ritz Carlton, St Regis and more. We've booked £1.7 million of rooms to date. Click for details.

SME? Get the only free credit card with points which convert to Avios

Get points worth 20,000 Avios with 'first year free' American Express Gold

The UK's biggest frequent flyer website uses cookies, which you can block via your browser settings. Continuing implies your consent to this policy. Our privacy policy is here.

Got it!