The next oneworld-branded lounge could open in 2026, CEO says

We may only need to wait until 2026 for the next oneworld branded airport lounge to open, according to oneworld CEO Nat Pieper when I spoke to him on Monday as part of Oman Air’s oneworld inauguration event.

The alliance opened its first alliance-branded lounges in early 2024, first in Seoul in January quickly followed by the oneworld Amsterdam lounge which we reviewed here in February.

The oneworld alliance was late to the game of operating its own lounges, with both SkyTeam and Star Alliance operating airline-agnostic lounges for years. Star Alliance was first, opening one in Zurich Airport in 2001 whilst SkyTeam followed with a lounge at Heathrow in 2008, albeit now closed.

Alliance-branded lounges differ from airline lounges in that they are managed by the alliance themselves, rather than being adopted by a particular airline but accept passengers from across all alliance partners.

The idea is that they ‘fill in the gaps’ at airports where multiple alliance airlines fly but where no one airline has a particularly strong foothold to justify its own lounge.

Pieper told me that both passengers and airlines are pleased with the existing two lounges:

“Both lounges have fantastic NPS (Net Promoter) scores. And the true metric of all of that, beyond just what we hear directly from customers, is from some of our premier airlines that historically had different facilities in these airports and have very high standards.

Oman, Qatar, Qantas, British Airways, each of the member airlines has been incredibly pleased with the quality of service, the feedback that they’re getting from their guests. And so we’re on to something here.”

With the existing two lounges now in successful operation for 18 months, I asked if we can expect any more to open in the coming years.

“I think, from our perspective, we want to have another three to five to ten lounges over the next five years. We have a good couple folks within the oneworld team allocated to that task, flying all over the place, meeting with airport authorities.”

One of the issues is getting a space in the first place. In most airports, space is at a premium and there isn’t always a suitable spot in the terminal to build a new lounge.

This can lead to some airports converting space previously used for other purposes into a lounge, such as the new No1 Lounge at Heathrow Terminal 2, which is in a windowless interior space in the heart of the terminal building (although still a decent lounge!).

Another issue highlighted by Pieper is that some airports do not want to give up control of the airport experience to a third party. This is particularly true in India, where “they want to have one big common lounge [for all airlines] run by the airport.”

For now, Pieper says there are that no leases have been signed yet.

So when might we expect the next oneworld lounges?

“Am I going to be cutting a ribbon in the next 30 days? No, but there are a handful of of opportunities that I’m very excited about. You know, it could pop anytime within the next six to 12 months. We’re working it hard.”

Even if a lease is signed tomorrow, airside building work at airports is a complicated process and can face lengthy delays, so I suspect it won’t be until summer 2026, at the earliest, that we might see the third lounge open.

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.

---

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.

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 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.

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.

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:

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:

PS. You can find all of HfP’s UK airport lounge reviews – and we’ve been to most of them – indexed here.