Review: Virgin Atlantic’s new Clubhouse at Los Angeles International Airport
Links on Head for Points may support the site by paying a commission. See here for all partner links.
This is our review of the new Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse lounge in Los Angeles.
Virgin Atlantic opened its latest Clubhouse business class lounge last week, fulfilling (just!) its promise of a Q1 launch.
The Los Angeles Clubhouse is Virgin’s first new lounge for some time; the last Clubhouse to open was (ironically) the old LA Clubhouse in 2015. This was located in Terminal 2 and closed in 2021 when it was subsumed into the Delta Sky Club as part of a terminal refurbishment.
It is the fourth Clubhouse in the United States, in addition to those at New York JFK, San Francisco and Washington Dulles.
I popped over to Los Angeles this week to take a look. Virgin Atlantic provided me with a free Upper Class flight as I missed the official media trip due to my India visit (more to come on that!).
Where is the Virgin Atlantic LA Clubhouse?
Although Virgin Atlantic’s flights depart from Terminal B – the Tom Bradley International Terminal – check in is at Terminal 2, home of partner and part-owner Delta.
From Terminal 2 it’s a 5-10 minute walk through the connecting walkway to Terminal B, where you are dropped off on the fifth floor right by the escalators up to the sixth floor and the Clubhouse:
Walk straight ahead from the escalator and you’ll see the plum red colours of the Clubhouse:
Virgin Atlantic LAX Clubhouse access requirements
Unlike the Heathrow Clubhouse, the Los Angeles Clubhouse will be open to SkyTeam elites. Here are the full access eligibility requirements:
- Passengers flying in Upper Class on Virgin Atlantic + one guest travelling on Virgin or Delta
- Virgin Atlantic Flying Club Gold card members + one guest, when travelling internationally on Virgin Atlantic or Delta
- Delta One customers on a Delta Air Lines flight
- SkyTeam Elite Plus members travelling on a Virgin Atlantic or Delta flight plus one guest travelling on an international flight operated by a SkyTeam airline
If you are connecting domestically then you must be travelling the same day on the same itinerary and ticket.
The Los Angeles Clubhouse is open from 11:30am daily. It closes after the last Virgin Atlantic flight of the day departs, which is currently around 9:30pm.
Inside the Los Angeles Clubhouse
Virgin Atlantic has separated the space into several different branded areas, from the ‘Ruby Room’ to ‘The Wing’. But make no mistake: at 408 square metres this is a small lounge, just about big enough to cater for the airline’s three daily flights in summer.
The lounge bar and dining area is the first thing you see on entering the space:
The overhead ceiling panel light is supposed to mimic the light of the day, starting off blue-ish in the mornings before fading into a spectacular sunset in the evening and bathing everything in the warm glow of pinks and oranges.
Underneath the bar you’ll find plenty of gold coat hooks as well as loads of charging sockets for your devices including USB-C ports.
A lower bar area creates a divider between the dining area and the Ruby Room, which Virgin says is a “Hollywood-inspired space with its own cinema featuring wireless headsets connected via Bluetooth”:
Whilst a funky idea, it doesn’t seem very practical in this day and age when everyone is streaming content to their own devices. It was notably empty during my five-hour visit until all other seats had been occupied. My suggestion would be to turn this into a more general seating.
On this side you’ll also find the ‘Royal Box,’ an exclusive booth with a ‘secret menu’ as well as a little display showcasing Virgin’s merch:
On the other side of the bar you have a range of seating options, from low armchairs and sofas to tables and chairs:
and
This was by far the most popular part of the Clubhouse with guests. Parallel to this are a series of sound-insulated pods should you want to work or take a call in private. These are named after iconic studios like The Manor, Olympic Studios and Sunset Sound where Virgin Records’ artists once recorded.
There are no exterior windows in the lounge because it’s part of the interior lounge pavilion. This is unfortunate but Virgin has got around this with clever use of lighting.
Finally, at the very end of the lounge, you’ll find the bathrooms as well as ‘The Zen Den’, a small wellness space.
This may have been designed at the behest of Richard Branson, who at Virgin’s 40th Birthday celebrations last year announced that Clubhouses were all getting fitness spaces, much to the surprise of Virgin Atlantic CEO Shai Weiss!
I’ll let Virgin explain what you can do in The Zen Den:
“The Zen Den is an immersive space featuring relaxation, movement and mindfulness sessions powered by the FORME Studio, an award-winning smart fitness mirror. A unique way to wind down, refresh, refocus or reenergise before crossing the Atlantic in style. Guests can explore three exclusive categories – Mind, Body, and Spirit – each offering a selection of guided sessions from FORME’s extensive library. The experience begins with a personalised welcome video from Virgin Atlantic founder, Sir Richard Branson, setting the stage for a curated experience.”
Again, I didn’t see anyone use this space during my visit.
Male and female bathrooms are on either side of The Zen Den. Each features an accessible toilet with wetroom shower. These are stocked with Flamingo Estate toiletries rather than the airline’s usual REN Skincare products you find in London and on board.
And that’s it. As I said above, this is a small space. With two departures within about an hour of each other in the evenings it is busiest around 7pm before passengers on the 8pm flight leave.
Food and drink in Virgin’s LA Clubhouse
Like all of Virgin Atlantic’s Clubhouses there is table service throughout, although there’s a small selection of salads and snacks you can help yourself to:
You can order via one of the QR codes or by waving over one of the many lounge staff. When I first arrived there were more staff than guests but service was exceptional throughout my stay.
The menu is impressive. It contains a mix of Clubhouse classics as well as California-inspired dishes available only at this Clubhouse:
- Venison smash burger with monterey jack, pickle, chips
- Fish & chips with crispy beer batter, mushy peas, tartare sauce
- Chargrilled chicken cobb salad with bacon, egg, avocado, blue cheese dressing
- Chicken tikka masala with raita, mango chutney, basmati rice
- Tuna poke bowl with avocado, edamame, spring onion, ginger
- California fig salad with goat’s cheese, sundried tomato, walnut, balsamic glaze
- Beyond burger cheese, mustard mayo, chips
- Tarka dhal with cauliflower, mango chutney, basmati rice
- Tofu pho with soy cured egg, shiitake, spring onion, kimchi, sesame, rice noodle
I was very tempted to order the fish and chips which looked excellent, with a big fillet freshly battered, but instead opted for something a bit more healthy: the cobb salad:
There’s an additional menu with small plates as well as for children.
When it comes to drinks you can order whatever you fancy thanks to the fully staffed bar which will rustle up any drink you can think of with premium label spirits. The champagne served is Nicholas Feuillatte.
Conclusion
Virgin Atlantic’s new Los Angeles Clubhouse takes its iconic business class lounges in a new direction. You get a plush red, pink and gold colour scheme and seductive mood-lighting.
It’s a darker, sexier interpretation of the Heathrow Clubhouse that embraces the space’s lack of natural light and size, wrapping you in a velvety red cocoon.
Service in the lounge was exceptional and dare I say it over-staffed, at least initially when the lounge was empty (to be fair, the 3pm flight had been cancelled.) That may also be because the lounge has just opened and is still getting into the swing of things.
Food and drink is also excellent and – dare I say it – possibly even better than in London?
The bottom line is that Virgin Atlantic’s first new Clubhouse in a decade is a masterclass in lounge design and operation, even if it is a relatively small space. Fingers crossed we don’t have to wait another ten years for the next one!
You can find out more about the LA Clubhouse on Virgin Atlantic’s website here.

Head for Points made a financial contribution to the Woodland Trust as part of this trip. The Woodland Trust creates and manages forests in the UK in accordance with the Woodland Carbon Code.
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.

How to get FREE airport lounge access via UK credit cards (May 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.
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
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.
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 Credit Card
Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 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.
Comments (24)