Review: Avanti West Coast First Class lounge at London Euston station
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This is our review of the Avanti West Coast First Class lounge at London Euston station.
I haven’t personally reviewed this lounge since 2015 (Anika did a brief update in 2018) so it could well be nine years since I was there. This is despite an ever increasing number of trips to Manchester for various reasons – this was my third visit in as many months.
The reason is partly because Avanti West Coast First Class tickets are bizarrely expensive when compared to LNER, my usual long haul rail operator. I might still have begrudgingly paid, but Avanti West Coast offers Standard Premium too.
Like Eurostar, Standard Premium on Avanti gets you a First Class seat but without any of the bells and whistles. Travelling in First means that you are paying £70 or so extra each way for the lounge plus the on-train meal. Standard Premium is fine for me.
That said, for review purposes I decided to bite the bullet on Thursday as I headed to the launch party for the new (converted from Macdonald) Manchester Marriott Hotel Piccadilly.
The lounge hasn’t moved in the nine years since my last visit. It sits on the mezzanine level above the main concourse, which is a more pleasant place to hang out than downstairs – although that’s not a high bar.
After three days being fawned over by the staff of Park Hyatt Paris Vendome, it was a pleasure to get back to some good British hospitality. The man on the front desk did not lift his head or say a word as I scanned my boarding pass. Nothing pinged, no light went green and the guy did not move, so I just walked through the doors.
Inside the Avanti West Coast First Class lounge
The first thing I noticed was the number of people – very few.
Back in the days of Virgin Trains, when there was no Standard Premium and Advance First tickets could be quite cheap, the lounge was always rammed. No longer. At 9am it was around 15% full.
The second thing I noticed was that there is a half-decent food offering now, which puts it well ahead of the LNER First Class lounge at Kings Cross.
The third thing I noticed was that some (not all) of the furnishings have been updated in the last nine years, but sadly it is lipstick on a pig. The 1970s false ceiling with its 1970s lighting and air conditioning units just drags down the space. LNER uses a converted Victorian office space with more character.
Let’s have a quick tour ….
As you enter you have this long bar to your left ….
…. which leads to a long window overlooking the concourse:
Whilst the pastry offering looks a bit sparse, don’t be fooled. The chiller unit contained two options – a decent fruit salad and some smoked salmon:
The adjacent fridge had a slightly bizarre mix of orange juice, Pepsi, spicy tomato juice and a disproportionately large amount of FeverTree tonic water!
Whilst no-one was drinking at 9am, there were a wide range of spirits on display – I’m not sure what time these come out or indeed whether they are free. Someone had placed a pile of business cards for The Samaritans in front of the display as you can see in the photo.
The main coffee machine is behind the counter and needs someone to serve you, but there are two self-serve machines tucked away.
The business area was very underused at 9am and is identical to how it was in the Virgin Trains days:
(Someone needs to change the wi-fi password, by the way. It is a random string of 11 characters – a mix of numbers, symbols and upper / lower case letters – and there are only a handful of signs in the lounge with it on. Change it to Pa$$word and save everyone some time!)
There is a good mix of seating, eg:
and
and
and
At times it felt like there were too many different types of seating available – the lounge seemed to lack a sense of cohesion and felt a little random in design.
It’s worth noting that First Class and Standard Premium customers can opt-in to get a text message showing the train platform around 2-3 minutes before it appears on the monitors. This allows you to avoid the Wembley-style crush on the way to the gates.
Toilets are available in the lounge – there is no need to head out to the main concourse.
Conclusion
I was surprisingly impressed by what Avanti West Coast has done with the First Class lounge at Euston.
The addition of some ‘proper’ food, on top of the usual muffins, pastries etc, was a surprise and the lack of crowds was welcome. The LNER lounge at Kings Cross is always busier, because it is smaller and LNER has no Standard Premium carriage, and there is no food beyond fruit and biscuits.
I was also impressed by the breakfast that Avanti West Coast served on the train. There were a decent number of options, hot and cold, including a full English which looked OK.
Is Avanti West Coast First Class worth an extra £70 each way over Standard Premium? Not really – although I also benefitted from a very empty First Class carriage, getting a four seat table to myself.
However, if you can charge the extra £70 as a self-employed business expense and so cut the net cost (as I can) it makes it worth considering.
It’s a different story on the return trip, because the Manchester Piccadilly lounge is shoe-box size and the station itself is a far more pleasant place to hang around than Euston.
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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.
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