Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

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

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

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.

Getting airport lounge access for free from a credit card

How to get FREE airport lounge access via UK credit cards (August 2025)

Here are the five options to get FREE airport lounge access via a UK credit card.

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 Platinum Card from American Express

50,000 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.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Credit Card

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 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.

Category

oneworld alliance partners

Comments (31)

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

  • Barbara Ahonsi says:
    2 Jul2 July 06:10

    These lounges are horrible. Had the misfortune of experiencing it three times last month on my Ex eu trip.

    Would hope they improved on the offering and seat selection as there wasn’t any seats available for most people at AMS.

    • Peggerz says:
      2 Jul2 July 08:51

      Whilst your comment may apply suitably to the AMS lounge, I was in the ICN lounge last month and it is great. Clean and welcoming with plenty of space, good food and drink selection and the cocktail barman made me an off-menu mix, no problem.
      My wife and I got entry with our business tix, my daughter guested thru my RJ golden sparrow status (thanks HfP!).
      Our QR flight was the early hour of the morning and this lounge was still open. I’d be back in a shot.

    • StanTheMan says:
      2 Jul2 July 12:31

      What made you go back after the first 2 horrible experiences?

  • Youngtraveller says:
    2 Jul2 July 07:05

    I think one of them will be in Riyadh. Qatar airways has strong demand there, but Riyadh currently has 8 oneworld members flying regularly with a possibility of a few more due to Saudi’s Air Connectivity Program.

  • Dubious says:
    2 Jul2 July 07:22

    “they want to have one big common lounge [for all airlines] run by the airport.”
    – India and Brussels Airport have something in common then.
    The trouble with these approaches is that, in theory at least, they don’t know their customers as well as the airlines. Too much focus on catering to everyone (lowest common denominator) rather than a selection of niches.

    (Although I have never actually noticed a centralised lounge in the several airports I’ve been to in India – but perhaps because I have not been to Delhi or Mumbai).

    • Rhys says:
      2 Jul2 July 08:14

      Manchester Airports Group likes to do this as well (although they at least have a normally have a good offering). That said, the contract lounge I used in Delhi was very good. More like a hotel buffet than a lounge!

      • PeteM says:
        2 Jul2 July 10:01

        I’d say the Aena lounges in Spain are good too.

        • Tom says:
          2 Jul2 July 11:44

          Quality of AENA lounges I find quite variable as someone that flies out of Spain almost every weekend in summer. BCN is very good indeed, in contrast AGP is a zoo / often a total dump just because how busy it is, PMI has always had massive variation in the different AENA lounges (the non-Schengen one was a dump and now closed, one of the Schengen ones was quite nice). They are better than almost all the horrid third party lounges run by Plaza Premium, Aspire etc. though, which is unsurprising when you consider who is running them / how the flow of revenue works.

      • MT says:
        2 Jul2 July 12:37

        Not sure about good offerings at Manchester. Wa sat the Hanger lounge in T3 the other day and actually it was the nicest Manchester lounge experience I have had in quite some time and I fly out of MAN more than I would like!

        • James C says:
          2 Jul2 July 17:33

          It is because this is basically only BA passengers and folks with On The Beach lounge access now following the closure of the Escape T3 Lounge so much quieter.

      • memesweeper says:
        2 Jul2 July 14:49

        MAG’s lounge in Stansted is an abomination

    • BlairWaldorfSalad says:
      2 Jul2 July 14:21

      Brussels Airport always seems to have some meat or fish swimming in a tarragon sauce

  • The real Swiss Tony says:
    2 Jul2 July 07:35

    I assume the Star Alliance lounge in Zurich is also closed now? I’ve only ever seen Swiss or 3rd party branded lounges there…

    • BlairWaldorfSalad says:
      2 Jul2 July 14:20

      Yes, was going to say as much. I’ve never seen anything but Swiss

  • Throwawayname says:
    2 Jul2 July 08:04

    Interesting point re the high standards of oneworld member airlines. That BA lounge at AMS was dreadful.

  • Paul says:
    2 Jul2 July 09:02

    The one at AMS is horrible, hardly any food offerings, dirty tables and poor service.

  • Chris Mongreco says:
    2 Jul2 July 10:33

    Hmmmm

    So BA.com has

    Reward Flight bookings
    We’re currently making some planned changes behind the scenes so you may not be able to book Reward Flights online or via the contact centres. We’ll finish this activity as quickly as possible.

    and RewardFlightFinder is down at the moment too saying

    Scheduled Maintenance
    RFF app is currently unavailable. We’re releasing a major update to the product and this downtime was unfortunately unavoidable.

    Something going on?

    • BA Flyer IHG Stayer says:
      2 Jul2 July 11:30

      Yes scheduled maintenance is going on.

      (See @Robs comment on page one)

      • BA Flyer IHG Stayer says:
        2 Jul2 July 11:31

        … on the BA schedule changes article

      • Paul says:
        2 Jul2 July 13:29

        It was rolled back once and they had a second go but I thought it was now over?

      • LittleNick says:
        2 Jul2 July 22:47

        When will this new BA app launch and hopefully be as smooth as the IB one?

  • budva says:
    2 Jul2 July 11:13

    I agree with the ICN comment. We used this on Finnair and it’s a very pleasant lounge with decent seating and food options.

    • sigma421 says:
      3 Jul3 July 13:23

      And pretty good by ICN standards. Especially compared to neighbouring hubs (HND, HKG etc.) none of the lounges in Seoul are great.

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 50,000 bonus points (worth 50,000 Avios) and £400 of dining credit with The Platinum Card

Check reward flight availability instantly for free!

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

Get 10,000 bonus Hilton Honors points and instant Gold status!

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 credit card with points which convert to Avios

Get points worth 20,000 Avios with 'first year free' American Express Gold

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!