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Bits: British Airways Manchester lounge changes, win a New York trip with Virgin Hotels

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News in brief:

British Airways lounge changes at Manchester Airport

Whilst we wait for British Airways to move across to Terminal 2 at Manchester Airport, lounge provision in Terminal 3 is expected to take a turn for the worse this week.

Rumours on Flyertalk and forums4airports claim that the Escape lounge in Terminal 3 will close for good on Monday evening.

From Tuesday, British Airways passengers will be sent to a temporary lounge space.

There is no confirmation of where this will be. One source says it will be ‘in the old BMI lounge’ whilst a (more likely) alternative source says that it will simply be a roped off area of seating in the departure area. It would gain a coffee machine and some biscuits, but no ‘proper’ food will be available.

We will see on Tuesday ….

The same sources seem confident that the Terminal 2 space which had been reserved for a Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse will now be developed by Manchester Airports Group. It will become a dedicated airline lounge for British Airways, Qatar Airways and Virgin Atlantic.

Separately, it seems that the 1903 brand will be retired. The Terminal 2 lounge, which Rhys toured here, will apparently be turned into an extension of the Escape lounge. This is not surprising as the two lounges already share an overflow space which can become part of either lounge depending on capacity.

British Airways lounge changes at Manchester Airport

Win a New York holiday with Virgin Hotels

Virgin Red has teamed up with Virgin Hotels to offer one member a New York holiday.

It’s not a bad prize. The winner gets:

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To enter, all you need to do is register with ‘The Know’, the loyalty programme for Virgin Hotels, by the end of June and ensure that your Virgin Red number is in your ‘The Know’ profile.

You must be UK resident to enter.

You can enter via this page of the Virgin Hotels website.

Category

British Airways and Avios, Virgin Atlantic and Flying Club

Comments (64)

  • Martin says:
    8 Jun8 June 13:51

    Yes, Manchester T3 has gradually deteriorated into an unpleasant and best avoided abomination. A far cry from the sorely mossed Halcyon days of the old BA lounge 🥲. In stark contrast we flew Jet2 out of T2 recently – an absolute pleasure: M&G car park, twilight bag drop, a night in the Radisson taking advantage of the excellent VIP lounge overlooking the runways, breezed through security (liquids could stay in hand baggage), pleasant terminal environment, and plenty of seating available. Well done Manchester 👏👏. So a BA move to T2 wise and welcome – but some very basic info is much needed: when and lounge arrangements. Surely one of the two key stakeholders can helpfully oblige?

    Reply
  • PhatGit says:
    8 Jun8 June 14:08

    Using Jet2 in a few weeks and did book as a holiday as I got flights and hotel cheaper than I could get the hotel directly on its own. Will miss out on the loyalty benefits, but the saving more than outweighs a few points and a few breakfasts

    Reply
  • MAN Traveller says:
    8 Jun8 June 14:17

    We are writing to share some important information about your upcoming British Airways flight BA1397 from Manchester on 10 June.

    As part of ongoing redevelopment works at Manchester Airport, the Escape Lounge in Terminal 3 will be permanently closing from 9 June. While these improvements will bring long-term benefits, we want to ensure your journey remains as smooth and comfortable as possible in the meantime.

    Alternative Lounge Access
    For eligible British Airways customers, an alternative lounge will be available after security in Terminal 3. This lounge will be located downstairs and will be clearly signposted on the day of your travel. Access will remain exclusive to British Airways passengers entitled to lounge entry.

    Catering Changes
    Please note that the new facility will feature a self-service bar and a selection of cold food items, including freshly prepared sandwiches and other light refreshments. Hot food will not be available during this interim period.

    We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and thank you for your understanding while Manchester Airport undergoes this important transformation.

    If you have any questions about your journey or need further assistance, please visit ba.com or contact our customer service team.

    Reply
    • daveinitalia says:
      8 Jun8 June 15:11

      Sounds like the bmi lounge

      Reply
      • MAN Traveller says:
        8 Jun8 June 15:35

        If so this might be better than the current arrangements. The BMI lounge was quite big (it was designed for Regional passengers as well as the Heathrow route) and if it’s exclusively for BA passengers we won’t have the overcrowding that the escape lounge was famous for. Only downside is no hot food, but we managed to get by on sandwiches in the old BA lounge and I think most preferred when BA had their own lounge, this is going back to that.

        Reply
    • Catalan says:
      8 Jun8 June 15:52

      Sounds like a reasonable alternative. Someone remind me what RC said at 08:32 this morning.

      Reply
  • NorthernLass says:
    8 Jun8 June 16:02

    Happily after today I have no BA flights until November, when hopefully this *might* be sorted. Flying with IB, so T2 departure plus lounge, and FR, so expect nothing, get nothing, obviously!

    Reply
  • NorthernLass says:
    8 Jun8 June 16:05

    Also, who’s going to guard this “self-service bar” if it’s only in a roped-off area by a gate 🤷‍♀️😂

    Reply
    • MAN Traveller says:
      8 Jun8 June 16:41

      I’ll try and remember to post back here once I’ve experienced it for myself. I can’t see it just being a roped off area if they’re offering a full bar and sandwiches, you’d have people trying their luck even if there was someone guarding the entrance. The email certainly makes it sound like it’s a proper lounge. Question is do I turn up a little bit early?

      Reply
      • Barrel for Scraping says:
        8 Jun8 June 16:44

        Check FlyerTalk in the morning before you go to the airport. Someone is surely going to post on there about it. If it looks good then take a bit of time there

        Reply
      • NorthernLass says:
        8 Jun8 June 16:51

        But not more than 3 hours before departure, lol.

        Reply
    • BlairWaldorfSalad says:
      8 Jun8 June 17:03

      I saw the T3 Escape staff already working in the T2 1903/Escape on Tuesday. So probably not them. I did say when I heard this news I feared for the staff having to deal with wide boys trying it on. That godawful bloke who makes a Youtube living sneaking into cabins and lounges is local to MAN I believe (shudder)

      Reply

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