SkyTeam Lounge, Heathrow Terminal 4
With my short lived SkyTeam Elite status due to expire at the end of October, I wanted to make at least some use of it. As I had done the KLM lounges in Amsterdam previously, this time around I looked to Air France. A few interesting things in France came up, but most were a lot more than I wanted to spend. When searching Google flights, I found an itinerary that included the rare Airbus A318, the smallest member of the popular A320 series.
However, when I went to book, it turned out to be a ghost fare – meaning the ticket that was displayed didn’t exist. As it turned out, most of the Air France fares on Google flights were the same, so I gave up there and headed to the Air France website instead.
I eventually found the desired trip to Toulouse by playing around with the multi-city feature on their website. Although the A318 was off the cards – that particular flight was way more than I wanted to pay.
In the end, it was a combination of the A319/A320/A321 from London to Toulouse with a stop over in Paris in each direction. Not the most exciting routing, but I haven’t flown Air France for a good couple of years.
This Trip:
- SkyTeam Elite Lounge, London Heathrow
- Air France: LHR-CDG, Economy
- Courtyard by Marriott, Paris CDG
- Air France: CDG-TLS, Economy
- Crowne Plaza, Toulouse
- Aeroscopia Museum: In Pictures
- Toulouse: In Pictures
- Air France: TLS-CDG, Economy
- Air France: CDG-LHR, Economy
Despite an unexpected arrival into terminal 4 at Heathrow earlier in the year, I hadn’t flown out of the terminal since early 2017.
After taking the bus from the long stay car park, it was up to security.
The fast track worked very well here. In fact I was though in around five minutes. It would have been quicker still if the guy in find hadn’t decided to argue his way in… one for my recent top 10 list maybe.
As I’d taken less time than anticipated to clear security, I went for a brief wander.
After around 20 minutes, I did head for the lounge.
SkyTeam Lounge, Heathrow Terminal 4
Entry to this lounge is granted by either flying in First Class, Business Class or having SkyTeam Elite plus status.
The entrance is a little inconspicuous, situated between a couple of shops.
Upon entry, I made a hard right to the upper level. From previous experience it’s identical to the lower level, but doesn’t tend to get anywhere near as busy.
Running along one wall is a number of living plants.
Towards the far end of the lounge is a hot buffet – with rather basic curry or pasta, along with salad options. This hasn’t changed in the couple of years since I last visited!
Beyond this was a selection of spirits, wines and soft drinks, along with a coffee machine.
Also at this end of the lounge was a TV room, although I wasn’t able to get a decent look at it…
Nearby was a further seating area.
In the middle section of the lounge was a selection of newspapers and magazines.
At the far end, there was another small bar area, along with a VIP room that was roped off. This area is generally reserved for those flying in First Class, although in all the times I’ve been in this lounge, I’ve never seen anyone in there or it being manned.
Also available upstairs are around half a dozen sleep rooms.
The view from upstairs across the apron isn’t too bad.
Downstairs
As mentioned, the downstairs area is more or less a carbon copy of the upstairs area. There are a couple of notable differences however.
First of all, rather than a TV room, there is a wine bar.
And secondly, at the opposite end there is a spa and shower area.
My thoughts
I can’t say I was too surprised to see that this lounge hasn’t changed all that much since my last visit. Right down to the food options. It’s still as crowded as ever too. Having said that, it’s a comfortable enough place to wait away from the terminal for a couple of hours. I wouldn’t go out of my way to spend any great length of time here though. At least the WiFi was a decent speed!
