FB01

Hi,

I will be flying for the first time via British Airways via Business Class..

Couple of Questons

-Should I just create profile in BA for Loyalty program?
-I will be landing in Terminal 5 and then my flight to Ireland is from Terminal 2. I believe LHR is huge and it will take time to go to terminal 2. What lounge do I have access in Terminal 5?

Thanks,
JR

scottishpoet

You will not have access to any airside lounge in T5

I suspect you can use the Air Lingus lounge in T2

You would potentially have access to the BA arrivals lounge which is landside at T5.
Depending how long your connection is and what time you land you might consider this lounge too.

Assuming this is all on one ticket then its probably best just to take the airside bus to T2 and use the Air Lingus lounge

PETER01

If this is a revenue ticket then yes I would create a BA Executive Club account as you will earn Avios (miles) for it.

Unfortunately as your connecting to T2 you wont be able to get access to the airside lounges in Terminal 5 and hopefully someone can advise re T2 as I have no experience there. You could go landside though and use the BA Arrivals lounge though then go to T2 if you have the time to do that.

As for connecting see this guide which is very good. There are also other handy guides in the BA Forum Dashboard at the top of the main page which might also be helpful for your journey.

A Guide to Connecting at LHR T5

Assuming your doing the same in reverse then you would get access to the Terminal 5 lounges if in Business Class.

Pete

eyeballer

1) Yes, if this is a paid (in cash) ticket. You can go back and enter your BA EC number into your booking.
2) As scottishpoet mentioned if you have a long enough connection you could go landside for arrivals but not really convenient. There's a plaza premium lounge in T2 as well if you have a Priority Pass or similar card that gets you access.

PETER01

You definitely get access by virtue of being in CW as access is granted in this case by class of travel. (No guests though)

Ldnn1

Welcome FB01.

So the first thing to note is that if you're flying to Ireland from T2, that means you're flying on Aer Lingus rather than BA, which in turn means that you won't be in business class for this short hop - as Aer Lingus does not have business class on shorthaul.

As I understand it, that also means you won't be entitled to access the Aer Lingus lounge in T2 (but happy to be corrected on that).

You will be entitled to use the Arrivals lounge in T5, but you'll need to clear immigration there and go landside to do so, and then take either the Underground or Heathrow Express train over to T2 after. You won't be able to access the departures lounges in T5. Also the Arrivals lounge closes at 14.00 so your SFO arrival may be too late for that.

[ETA: beaten to it by many!]

FB01

Thanks for the quick information. I have 3.5 hour connection in LHR before my flight to Ireland. How much is travel time from T5 to T2?

Was not aware of Aer Lingus Lounge in T2. Will try to use? Between which one is better BA Arrival Lounge in T5 or Aer Lingus in T2?..Any idea

FB01

Adding to what I said, I have Priority Pass from Chase Sapphire...so will I be able to access Aer Lingus in T2 as someone said the arrival lounge in LHR closes at 2:PM.

Ldnn1

No, but you can use the Plaza Premium lounge in T2 instead, which is decent enough. It's in the main part of the terminal where your Aer Lingus flight is likely to depart from.

When you get off the plane at T5, simply follow signs for Flight Connections to catch the transfer bus to T2.

UKtravelbear

Varies depending on if you go land or airside route - see getting around heathrow

As you your earlier question about opening a BAEC account that depends on how often you plan on flying and if you have an e.g. AA account already in which case it might be better crediting to that rather than create what may become an orphan account with BA.

scottishpoet

Aer Lingus lounge in T2 is on the to floor next to the Lufthansa lounge

Airside transit between t5 an T2 - transit busses run every 6 to 10 minutes and the transit itself takes about 15 to 20 minutes. You can do the transit in about 45 minutes.

Landside, you need to clear passport control. Airside arrivals lounge closes at 2pm hence why I said "depending what time you land"

Similar transit time from leaving the lounge ... exit to the tube, tubes run every 10 minutes, 5 or 6 minutes to terminal 2/3 stop, walk to t2 and clear security so again about 45 minutes. the big difference and unknown is the clearing immigration that affects the transit time.

Pumplekin

The BA Arrivals lounge in T5 is going to be much better than the Aer Lingus lounge in T2 (which I don't think you will have access to - but I'm not 100% sure on the Aer Lingus lounge access rules).

If you aren't currently in the airline miles+status game, you should certainly join something. If that thing is the British Airways Executive Club or not is down to your personal circumstances, what airlines you will fly, and what benefits will work for you. As you are coming from San Francisco, the other sensible option would be the American Airlines (AAdvantage) scheme (to which you can credit your BA flights).

There is a Heathrow Express train between Terminal 5 and Terminal 2&3 every 15mins, you can also get the underground or bus services. The transit between the terminals on the Heathrow Express is free. Remember you need to be able to enter the UK to be able to go landside and to the arrivals lounge. If you are going to Ireland then I doubt this will be a problem.

Also remember the arrivals lounge is only open 05:00 to 14:00, so you are going to be kicked out at 14:00 one way or the other. The late BA flight (BA286) arrives at 15:00 or 15:30 when the arrivals lounge is already closed, so if you are on that flight then this isn't an option for you.

ahmetdouas

When I connected last time from T2 to T5 (so what you will do in reverse), it took me about 20 minutes entrance to entrace. I took the free Heathrow Express from Heathrow Central to Terminal 5 (takes 5 mins), then a quickish walk to the Heathrow Central station (another 5-10 mins depending on how fast you walk) and wait a few mins for the train and from Heathrow Terminal 5 station a much shorter walk (2-3 mins) to the actual entrance of the terminal.

So with 3.5 hours you have plenty of time!

KARFA

Hi FB01

I assuming this is one booking so if you have checked bags these would be checked through. with 3.5 hours you have plenty of time and could easily use the BA arrivals lounge in T5 and the Aer Lingus T2 lounge.

The BA arrivals lounge is landside so you would need to exit through passport control and through the baggage hall, and once out follow the signs and go up one floor. The BA arrivals lounge closes around 1-2pm I think so if you are arriving in the early afternoon or later it isn't going to be available. You can get breakfast there and have a shower if you wish.

If you don't want to use the BA arrivals lounge I would suggest just staying airside and getting an airside connecting bus from T5 to T2, you can catch these at either the main T5 building (T5A) or at one of the satellite buildings (T5B). Just follow the purple signs marked "flights connections T2/3/4". When you get to T2 you would need to go through passport control and also security. Overall from stepping off the plane and getting in to the departures area of T2 shouldn't be more than around 45 minutes. I understand the aer lingus lounge in T2 has showers available too.

If you do want to use the T5 arrivals lounge you will need to use one of the landside options to get to T2. You can either use the Heathrow Express (every 15 mins, free, no card required), or tube (free, need an oyster or contactless card to check in and out, every 8-10 mins). The actual journey on either is only a few minutes.

Kumulani

It should be noted that passport control will need to be cleared anyway, even if connecting airside.