Originally Posted by
LTN Phobia
In terms of utility, I really like the BA T5 B gate GC. It's usually quiet-ish, and there is a big table accommodating a lot of people which reduces the likelihood of not being able to find somewhere to sit.
I think the problem is the sheer number of passengers entitled to use the ANA, JL, BA, QF lounges etc.
LH First Class terminal and CCR do not get so crowded because of the small number of non-F passengers who are entitled to use it. SQ Private Room never gets crowded for a very good reason.
It's all about the capacity matching the number of users who are entitled to use it, or not.
I don't bother with it. I go through security late-ish and go straight to the gate. There is often nowhere to sit at that lounge, but generally plenty of seats at the gate.
I also very much dislike almost any ANA business lounges. They often do not have enough seats, and a lot of people's behaviour at the buffet leaves a lot to be desired (far more so than JL lounges), and the food barely changes through the year.
Of course it is a capacity issue, which for the ANA Suite Lounges in Haneda still makes me wonder why the one by gate 113 or so, is not open in the evenings. They have the capacity to alleviate the issue, yet they don't. The LH F terminal is usually quiet, as few connecting passengers go there, but the Munich F lounge can get fairly busy.
Yeah the behaviour at buffets leaves somewhat to be improved in the ANA lounges. Though not as bad as some of the food stations in the TK lounge in Istanbul, you'd be excused for thinking people had not seen food in weeks.
For those reasons the ANA lounge rank pretty low on my list of preferred lounges. The Galleries F in T3 probably ranks the lowest (of airline hub lounges, contract lounges is another story), I appreciate that it is relatively quiet, but as I usually came for the late JAL flight, I always wondered if they ever cleaned anything during the day. Cathay and Qantas have now spared me going there again.
My top lounge is hard to put, I like the Frankfurt F terminal, but apart from the seclusion and the Porsche ride to the plane I find it less appealing than it could be. The Al Safwa lounge is very nice, but it is almost eerily quiet these days, and the menu seems to have taken a dive since the beginning, though the sleeping rooms are a big plus. One of my absolute favourite lounge services is the shoeshine service in the JAL F lounges. But especially in Narita they need far more space in the main building lounge to make it less of a crush Will be interesting to see what they come up with after the renovation, though I don't have too high hopes.