Lounge at Manchester T1 - Disgrace
Oct 12, 2018, 3:30 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: UK
Programs: LH SEN
Posts: 63
Lounge at Manchester T1 - Disgrace
LH currently use the Aspire Lounge at Manchester Airport T1 where all there flights depart/arrive from along with all Eurowings flights. In the last few years Manchester airport has become a real bear pit and using it to travel regularly for business has become a nightmare, the business lounge however is at another (lower) level altogether. Tickets are sold to access the lounge (I think for Ł15 but I may be wrong) effectively making the lounge an all you can drink and eat pub from dawn to dusk (and beyond) and my god do many of the people make sure they get their money's worth.
The lounge is always full with queues out of the door to get in, yes access is always granted with an LH business ticket or SEN card but that is a mixed blessing. I travel out of Manchester every week and last Monday afternoon was typical, the lounge was pretty full and almost all the tables (30-40) where piled high with dirty plates and glasses/beer bottles and half eaten food. The floors and carpets where awash with food and drink, as where the filthy chairs and sofas, genuinely it was disgusting. No clean glasses or cutlery where available should you have found anything to actually eat. I left the lounge immediately, along with several others, I complained to the guy on reception who apologized and said that many people have said the same in recent weeks but the lounge cannot get the staff to cope.
I will honestly say that this lounge is the worst I have ever seen in Europe. It is not an LH lounge but I assume they pay for for access and so therefore have the right to check the standard that is being offered to their premium passengers. In short, if you can I would advise to avoid Manchester airport in general and the aspire lounge at all costs.
The lounge is always full with queues out of the door to get in, yes access is always granted with an LH business ticket or SEN card but that is a mixed blessing. I travel out of Manchester every week and last Monday afternoon was typical, the lounge was pretty full and almost all the tables (30-40) where piled high with dirty plates and glasses/beer bottles and half eaten food. The floors and carpets where awash with food and drink, as where the filthy chairs and sofas, genuinely it was disgusting. No clean glasses or cutlery where available should you have found anything to actually eat. I left the lounge immediately, along with several others, I complained to the guy on reception who apologized and said that many people have said the same in recent weeks but the lounge cannot get the staff to cope.
I will honestly say that this lounge is the worst I have ever seen in Europe. It is not an LH lounge but I assume they pay for for access and so therefore have the right to check the standard that is being offered to their premium passengers. In short, if you can I would advise to avoid Manchester airport in general and the aspire lounge at all costs.
Oct 12, 2018, 5:32 am
#3
Moderator: SAS
Join Date: Feb 2018
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Posts: 3,151
LH currently use the Aspire Lounge at Manchester Airport T1 where all there flights depart/arrive from along with all Eurowings flights. In the last few years Manchester airport has become a real bear pit and using it to travel regularly for business has become a nightmare, the business lounge however is at another (lower) level altogether. Tickets are sold to access the lounge (I think for Ł15 but I may be wrong) effectively making the lounge an all you can drink and eat pub from dawn to dusk (and beyond) and my god do many of the people make sure they get their money's worth.
The lounge is always full with queues out of the door to get in, yes access is always granted with an LH business ticket or SEN card but that is a mixed blessing. I travel out of Manchester every week and last Monday afternoon was typical, the lounge was pretty full and almost all the tables (30-40) where piled high with dirty plates and glasses/beer bottles and half eaten food. The floors and carpets where awash with food and drink, as where the filthy chairs and sofas, genuinely it was disgusting. No clean glasses or cutlery where available should you have found anything to actually eat. I left the lounge immediately, along with several others, I complained to the guy on reception who apologized and said that many people have said the same in recent weeks but the lounge cannot get the staff to cope.
I will honestly say that this lounge is the worst I have ever seen in Europe. It is not an LH lounge but I assume they pay for for access and so therefore have the right to check the standard that is being offered to their premium passengers. In short, if you can I would advise to avoid Manchester airport in general and the aspire lounge at all costs.
The lounge is always full with queues out of the door to get in, yes access is always granted with an LH business ticket or SEN card but that is a mixed blessing. I travel out of Manchester every week and last Monday afternoon was typical, the lounge was pretty full and almost all the tables (30-40) where piled high with dirty plates and glasses/beer bottles and half eaten food. The floors and carpets where awash with food and drink, as where the filthy chairs and sofas, genuinely it was disgusting. No clean glasses or cutlery where available should you have found anything to actually eat. I left the lounge immediately, along with several others, I complained to the guy on reception who apologized and said that many people have said the same in recent weeks but the lounge cannot get the staff to cope.
I will honestly say that this lounge is the worst I have ever seen in Europe. It is not an LH lounge but I assume they pay for for access and so therefore have the right to check the standard that is being offered to their premium passengers. In short, if you can I would advise to avoid Manchester airport in general and the aspire lounge at all costs.
I then spent my time in a nice little caffé next to my gate to then do *priority* boarding together with 50% of the plane (apparently 50% of the pax and 100% of the gate leece were *G, but I and 4 others were the only actual J pax), very much to the anger of the passenger behind me who vented about it rather loud.
I enjoyed the experience nontheless.
Oct 12, 2018, 6:39 am
#4
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Stoke on Trent, UK (MAN ), BUE, BKK, DBV
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Posts: 11,636
Yes,
MAN T1 is a National disgrace, 5* shops & 3rd World Terminal.
The Aspire lounge is just as the op describes & if anything it’s charitable comments.
MAN T1 is a National disgrace, 5* shops & 3rd World Terminal.
The Aspire lounge is just as the op describes & if anything it’s charitable comments.
Oct 12, 2018, 6:42 am
#5
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 11,570
Not quite as bad but similar situation in EDI. The Lounge is really nothing to brag about, quite the opposite. To add insult to injury, after checking it out and not being too impressed I left it to visit the toilet (the lounge has none) and upon my return there was a sign explaining that the lounge was now overcrowded and no access would be granted anymore. (Quite embarassing being denied access to a such mediocre lounge).
I then spent my time in a nice little caffé next to my gate to then do *priority* boarding together with 50% of the plane (apparently 50% of the pax and 100% of the gate leece were *G, but I and 4 others were the only actual J pax), very much to the anger of the passenger behind me who vented about it rather loud.
I enjoyed the experience nontheless.
I then spent my time in a nice little caffé next to my gate to then do *priority* boarding together with 50% of the plane (apparently 50% of the pax and 100% of the gate leece were *G, but I and 4 others were the only actual J pax), very much to the anger of the passenger behind me who vented about it rather loud.
I enjoyed the experience nontheless.
Priority in EDI works very well. I’ve never seen a huge priority queue. I fly from this station between 2 and 3 times every month for years. Queue on the left by the barrier as the non-preem pax queue in a tense.
EDI ground staff wear the LH hat, but stations like KRK with 6x as many departures don’t. They’re all contract though right?
Oct 12, 2018, 6:59 am
#6
Moderator: Lufthansa Miles & More, India based airlines, India, External Miles & Points Resources
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: MUC
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Posts: 48,161
The Aspire T1 lounge in MAN is unsiversally loathed:
Aspire lounge @ Manchester Airport
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/aer-...hester-t1.html
Best Priority Pass Lounge in T1 Manchester
EDI: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/airp...er-lounge.html
Aspire lounge @ Manchester Airport
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/aer-...hester-t1.html
Best Priority Pass Lounge in T1 Manchester
EDI: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/airp...er-lounge.html
Oct 12, 2018, 8:41 am
#8
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 1,776
As a SAS customer I no longer have lounge access at MAN and I honestly do not miss it, for all reasons described here. Now I use the Giraffe and while not only is the food is better than in the Aspire it also means I do not have to eat the meal in SAS Plus so I´m very happy.
Oct 12, 2018, 10:20 am
#9
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Munich, Germany
Programs: BA Silver, Lufthansa FTL, KrisFlyer Gold, HHonors Diamond
Posts: 81
The lounge that LH uses in Glasgow is the same - with the added fun that I have to argue my way in every single time (flying on an LH business class ticket). The service flying out of Glasgow on LH is pretty poor in general - no priority boarding call, which is frustrating - but I switched from BA to LH some time ago and prefer LH's service in general, so I suppose I have to suck it up.
Oct 12, 2018, 11:03 am
#10
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Oct 12, 2018, 11:05 am
#11
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Oct 12, 2018, 2:49 pm
#12
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Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 11,570
The lounge that LH uses in Glasgow is the same - with the added fun that I have to argue my way in every single time (flying on an LH business class ticket). The service flying out of Glasgow on LH is pretty poor in general - no priority boarding call, which is frustrating - but I switched from BA to LH some time ago and prefer LH's service in general, so I suppose I have to suck it up.
True about priority boarding, but you obviously are not aware its only in the past 6 months or something (I posted my own thread on this) that LH arranged Fast Track security in both EDI and GLA. We are lucky there is even an alternate!
For this Winter season LH will fly mainline to both MUC and FRA from GLA & EDI, plus EW I think.
Oct 12, 2018, 2:51 pm
#13
Join Date: Feb 2013
Programs: LH M&M, BA EC, DL SM
Posts: 5,721
Did not to expect anything worse then CDG basement in Europe.
Last edited by worldclubber; Oct 13, 2018 at 3:21 am
Oct 12, 2018, 3:56 pm
#14
Senior Moderator, Moderator: Community Buzz and Ambassador: Miles & More (Lufthansa, Austrian, Swiss, and other partners)
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Location: 150km from MAN
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I thought the Aspire Lounge (aka Lounge 26) at AMS was worse than the MAN T1 Aspire Lounge. And it’s a looong way from LH departure gates.
I don’t visit the MAN T1 Lounge as often as the OP but the food offering has slightly improved in the last 12 months. I go there for somewhere to sit because departure gate areas are abysmal and do not have enough seats. (But then I can say the same thing about FRA B non-Schengen gate areas especially before longhaul departures but I digress.)
When the expansion of MAN T2 is complete I expect all *A carriers to move from T1 (which will be demolished in due course) to T2. Is it too optimistic to expect one of the *A airlines (SQ?) to open its own lounge for *A business/*G passengers? Including seasonal flights I believe13 *A carriers fly out of MAN (including ET which starts 4 flights a week to ADD in December).
I don’t visit the MAN T1 Lounge as often as the OP but the food offering has slightly improved in the last 12 months. I go there for somewhere to sit because departure gate areas are abysmal and do not have enough seats. (But then I can say the same thing about FRA B non-Schengen gate areas especially before longhaul departures but I digress.)
When the expansion of MAN T2 is complete I expect all *A carriers to move from T1 (which will be demolished in due course) to T2. Is it too optimistic to expect one of the *A airlines (SQ?) to open its own lounge for *A business/*G passengers? Including seasonal flights I believe13 *A carriers fly out of MAN (including ET which starts 4 flights a week to ADD in December).
