Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

Heathrow lounge news: Aer Lingus reopens, Lufthansa closes for refurbishment

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

It seems like all the Heathrow’s Terminal 2 lounges are getting a glow-up: the Singapore SilverKris lounge was refurbished earlier this year (here’s my review) whilst the Aer Lingus lounge has just reopened and Lufthansa has plans to refurbish.

I suspect the reason we are seeing these rolling refurbishments is because it is ten years since Terminal 2 opened in 2014 and the lounges are starting to need some TLC.

Aer Lingus Heathrow lounge refurbishment

Aer Lingus lounge at Heathrow Terminal 2 reopens

Aer Lingus has quietly reopened its lounge (images above and below) at Heathrow Terminal 2 following a refurbishment program. The lounge was closed for three months.

Rob will be pleased to see an expanded food and drinks offering, which he lamented was the real shortfall of the old lounge in his 2022 review. Here is what Aer Lingus says:

“The Aer Lingus lounge now offers an all-day coffee barista service and an expanded variety of new hot and cold food options. In the mornings, there’s warming porridge oats, served with a selection of toppings. There’s also a range of cereals, yogurts and juices to choose from, as well as freshly baked pastries.  For those who seek something more filling, there’s sausage or bacon served in a fresh bap, or omelette served in a toasted muffin.

Later in the day, customers can enjoy a hearty soup, served with Irish soda bread or a crusty roll. There’s also a selection of fresh sandwiches, as well as a cheese board with savoury biscuits and fruit chutney. An afternoon tea option, featuring a selection of dainty cakes and scones, is also sure to delight customers seeking a sweet treat. For those who want something more filling before they travel, there’s comforting favourites like beef chilli, Irish lamb stew, or a delicious cannellini bean ragu.”

Furniture and soft furnishings have also been replaced, and the lounge has been kitted out for the 21st Century with “power sources at every seat”. (We weren’t quite as addicted to our devices back in 2014!)

A new “relaxing quiet zone” has also been added, although it’s unclear whether this is just a section of the lounge or a totally separate room.

The following Aer Lingus customers are eligible to use the lounge:

  • AerClub Concierge, Platinum and Silver members
  • AerSpace customers
  • Business Class customers
  • British Airways Gold and Silver members flying Aer Lingus
  • Lounge voucher holders

Note that BA Gold and Silver cardholder are allowed in (no guests) when travelling on Aer Lingus. It doesn’t matter if your ticket is booked as a British Airways codeshare or has an Aer Lingus flight number.

The rules are different for BA Gold and Silver members when flying on Aer Lingus from other airports. The rather complex rules are covered in this article.

Aer Lingus Heathrow lounge refurbishment

Heathrow Lufthansa lounge closes for refurbishment

Lufthansa is closing its lounge in Heathrow Terminal 2 for refurbishment from 1st October until mid-January next year.

All business class passengers and Lufthansa / Star Alliance status members will be sent to the other Star Alliance lounges in Terminal 2:

The Lufthansa lounge is the only Star Alliance lounge in the main terminal: the United Airlines, Air Canada and Singapore Airlines lounges are all located in the B satellite. This is a good 10-minute walk from the short-haul A gates Lufthansa typically uses.

The Singapore Airlines SilverKris Lounge is the newest of the lot and would be my recommendation, having just reopened following a big refurbishment earlier this year. It now looks much smarter and has an upgraded bar where you can enjoy a Singapore Sling.

It will also be a lot quieter than the United Club next door – although United runs fewer flights during the winter season from late October – and has a better food and drink offering than the Maple Leaf lounge.

You can see my roundup of the best airline lounges at Heathrow Terminal 2 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 65,000 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 (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.

Category

Aer Lingus and AerClub, Lufthansa and Miles & More

Comments (29)

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

  • Grumpy Chicken 81 says:
    18 Sep18 September 06:55

    Presumably if you use your AmEx Platinum card to access the Lufthansa lounge when flying Economy on Austrian, Lufthansa etc it’ll be Plaza Premium or nothing while the closure is in place?

  • HH says:
    18 Sep18 September 07:06

    What’s the T2 lounge arrangement for SAS flyers when LH closes?

    • The Original David says:
      18 Sep18 September 07:51

      Good question – risk that it will be nothing, given how few lounges SAS has an agreement with globally.

    • Rhys says:
      18 Sep18 September 08:49

      Now that SAS is SkyTeam I wonder if it will co-locate into T4 with AFKLM?

      • Bernard says:
        18 Sep18 September 21:39

        Delta and Virgin, LaTAm remain at T3 so it’s not pre ordained. Same way as Aer Lingus is at T2 and hasn’t joined one world at T5 or T3,…. Or that vueling is at T4 (instead on T3 pre covid)

    • AeT says:
      18 Sep18 September 09:39

      Good question. SAS definitely kept an agreement to access LH’s lounge post-SkyTeam switch, as I used the lounge 2 weeks ago at the start of Sept. Not sure what will happen during the refurbishment.

  • Paul says:
    18 Sep18 September 07:45

    Refurbishment after just 10 years! BAs lounges opened in 2008 and in that time they have simply undergone densification by adding seats! Their loos are in dire need of changing. There simply are not enough of them and the are rank! The only significant change if First Lane. Given they have the entire first floor it’s surely time for them to bite the bullet and reimagine the lounge experience

    • TGLoyalty says:
      18 Sep18 September 08:42

      They are … it’s going to take them 5 years

    • Paul says:
      18 Sep18 September 15:19

      Good thing the lounges have received new furniture and even new flooring a couple times since opening. New lounges incoming, hopefully with more power sockets!

  • tony says:
    18 Sep18 September 08:11

    On the LH lounge closure, I guess the decision is whether you invest half an hour of your life to get to & from the B gates, or just plump for ‘spoons (or the Plaza Premium).

    10 mins through security
    10 mins to the lounge
    15 mins back to the A gates
    40 mins before departure for boarding

    You’re going to have to be arriving at the airport 2hrs before departure to have any meaningful lounge time at all…

    • memesweeper says:
      18 Sep18 September 09:16

      15 + 40 before leaving B to go back to A? not me!

      • tony says:
        18 Sep18 September 10:03

        So what would be your limit? Genuine question, because even if it’s 15 + 20, you’re still going to have to be at the airport 1hr 40 before departure – for a short haul flight in J – to get enough time for a coffee and a sit down…

        I am on the 8.40am to Zurich a few days after this closure takes effect.

        • Blenz101 says:
          18 Sep18 September 12:56

          It isn’t mandatory to use the lounge – nice place to eat properly before a long haul flight and pleasant waiting room whilst connecting.

          Wanting to arrive hours early and trek around between satellite terminals pre-9am for a short haul flight just for a comfy seat and a free coffee is surely a niche activity whilst refurbishment activity takes place.

          • tony says:
            18 Sep18 September 13:04

            I think that’s the point I was trying to make, just perhaps I did it badly. I’d rather save the shoe leather plus half an hour of my life and buy a coffee in Pret, sort of thing…

    • daveinitalia says:
      18 Sep18 September 10:15

      The nearest spoons is T5

      • tony says:
        18 Sep18 September 10:18

        I’ll take that – but suspect ‘spoons is now colloquially accepted as recognising a “den of iniquity with sticky carpets and mass produced food of poor quality.” Although people might get mixed up with the BA lounge, admittedly….

    • John says:
      18 Sep18 September 22:24

      If I want to go to B lounges with an A flight I will be arriving 3.5-4 hours before.

      Otherwise normally I aim for 1.5-2 hours and use Lufty. I will probably avoid short-haul star flights from T2 for the closure period if the alternatives are similarly priced

  • Greenpen says:
    18 Sep18 September 08:42

    Real pain having to go to the satellite B terminal. I would have thought LH would at least have given a voucher to use in cafes and bars in the main terminal.

  • John says:
    18 Sep18 September 10:13

    Well done EI, looking forward to my next visit. I used to avoid that lounge as it was utterly pointless.

  • Grimz says:
    18 Sep18 September 10:14

    I was recently in the Aspire lounge in terminal 5 for the first time, I got access with my Amex platinum. I won’t be rushing back, far too busy and where they serve the food is a disgrace. Far to crammed in that area and they must have a lot of accidents. The girl serving the drink would only give me 2 half pints of lager despite me being in a group of 3 people. Not the experience you want before a flight!!

  • James says:
    18 Sep18 September 10:40

    And the dreary early-2000s Hilton depressing hotel restaurant in Leeds -styled Concorde Room dining will limp on for how much longer?

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 80,000 bonus points (worth 80,000 Avios) and £400 of dining credit with The Platinum Card (Offer ends 27th May)

Check reward flight availability instantly for free!

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

Get up to 10,000 bonus Hilton Honors points

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 SMALL BUSINESS CREDIT CARD WHICH CAN EARN AVIOS

Get points worth 30,000 Avios with 'first year free' American Express Gold (ends 27th May)

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!