Moderator note: ReLAX lounge landside at the Tm Bradley Internation al Terminal (TBIT) is to close end of summer 2013.
I have visited the ReLax Pay-for use lounge at LAX located by the Daily Grill and am writing a review for individuals without membership into a specific airline lounge on a layover or connection. The lounge accepts Priority Pass as well as other memberships. As this lounge is before security you can visit it whether you are traveling or not.
A big thanks goes out to the manager(name not posted due to FT Terms) for giving me two day passes to assist me with the review. I have used one on September 22nd and the other one will be for this Saturday. He is such a great person and has answered a lot of my questions. I contacted him just asking about the new coffee machine and how sad I was to see this lounge being eliminated and he generously offered me access to the lounge. I was not expecting such a generous offer.
At this point the lounge is scheduled to close when the remolding is finished but this may change if the rent can be negotiated.
Their website is:
http://www.relaxloungelax.com/
Cost to Enter:
Up to 1 Hour: $15
2-3 Hours $30
4-5 Hours $40
All Day $50
*The All Day Pass/ Priority Pass comes with complimentary glasses of wine/beer.
Greeting:
After coming up the escalator up to the lounge and passing by Panda Express you are greeted by the large ReLax sign with sliding doors. Note the restrooms are located outside the lounge on the left hand side.
Once you enter the friendly staff will assist you with anything that you may need. The friendly staff manning the front desk also work pouring the wines and beers.
Since there are no windows due to the construction you can easily work on your laptop or take a nap in the new comfortable reclining chairs.
Seating:
You are presented with comfortable reclining easy chairs and a small tables by each reclining chairs with surge protector plugs for your laptop. I was able to fit my laptop on the table. The lounge was not crowded on this Saturday late morning and I was able to put my laptop and grab another table for my food and drinks.
There are also high back chairs which are comfortable as well as regular leather chairs. They look to be designed by Roche Bobois or some other fancy designer. The chairs are so comfortable.
Beer/Wine Selection
The bar offers Heiniken and Amstel Light on draft as the complimentary beer options. You could purchase other beers as well as sparkling water etc. For the wine selection there was Weins Family Cellars from Temecula( Merlot, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc), Toad Head , Glen Ellen and Oyster Bay from New Zeland.
I conducted a wine sampling and enjoyed the Weins and Oyster Bay the best.
Non-Alcoholic Beverages:
The lounge offers RC Cola, Diet RC and Diet RC Sprite type of drink as well as juices in the cooler. I enjoy not having to go up to the bar for soda so I can just fill up a plastic cup and enjoy my soda at my leisure. Kudos to the lounge for offering RC most lounges offer Pepsi or Coke.
The new coffee machine makes lattes, Macciahots , regular and decaf coffees as well as espresso etc. The coffee here was better than the coffee at the Admirals Club.
There is also bottled water and fruit cups as well.
Food:
The lounge has snack dispensers with Chex Mix, Cheezeit Crackers , Pretzels, Peanuts. In the cooler there are delicious mini sandwiches such as Turkey, Chicken, Pita with Eggplant. Its quite delicious and filling. Again the food offerings while not as big as some international lounges its better than the Admirals Club or United Club.
They also have cookies and mini pastries as well. You can also purchase noodles and other hot foods. If you are inclined to bring a sandwich from home or from the Daily Grill the lounge does not mind outside food.
WiFi/Computers:
The lounge has a free WiFi code that changes daily. You can find it sitting on some of the tables. Just enter the code and the speed is better than most lounges. There are also desktop computers for those without laptops or for those who do not want to setup their laptops with free internet. There are also printers as well.
The Ambiance:
I love the background music that is not so overwhelming. Its relaxing and I would much rather spend time here then in the crowded terminal.
Grade: A the only negative part is that you have to go outside to use the restroom but its not the fault of the lounge. There are no showers.
What I like about this lounge is that you pay for as much time as you need. You don't have to pay $50 for a full day if you are only going to use it for 2 hours.
The noise level was quiet and I was able to take a nap in the comfortable reclining chairs.
The lounge attendants were always present and pleasant asking what I needed. The service is personalized. I needed to know if my flight was running on time and the kind agent went online and told me it was with a smile and printed out the gate information for me without asking.
I will be visiting the lounge again on Saturday and will update the review and would be happy to answer any questions.