American Airlines Arrivals Lounge, Heathrow Terminal 3 – Lounge Review

A perfectly formed arrivals lounge for BA and AA flights landing into T3

Arrival lounges are a rare breed, and for good reason. Most travellers want to get out of the airport as quickly as possible. Some arrival lounges require you to pass through immigration and customs to get to them, meaning connecting requires checking back in again. When you need one though, they are a godsend, and this AA lounge delivers.

Where is the AA Arrivals Lounge at Heathrow?

It’s in Terminal 3, where all of AA’s LHR flights depart and arrive, as well as a small number of BA flights. The lounge is on the terminal’s second floor, after you leave customs. Exit the baggage area, turn right, follow the signs and then take the lift to the second floor. There’s a small reception area with two check-in desks, plus an attendant who looks after showers and ironing.

Who can use the AA Arrivals Lounge?

If you’re travelling long haul into T3 with British Airways, and you’re either in First/Business Class OR oneworld Emerald. British Airways Premier customers can also use the lounge.

If you’re travelling in on AA metal and flying in First or Business Class, OR Executive Platinum or AAdvantage Platinum Pro OR oneworld Emerald you can use this lounge.

We saw one person who had flown in on Qantas turned away. This is not a oneworld lounge and is not listed in the oneworld lounge directory.

What’s on offer in the lounge?

There’s seating for around forty people, hot and cold food, showers and ironing. It’s a quiet lounge; in the four times that I’ve been here, it’s never been rammed, and the guests tend to be on the sleepier (and this less noisy) side. In the hour and a half that I’ve sat in here, there have been around ten guests coming through the lounge, but there have never been more than four in here at once.

This is a great lounge in to work in. There are desks and a single iMac for use. Power sockets (both US and UK plugs) are everywhere, with each double UK plug socket offering two USB-A ports.

There’s a TV in the lounge, which is set to a news channel and is on a low volume. Just enough to hear it but not so loud that it’ll disturb you if you want some sleep.

What are the opening hours?

The lounge opens at 6:30am ready for the first transatlantic arrivals from the East Coast (typically, flights at Heathrow can’t land before 6am). It stays open till 2:30pm to cater for the later overnight flights from the West Coast.

What’s the food like?

The self-service food stations, which have hot and cold options, offer a reasonable choice. There are healthier options, such as cereal or fruit bowls, and less healthy hot options, such as bacon and sausage.

There are also pastries, a toasting machine, a good selection of herbal teas and a reasonable coffee machine. The flat white it pumped out was tiny, and bitter.

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Still and sparkling water is pumped out via a machine, and there are also fridges with some cold drinks options. Alcohol is available for those who want to power through.

There’s also a small a la carte menu, which adds a more lunch-focused soup option at 11:30am. My wife had the bacon roll, which was “nice but too fancy”. It comes in a brioche bun, and as a Northerner, she would have been happier with a basic roll (or bap, or barm cake).

Airline time, energy and money is focused on the lounges that get the most traffic, which is why you see innovation and improvement in airside lounges but not arrivals. That's fair enough - I can't remember ever being as excited about an arrivals lounge as I was about Qatar First lounge. However, I think if we ever lose some of they key arrivals lounges it'll be a sad day. Nothing perks you up after an overnighter like some breakfast, a shower and some quiet. What makes arrivals lounges different is there is no drinking - or at least I've never seen any - and rarely any loud phone calls. It's a place for the near-zombified to come alive again. One final point around the clientel is that I haven't come across an arrivals lounge that you can pay to access. 

Showers at the AA Arrivals Lounge

I love the showers in here. If you’ve ever been to the BA arrivals lounge in T5 then you’ll know that their facilities are a little 1980s. The AA lounge is far more modern, and the shower rooms are similar to a bathroom in a mid-tier brand. They’re modern and clean, well-lit, and the showers themselves have great water pressure. If you’re landing at Heathrow after an overnight flight, this is guaranteed to wake you up.

There’s also an ironing service, which I’ve never used. You can leave an item of clothing in a compartment attached to the bathroom door, and then the staff member can access it on the outside. Once it’s pressed, they’ll return it to the compartment, which means you can access it after your shower.

They also offer shaving and dental kits when they show you into your shower room. There are around twenty-five showers, meaning that it’s unlikely you’ll have to wait.

Each shower room has a toilet, sink, three mirrors (a full-length one on a side wall, one above the sink and a make-up mirror) and a luggage rack. The bathrooms are spacious enough for what you need, and they’re well-lit.

Amenities in the bathroom include single-use shower gel, shampoo and conditioning in the shower cubicle, plus body lotion by the sink. There are also cotton pads and cotton buds.

Each bathroom comes with three towels: one for the floor, a hand towel and a bath towel. The latter was a touch on the small side for a man of my size (5ft 10.5)

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The verdict on the AA arrivals lounge

I love this lounge. When I’m coming in on an overnight flight and have an onward connection, the travel experience is so much better. It’s a peaceful lounge, which means that it’s easy to shut your eyes for half an hour and get some microsleep. Having said that, there are comfortable chairs but no loungers to lay out on in here.

I’ve been coming to this lounge for the last five years or so, and whilst it hasn’t changed, it also hasn’t dated badly. It’s a clean, well-lit and modern lounge that’s still attractive and welcoming. Glancing around me, I see no wear and tear; everything still looks spotless.

The staff here are nice, and there’s plenty of them. Nothing over the top, just decent, friendly service at an ungodly time of the day.

This is not a destination or bucket list lounge. There are no views across the terminal (although they do mimic natural light with some fake windows with wooden shutters over there). There’s nothing stunning about this lounge, but as an arrivals lounge, it’s top-notch. Showers, some food and a quiet space, are the vital components of a successful arrivals lounge.

BA just about manages it with their arrivals lounge in T5, albeit with dated showers, and Virgin’s arrivals lounge in T3 is – from my visit many years ago – too cramped and busy.

AA gets it just right, so if you need a pit stop before you connect or head out into London, then this will be your happy place for an hour or two.