Plaza Premium Lounge London Heathrow T3 (arrivals) joins Priority Pass

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London Heathrow Terminal 3 is home to most of the oneworld airlines (American Airlines, Qantas, JAL, Cathay Pacific, etc…) as well as to airlines such as Delta, Virgin Atlantic, and Emirates….and it’s even the terminal that British Airways uses for the flights that it can’t fit into its T5 home.

If you have Priority Pass membership, elite status, or if you’re traveling in a premium cabin Heathrow Terminal 3 has you well covered once you’re airside. OneWorld flyers are spoiled for choice with lounges like the Cathay Pacific First Class lounge, the Cathay Pacific Business Class lounge, and the Qantas Lounge, Emirates has its own impressive lounge and Priority Pass members have access to the Club Aspire Lounge or the No. 1 Lounge.

Things are a lot more sparse for travelers looking for an arrivals lounge at Heathrow T3. Some oneWorld flyers will have access to the American Airlines Arrivals lounge (most won’t) but, up until now, everyone else has had to either do without or pay to access the Plaza Premium Lounge (at a significant cost!)

Not any longer.

From yesterday (21 January 2020), the Plaza Premium Lounge at Heathrow Terminal 3 joined Priority Pass and it’s the lounge program’s first landside lounge at Heathrow 3.

The lounge is located around the corner from the terminal’s arrivals hall near bus stops 17 & 18.

The Plaza Premium Arrivals lounge is open between 05:30 and 14:00 daily and, although that may not seem like a long time for the lounge to be open, that’s more or less in line with when most long-haul flights are landing at T3 and in line with the American Airlines Arrival’s lounge opening times too, so the opening hours should work for most long-haul travelers.

Per the Priority Pass website, the maximum amount of time that members can spend in the lounge is 3 hours (which shouldn’t be an issue for most) and the shower facilities that the lounge provides are “subject to payment”.

That last bit of information is disappointing as a shower is one of the things that travelers probably want most after disembarking from a long-haul flight and, at $27 for 30 minutes, it comes at a significant premium (more info on the Plaza Premium site).

Priority Pass membership

If you’re based in the US you have an impressive choice of credit cards that offer Priority Pass membership as part of their benefits package. These include (but are not limited to):

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If you’re based outside the US your choices may be a lot more limited so, if that happens to be the case, it may be worth exploring the three membership options that Priority Pass offers (more details here).

Bottom line

While it’s more than a little annoying that anyone wanting to have a shower will have to pay for the privilege (and pay quite a bit!), it’s still good news that we now have a new arrivals lounge option at London Heathrow T3.