LHR – Terminal 5 – Concorde Room – Airline Lounge Review

Terminal 5, London Heathrow Airport (LHR)

Based on Visit: 7 June 2022 approximately 7am

Introduction

This is my review of the British Airways Concorde Room at Heathrow Airport, which I visited on my flight to Seattle.   

This is BA’s ‘flagship’ lounge for passengers traveling in BA’s First, or alternatively American Airlines Flagship First to AA destinations that fly from Terminal 5.

There are only two Concorde Lounges in existence; Heathrow and JFK.

Entry Conditions

The entry conditions to the Concorde Lounge are somewhat exclusive;

• Passengers traveling in First
• You have over 5,000 Tier Points
• You are BA Gold for Life (requires 30,000 Tier Points)

Opening Times

The lounge is open daily from 05:00 to 22:30.

How to Get There

There are two ways to get to the Concorde room;

METHOD 1:

Go to the First Wing, once through Security and in the Gold/First Lounge, leave, crossing the mezzanine into the Concorde Room.

METHOD 2:

Go through the Club World Fast Track security (you can still do this even if you checked in at the First Wing), and you’ll find a door on the right-hand corner as you exit security.

On my visit, the Security in First Wing was so backed up, so the Agent advised using the Fast Track Security behind the Club Word check in as it would be faster – and she was right!

Layout

Despite its exclusivity, the Concorde Room is smaller than one may imagine.

The main feature (and the main reason why people rave about the Concorde Room) is the bar and dining facilities – including a number of wines, which are over £600 per bottle!

I took a private dining pod for breakfast – there are around 20 of these. These are great for two’s – but not sure there would be enough room for more! 

The bar area has a variety of seating, and there is a mezzanine area with a mixture of casual seating and dining seating.

There is also a modest-sized working area, should you need to do some work!

One of the renowned features about Concorde Room was the Cabanas – which has a TV, Sofa, Chairs, etc for a private area to rest. On my visit these had been closed, instead a resting room installed, with similar ‘pods’ to those in the First Lounge.

Food and Drink

Food

Unless I am mistaken, food is only offered in the dining area.

The service in the dining area is akin to a traditional restaurant. After being escorted to my dining booth, I was quickly given the menu and asked what I wanted to drink.

Undeniably, the breakfast menu is extensive – and even as a guy who ‘doesn’t do breakfast’ – I found it pretty extensive. Items on the menu included;

• Full English Breakfast
• Vegetarian Breakfast
• Bacon Chop
• Breakfast Roll
• Scottish Kipper
• Smoked Salmon
• Scrambled Eggs
• Eggs Benedict
• California Egg
• California Toast
• American Pancakes

Alternatively, non-cooked items included;

• Fresh fruit salad
• Greek Yogurt
• Cereals
• Porridge
• Pastries
• Toast

The table service was excellent – as was the food. Well presented, and tasty.

I’m yet to head to the Concorde Room without flying early morning to the US – but I hope to be able to review lunch/dinner options soon!

Throughout the lounge there were a few fruit bowls – but not particularly ‘picky’ snacks.  

Drinks

The Concorde Room is well known for its drinks offering, with an expansive offering of expensive wines! At 7am, I wasn’t quite so enthusiastic about experiencing the wines – definitely one for next time!

I did, however, have a glass of Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle champagne which retails at £125 to £182 per bottle (depending where you shop!).

Wifi

Wifi was available in the lounge using the monthly password – which is usually a destination.

I used the Wifi for some work emails and also to download a few documents to work in during my flight – and there seemed to be the bandwidth for that.

Showers

Seemingly, unless I am wrong – showers for the Concorde Room are shared with Gold Lounge and Club World lounges. As I’ve written about many times before, these showers are rather clinical – and not a first-class experience!

Conclusion

The Concorde Room has quite a reputation; as one of the best airline lounges in the world, and it is easy to see why!

A hugely wide-ranging menu, excellently stocked bar, and high-end furnishings – it deserves to live up to its reputation!

I hope to back soon for a lunch/dinner to really get its true worth!