The Star Alliance move to Heathrow’s brand new Terminal 2 (“The Queen’s Terminal”) is in full swing.
A few weeks ago United opened two beautiful new lounges: a United Club and a Global First lounge. Today, Air Canada unveiled details about their new Maple Leaf lounge.
The facility will be open from daily from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m, and, according to Air Canada’s press release, it will feature:
- A Quiet Zone comprising three reclining pods equipped with personal satellite-fed TV screens, USB ports and Sony noise-cancelling headsets.
- Spa-inspired shower area featuring showers with large rain-shower heads, ambient music.
- Business Centre equipped with individual flat-screen Dell PCs, colour laser printing and scanning.
- Complimentary wireless high speed Internet access throughout.
- A cooking station with chef to prepare meals upon request.
- Tended bar with Molson Canadian beer on tap along with a large selection of wines, beer and spirits.
- Bistro-style dining area offering a selection of hot and cold food items.
The design will “showcase Canadian art and products from 2Loons a Toronto based design and production house, laminated glass art walls from Accura Glass, Concord, Ontario and Cloud lamp by Frank Gehry among others.”
We’re pretty excited and can’t wait to visit this lounge ourselves. While some of the amenities sound like gimmicks (only three reclining pods? Good luck snagging one… PCs in the business center? Not that useful nowadays… Music in showers? Okay!) we’re particularly fond of the cooking station — it appears that Air Canada is committed to providing enhanced catering options.
The move to Terminal 2 is shaping up to be a significant upgrade for London travelers, at least when it comes to lounges. Not only are the airlines opening individual facilities, instead of relying on a single, shared Star Alliance lounge as it was the case in Terminal 1 — this means more space and more personalized service for everyone — but it appears that they’re also raising the bar, perhaps in response to increased competition from British Airways and Asian carriers. This is excellent news for everyone. And for lounge hoppers, the age of lounge hopping at Heathrow has returned!
Read the announcement at AirCanada.com.
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