Updated: 24 September 2026
This page is part of our Airport Travel Hub, which brings together all our guides to making your journey through the airport easier.
Airport lounge access, your options
Back in 1939, American Airlines opened the first airline lounge at La Guardia in New York. The idea was to recognise the contribution of their best customers – then known as Admirals – and access was originally granted only via a personal invitation from the then CEO & Chairman, C.R. Smith.
Jump forward 87 years, and things have changed in many ways. Not many BA passengers will be getting invitations from CEO Sean Doyle but the concept of avoiding an airport terminal with a lack of seating, expensive food, limited entertainment and slow wi-fi is compelling for many passengers.
Virtually all airports have some sort of lounge offering, providing a more spacious area to relax with complimentary food and drink in a quiet space within the airport. Of course standards do vary, depending on the airport, who you are flying with and if you are paying for entry.
Airline or Pay Lounges?
There are basically two types of airport lounge. Dedicated Airline lounges are typically branded in the name of the airline and are for the use of the premium class passengers and frequent flyers of that airline (or those of the associated airline alliance). Some large airports may also have dedicated first class lounges offering higher levels of service.
Pay lounges are operated by a 3rd party. These are used by business/first class customers and frequent flyers in airports where the airline does not operate their own lounge. In addition, it is possible for other travellers to use these lounges via membership schemes or simply paying for access. Brands in this area include Aspire, Plaza Premium and Escape lounges.
So how do I get in the lounge?
1. Book in Business Class
If you book a business class flight, you will generally get lounge access included as part of your ticket, although recently some airlines have been selling “special business class” or “business light” which come with less features (so be careful when booking).  If you have booked connecting flights on a single ticket, you will generally get access at the departing and connecting airports. Some airports have arrival lounges too but check the rules as they are typically more restrictive than for departure lounges.
2. Acquire Airline Status
If you are a frequent traveller, fly or spend enough with your preferred airline (or airline alliance) and you will attain the right level of frequent flyer status (eg. Silver on BA or Gold on KLM/Air France) and you will get lounge access, even on the cheapest economy ticket. Rules vary between airlines but most allow the passenger holding status to bring along a guest.
3. Lounge MembershipÂ
Priority Pass, Lounge Key and Dragonpass are all membership services offering airport lounge access to their members. There are different options with card holders being entitled to discounted access, a fixed number of entries or unlimited use of lounges when flying. Â
American Express, HSBC and Lloyds also offer memberships and lounge passes to holders of their premium credit cards.Â
See our guide to Lounge Memberships here.
4. Simply pay
For passengers who don’t get lounge access through their ticket, airline status or a membership scheme, you can simply pay to use many independent airport lounges.
As with airport parking, booking in advance is usually cheaper than paying at the door and, importantly, also guarantees your reservation. This can be useful at busy times when lounges may restrict walk-up entry.
Check lounge prices for your trip
Our partner Holiday Extras allows you to compare and pre-book UK airport lounges, usually with a discount above the walk up price. Click here to get a price.
