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If you travel with SkyTeam into and out of Europe with any kind of frequency there’s a good chance that you spend quite a bit of time at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport. Amsterdam is one of SkyTeam’s major connecting hubs so the news that KLM is starting to open up its new Crowne Lounge at Schiphol will be music to the ears of a lot of flyers…and that fact that the lounge looks good will be a bonus.
The first phase of KLM’s Crown Lounge at Schiphol opened on Wednesday 12 December and although what we’re seeing now is just temporary (the lounge will fully open in mind-2019), we now have a very good idea of what direction KLM is heading in.
The new Crown Lounge is a Business Class lounge and is located between the E and F piers in the non-Schengen area of Schiphol Airport (i.e where the long-haul flights are based).
The facility is currently set out across two floors (2 & 3) and, courtesy of a double height ceiling, appears to offer a lot of light and a feeling of space.
Lines to enter the lounge should be short or non-existent as KLM has installed boarding pass scanners at the self-service devices at the entrance so if you have no need to interact with an agent you don’t have to.
Here’s what KLM’s EVP of Customer Experience has had to say:
KLM aims to offer the most attractive lounge in the world; a destination in itself. The new lounge concept ties in seamlessly with KLM’s strategy, centring on providing the ultimate hospitality experience, innovation and perfect customer service. The renovated lounge offers KLM a unique opportunity to breathe new life into its long-standing relations with existing customers, and to attract and welcome new customers. We have also started reconstructing the second part of the lounge. Following its festive opening in summer 2019, the KLM Non-Schengen Crown Lounge will be completely ready to provide customers with an exceptional, memorable experience.
The lounge is divided into various zones each of which has its own purpose (work, relaxation, food & drink, entertainment and fine dining).
There’s a “Sky Zone” bar area on the 3rd floor….
…and dining, working and relaxation areas on the lower level:
When fully opened the new lounge will offer up to 1,500 seats across a floor area of over 73,000 square feet (that’s huge!). The section of lounge that is currently open is almost 39, square feet in size.
Bottom Line
As someone who spends far too much time in airport lounges I enjoy seeing a new good lounge open up almost as much as I enjoy hearing about a new Business Class product…and this lounge looks like it’s going to be very good.
The size of the facility is incredible. Once fully open it will be…
- Over 6x the size of the American Airlines Flagship lounge at LAX
- Over 6x the size of the new Centurion lounge at Dallas Ft Worth
- Over 5x the size of United’s Polaris Lounge in Chicago
- Over 2x the size of the American Airlines Flagship Lounge in Miami.
That’s a BIG lounge.
Also, I like what KLM seems to be doing here. One of the bigger failings of a lot of lounges I’ve visited is that they feel dark and oppressive but what we’re seeing in the images provided by KLM is a light and spacious-looking facility.
This looks like its going to be the kind of lounge which is actually a nice place to spend some time…..and that’s great news for flyers.
