by Lufthansa Flyer | Nov 5, 2016 | Airports, Featured, Lounges, Plane Spotting, Swiss |
A few weeks ago while enroute back to the States from our Safari trip to Africa, we flew with SWISS and because of our seats, we were able to visit the First Class Lounge in Zurich between flights. You can see what that fabulous Lounge is like in this trip report. To see what a First Class flight aboard SWISS is like when you have the cabin to yourself, read this trip report.
Aside from all the fantastic amenities that you’ll find in the Lounge, my favorite was outside the Lounge. When SWISS designed and built the new Business, SENator, and First Class Lounges inside ZRH’s Terminal E, they took advantage of the real-estate they had to work with and included outdoor terraces for all 3 lounges. In fact, for the hardcore plane spotter, the Senator and Business Class Lounges are actually better for plane spotting since it puts you closer to the runway used for ‘Heavy’ arrivals in the morning. The First Class Lounge however does have an advantage for ‘Heavy’ departures in the late morning and afternoon.
The photos should give you a pretty good idea as far as just how great the vantage point is from these Lounges. Unfortunately the timing of my visit wasn’t ideal for photography. We were in the Lounge from about 6:30a to 9a which meant that most of my shots were taken with the sun still not above the horizon. The fact that it was extremely overcast didn’t help matters much. Fortunately my camera did a stellar job with high ‘ISO’ settings so I was at least able to see what I was shooting!
If for some reason you don’t travel with a suitcase full of camera equipment, you’ll appreciate the high quality Leica binoculars and telescope that is available to guests so they can get up close looks at the birds. There are a few pair of binoculars installed in kiosks found on the terrace (First Class terrace only for the binoculars).
Next year’s trip is going to include outbound SWISS flights so that I can spend 8-10 hours at this new Plane Spotting Mecca……
A 20-year old Single Malt Scotch just adds to the wonderful experience! 🙂
by Lufthansa Flyer | Oct 27, 2016 | Featured, Lounges, Lufthansa, Passenger Experience |
Lufthansa has rolled out a new pilot program that will test the the ability of using smartphones and their bluetooth technology as a ‘key’ to gain entry into LH Lounges.
The trial began on October 27 specifically at the BUSINESS CLASS LOUNGE located near gate A26 in Frankfurt. Passengers who have downloaded the Easy Access app from their respective App Stores will now have the ability to simply tap their phone to a tablet next to the Lounge Entrance and have the doors automatically open.
No longer will passengers have to stay in line outside the lounge while passengers fumble to find their boarding passes or frequent flyer cards. Nor will they have to wait in that line while the Lounge Attendant explains time and time again to passengers in the line as to why their economy class ticket on Aeroflot doesn’t give them the ability to enter the Lounge.
Remember, the trial ONLY COVERS the Business Class Lounge near Gate A26 in Frankfurt. Nowhere else at this point. If the trials go well, I suspect this will be expanded to cover other lounges in the network.
In order for the process to work, you’ll have to install both the Lufthansa app as well as the Easy Access app. The 2 will coordinate their data and using the bluetooth function on your phone, allow you to communicate with the Tablet at the ‘A26 Lounge’. You can find both Apps in your App Store by searching for Lufthansa and Easy Access.
I’m not sure why they are going to all the trouble of a separate app and requiring bluetooth technology in order for everything to work. I would think it would have been a lot easier to use an existing Electronic Boarding Pass that contains the ‘QR Bar Code Square’ that is scanned when boarding a flight. It seems that it would be easier to have that kind of a scanner at Lounge Door and allow passengers simply to use their Electronic Boarding Pass as the key to the lounge. After all, it’s what the lounge attendants are currently using when checking in guests. But as they say in my neighbor, it’s not my circus and it’s not my monkey so I don’t have any insights to the decisions!
At the end of the day, it’s still a far better way to bypass the sometimes long lines when trying to get into a Lounge.
To learn more about this new initiative, please visit www.LH.com/easyaccess.
by Lufthansa Flyer | Oct 12, 2016 | Featured, First Class, Lounges, Passenger Experience, Swiss |
As part of our travel back from a Safari trip to Africa and the fact that I was booked in First Class for our flight from Zurich to the States, we had the ability to visit SWISS’ new First Class Lounge in Terminal E at Zurich. Typically lounge access is restricted only to SWISS First Class passengers and Miles & More HON Circle members and since the lounge is located in Terminal E which serves only International long-haul flights, its even more exclusive than most First Class Lounges.
Just as I had the good fortune to have the entire First Class cabin to myself for the flight from Zurich, we were also the only visitors to the First Class Lounge during our 3 hour layover in ZRH. This gave us the opportunity to explore the entire lounge without the risk of violating the privacy of other passengers and since we were the only ones in the lounge our attendant, Bjorn, was extremely happy to give us a tour of the entire facility.
The lounge opened to passengers in February of this year and offers a few unique features not found in most First Class Lounges. For example, the lounge is almost entirely wrapped by an outdoor terrace that provides an OUTSTANDING view of the airport, making it nirvana for ‘avgeeks’. I spent most of my time on the terrace taking photos of aircraft while nursing a 20-year old Scotch….not a bad way to pass a lay over.
The lounge also offers private rooms that remind me of a high quality hotel accommodations instead of just a room with a cot in it thats designed for short naps.
Additionally, the lounge of course offers a 5-star al-a-carte dining experience along with a wine selection that can be measured in hundreds of bottles.
What struck me most about the lounge is simply how spotless and perfect it is. Nothing is out of place, not even the cocktail napkins at the bar. Magazines and newspapers were piled perfectly, even the flowers seemed to be set into a template. Really impressive.
Being the only passengers gave us a great opportunity to explore the nooks and crannies, and I hope that the photos below give you a sense of how special this lounge is.
You know you’re in for a treat when you see signage like this!
This is the first impression that you get when entering the lounge. As I mentioned, see how everything is absolutely perfect??
Several Champagne choices……
Magazines and Newspapers in several languages
Hundreds of bottles of wine will satisfy any palette…..
Several seating areas fill the lounge, each with their own large flat-screen TV.
Another example of a seating area
A Leica Spotting Scope is available to zoom in on the aircraft. Another nice touch is the placement of several pairs of Leica binoculars on the terrace.
The Bar offers nothing but top-shelf beverages…..
The Dining Room overlooks the terrace, providing wonderful views of the airport….
The Dining Room offers a 5-star culinary experience, but unfortunately neither one of us had an appetite to eat at 7am!
But I did have room for a dram of 20 year old Scotch while plane spotting…..
A private conference room is available and thanks to the modular design of the lounge can be adjusted to accommodate small or large groups, as well as being tied directly to one of the ‘Hotel Rooms’.
A look inside the ‘Hotel Room’, notice the proximity to the observation terrace. Privacy can be an issue but light blocking shades and draperies take care of any concerns.
The private bath in the ‘Hotel Room’
So as you can hopefully tell, this lounge is quite the place and should be on the list to visit for anyone that enjoys experiencing a premium product. Though its not necessarily easy to create the strategy to gain entry, I promise you that the effort is worth it!
