KLouis

Flights, not trips! As opposed to more than 100 in previous years...

Xandrios

I noticed the manned transfer desk as well this weekend. Finally, it always was a bit weird to not have a single point of contact when there is an issue with your transfer. I can imagine that this has bothered people in the past, as most would have expected to be able to transfer without re clearing security.

Now that arrival and departing pax are mixed, has anyone tried using the lounge on arrival? I often have to wait 30-60 minutes after arriving at ATH, it would be very cool if I could do so in the lounge. I know it's not an official benefit, but who knows..

Knobbgb

No, there's no way they're going to allow that without an onward boarding card.

Having said that, I just used both the A3 and LH lounges after a domestic arrival before transferring to the A gates for a non-schengen departure. It's very easy but not signposted. After exiting the bus, go across into the downstairs bus gates and up the stairs leading down from where security used to be. Walk along maybe 50 metres and then double back to the lounges. There is now a new shop as well as an open area where the large security area previously was. I was in the lounge less than two minutes after leaving the bus. I can also confirm that it is easy to pass "back" through the new security area en-route to A - one doesn't have to go back down and through arrivals as I'd feared.

benberg2013

Using your *A Gold card, or business class BP, they will not allow, as an onward BP is needed. But using Priority pass, or other 3rd party lounge access, I don't see why they shouldn't allow (I've used the LHR T2 Plaza Premium Arrival lounge with PP).

:D!

But that's an arrivals lounge. I have always needed a departing BP to enter a lounge meant for departures even when access was only granted due to possession of a certain credit card or lounge pass.

Yes you could say they get paid by just showing the card but it doesn't seem to convince the dragon

Xandrios

It would be nice if Aegean would add such benefit; (some) other airlines do too. For example KLM allows arriving elite passengers in their lounges, and Air France even has a special arrival lounge as far as I know.

But it is indeed a nice-to-have; I'm not sure how many people would actually use such service, and how much 'abuse' such would attract (People hanging in the lounge all day after arriving from a cheap domestic flight for instance..)

Knobbgb

Well, the lounge tends to be busy enough already so probably not a good idea. Now, if it had showers and or a sleeping area then maybe... I'm thinking actually - I would use an arrivals lounge if I were arriving on my usual 03:50 from LHR and taking a ferry from Piraeus (for which I usually take a bus around 05:20). I'm writing this from the lounge now, having done the LHR redeye actually, but luckily today I'm on an onward domestic connection. The coffee is VERY welcome and I've just had a nice 2hr nap on those black sofas...

:D!

Hmm, it would be a nice gesture to allow A3609 J/*G arrivals to use the lounge. That is the only flight arriving before 5am.

I am far from a regular but it is the A3 flight I have taken the most times so far... and each time I (± wife) was the only person in the lounge connecting elsewhere and nobody else came in until 0600, so it wouldn't lead to any overcrowding

However I see that A3609 arrives at 0210 on Thursdays and Saturdays. Has this been going on for a long time and I just never noticed?

DrHalxx

That's fairly recent and from what the agent told me on the phone it's going to change in February/March

Knobbgb

Yeah I believe it's to do with Heathrow slots and the Larnaca service. On those days LHR-LCA leaves at the time LHR-ATH usually leaves and vice-versa. Maybe it's a way of rotating an A321 into Cyprus, but it seems an odd way to do it. I certainly wouldn't like to wait from 2am until my connection at 08:30, even if the lounge WERE open/available!

But then that would require clearing security - and without a boarding card. Not the same as a B-gate arrival.

:D!

They could make it work if they really wanted to, but I suppose it is a lot of hassle. You could use your LHR BP, there could be a code to let you into B and there are no other passengers around at that time anyway.

So security has now moved to the entrance of B gates? I didn't have time to investigate when I passed through ATH last week

DrHalxx

Two separate security checkpoints, one for A gates, one for B