British Airways Reopens Exclusive Concorde Room Lounges [JFK & LHR T5]

Update: The Concorde Room at JFK Terminal 7 closed in late 2022. British Airways and American now have 3 joint partner lounges at JFK Terminal 8.

After more than 17 months closed since March 2020, British Airways’ coveted Concorde Rooms at Heathrow’s T5 (one of the world’s best first class lounges) and New York’s JFK Terminal 7 have now reopened to passengers.

The Ultimate in Luxurious Lounging Returns

Those flying British Airways in possession of a first class ticket, a British Airways Concorde Room card, or Executive Club Gold Guest List members are once again able to relax in ultimate lounge luxury before their flights.

Both lounges boast a dedicated dining area, where the experience, both in terms of service and quality of the dishes served, is akin to what you would expect from top London and New York restaurants.

Unlike in BA’s Galleries lounges where passengers will continue to order using an at-seat QR code, passengers in both Heathrow and JFK’s Concorde Rooms will receive the same pre-pandemic table service that they’ll be familiar with.

Until the lounges reopened, first class passengers (or those with Concorde Room cards) departing Heathrow’s T5 have still had a dedicated area, albeit only a Concorde Room-esque corner of the airline’s Galleries First lounge.

Since the start of the pandemic back in March 2020, those departing JFK had no access to any form of British Airways lounge until its Galleries Lounge reopened recently at the start of August 2021.

The reopening of BA’s Concorde Rooms coincides with the slow, but sure, uptick in passenger numbers as global travel restrictions gently soften.

Hot Tip: Learn everything you need to know about how to access British Airways lounges (Concorde, Galleries, Arrival) as well as a full list of U.S. British Airways lounges (including locations and hours) in our helpful guides.

New Cocktails? Yes, Please!

To mark the Concorde Rooms’ return, the airline has added 7 new cocktails to its lounges’ menus.

Under the expert mixology of Mr Lyan (Ryan Chetiyawardana), 2 of the cocktails, the Barton and the Lawford, were created “in celebration of the airline’s heritage and iconic colleagues” and are unique to British Airways.

They’re named after Lynne Barton, BA’s first-ever female pilot, and Bill Lawford, the airline’s first-ever pilot employed back in 1919.

Passengers eligible to access the airline’s First and Galleries Club lounges will also be able to try the 7 new cocktails.

Surprises for Some in Store

For its Executive Club members, in an attempt to encourage Bronze cardholders to aim for Silver status, BA says it has plans to “surprise a number of Bronze Executive card holders on a daily basis in September and October with a taste of Silver Card benefits.” The lucky Bronze level members, along with a guest, will be invited to use a British Airways Galleries lounge at Heathrow.

Final Thoughts

While the impact of the return of the Concorde Rooms will only be felt by a very small percentage of British Airways passengers, it’s a positive sign for all that once loved aspects of pre-pandemic flying that are making a comeback.