tmac100

I have posted a similar question on the *A forum so moderator (and other readers) please excuse me for (perhaps) cross posting the topic.

I know there are 2 lounges that I can access at T2A and T2B because of my *G status. However, I would like to know where A3 and TAP arrive/depart at when going into/leaving T2.

I have walking issues (currently on crutches) and want to walk the shortest distance from my arrival flight (TAP or A3) the lounge, and my departure flight (TAP or A3). Hence my need for this information.

The Heathrow website just shows arrivals and departures are from T2, but how does this fit in with the T2A and T2B lounge locations?

No information (to date) from the *A forum so I am trying here.

Apologies for (perhaps) cross-posting. BUT you have to understand my issues with perambulating at present OTOH, the worse-case scenario is to ask for wheelchair assistance at LHR and have them push me around to/from a lounge.

Knobbgb

The are no fixed gates at T2 but I've only ever seen A3 use onecof two gates - in the corner of T2A right beneath the LH lounge. As for TP I'm not sure but most short haul seems to generally use A when possible so as to keep the larger gates at B free for thr heavies. My advice would be to know the location of all FOUR lounges (not two) beforehand and then decide on the day. The three lounges in B are all quite close to the centre (SQ AND AC right opposite each other) and UA a bit further along. All four are on the floor above departures but thrre are elevators at each. If you end up in a lounge far from your departure gate, I wonder if it would be possible to request wheelchair assistance there and then? I imagine the lounge staff would be able to help.

tmac100

WOW!! Thank you for this excellent indication of the arrival/departure locations. Yes, there can be operational changes and I understand that. However for my "mental preparation", this information is great. Your final comment about wheelchair assistance is appreciated.

Kudos to you and to this A3 forum.^

Knobbgb

That's only my guess about getting last minute wheelchair support - I've no idea what happens in reality. Maybe somebody else has tried it.

NWIFlyer

You've earned the sympathy vote on the cross-post, and given you already have some responses here let's leave this as the open thread .

Wheelchair assistance at LHR is not something you can just request at short notice. It's a sub-contracted service HAL offers - and probably charges the airline for - which often fails to work when pre-booked, certainly in T5 (and therefore I'm assuming in T2 as well). There's virtually no chance of someone showing up if a request attempt was made from the lounge, because there would be no mechanism for ordering and/or charging it, and in any case they certainly wouldn't arrive in time for you to catch the flight.

In practice, you need to request the assistance in advance via A3 or TP (I'd guess whoever is operating your first flight if these are under one PNR). You will be taken to a lounge, the person will leave you there and come back and collect you in time to catch your next flight. You will not be able to lounge hop (unless under your own steam, and then you'd have to go back to your first lounge for collection). That's very messy and opens the risk of missing the assistance back because they turn up when you're elsewhere, and not something I'd recommend.

Be aware that requesting assistance will automatically debar you from selecting exit rows on the plane, although the crutches would probably give the cabin crew an excuse to move you anyway when on-board.

:D!

If you have perambulation problems then I think you had better just not bother with the B lounges at all.

Short-haul flights usually depart from A, which is the area just after passing security and the Lufthansa lounge is close to the higher-numbered gates in A, and even if there is no wheelchair it shouldn't be too difficult to walk to an A gate.

Terminal 2B is VERY far away even for fully able-bodied people although there is some sort of electric buggy you can pay for(? not sure). The walkway is quite deep underground, and the lounges are all several floors up from the level with the gates.

There are travelators going from A to B, which is the natural flow, but T2 is not really designed for people to go back from B to A. If you aren't familiar with the terminal, it can be hard to find the right escalator to get back down to the underground passage. It takes me about 15 minutes, in part because I am usually stuffed with lots of food from all 3 lounges, and if you are not mobile then I don't want to imagine how long it would take on your own.

I don't think the wheelchair people would be happy with bringing you from a B lounge to an A gate (not your problem if you really want to do this) but given the distance you would either be made to leave the lounge very early or be late for the flight and not be able to board first.

If your flight happens to depart a B gate and you haven't confirmed a wheelchair then I would go down to the walkway and investigate the buggy option to use a B lounge. Otherwise I would stay in the LH lounge in A.

DELLAS

Unless you have a clear 4 hours I would not attempt to lounge hop over to B. There is a free buggy service which picks you up at the bottom of the lifts before you go via the underground tunnel and then back again from the place it drops you off. It is fine to do but only if you have the above time allowance.

gpb_croppers63

I second that! I did a bit of lounge hopping at T2 when I was there for the first time and flying out on A3, and I barely made it back to A in time for the flight (last departure of the day and they tried to get it out early). I arrived at my seat a bit of a sweaty mess having power walked back through the tunnel to get to A. I'm perfectly able-bodied and a fast walker and even I would have second thoughts about going to B unless I was able to get back to A with at least an hour to spare in the future. For the less able-bodied, I would not recommend it and would advise staying in the LH lounge, which is more than good enough. Hope that helps too!

DrHalxx

You're overeacting a bit people re walking distance from t2b to t2a. It's a good 7-10 minutes but nothimng more than that, obviously not something you can do on crutches. Buggy service is a good alternative.

A3 usually arrives/departs from A gates, but I had at least 2 A3 flights arriving at the B area, especially the late evening one, 608

tmac100

Thanks everyone for this information. I still have 8 weeks before I fly so the issue of crutches may be over by then. Unsure at present... The medicos are not making definite predictions except that "it is healing".

A very great THANK YOU to the moderator NWIFlyer for allowing this thread to continue. Great information here. I should have started with this forum in the 1st place.

NWIFlyer

My sense is that the buggy service is very hit-and-miss - it may be sitting there, you may not see one heading in either direction during the period you're walking back. Again, not something I'd be depending on to catch a flight.

I can personally walk from the UA lounge in T2B to the gate A3 normally uses in A in about 8-10 minutes for the last flight of the day when the crowds are non-existent, but I do walk fairly quickly even with a stomach full of champagne. At that time of night there are very, very few flights leaving from the B gates so I would think the buggy service may even have been withdrawn.

On the plus side, the UA bar staff are extremely hospitable: when MrsNWIFlyer and I last visited - again before the late A3 flight to ATH - we were pretty much the only people in the lounge and they were trying to pile as much champagne as possible into us, even to the extent of bringing an unopened bottle to our table with 40 minutes left until the flight's scheduled departure time. We respectfully pointed out that we really ought to be making our way back to the A gates, and they seemed genuinely disappointed. We did, incidentally, make boarding fairly comfortably, even if there was an immediate need for the aircraft toilet ... .

DELLAS

You can sometimes be waiting 15-20 mins for a buggy in either direction. Then you allow for the time in each lounge you wish to visit. You will soon find the time goes very quickly and then be back in time for boarding. 4 hours from when you get to check in until take off is a good guide. I have experienced this with a family member who has reduced mobility.

On my own I reduce that time to 2.5 hours as I do not need a buggy and can briskly walk to and from the B area. With someone with reduced mobility it is a totally different ball game I can assure you ! Had we not had a buggy it would have been a 35 min walk each way.

tmac100

FWIW, today at work here in Doha, I "walked" 300 to 400 meters from my office to my farthest classroom in about 15 minutes. The thing that slowed me the most was students who wanted to "chat" about how I was recovering while using crutches. In this part of the world it is "good form" to hold doors open for someone on crutches - which is nice.

I really appreciate the thought and analysis that contributors have taken when giving their opinions. We shall see what happens in the next 8 weeks. While I am flying economy on A3 (IST-ATH-LHR) I have coupons to upgrade to Business so will do that in the ATH-LHR (and return) sectors. Upgrade will be based on availability of course - no guarantees.

Xandrios

Keep in mind that flying in Business from LHR means paying extra taxes. If you would like to avoid that you may consider upgrading on of the IST sectors instead. Of course though, the flights to/from London would be the longest - so an upgrade offers the largest benefit there.

AlwaysonBA663

I would say that it's under 10 minutes for a fast walker. With mobility issues I would not bother going to 2B.

And use the lift, not the escalators! Far quicker. The lifts are not obvious as the Terminal design encourages escalator use.

Agree that the staff in UC are amazing, one time I was getting ready to go and the barmaid insisted I have one more glass of champagne - how can you turn that down!