If the new Tom Bradley International Terminal (TBIT) at LAX itself wasn’t enough to get excited about, the new alliance lounges definitely are! After stopping by the KAL SkyTeam lounge, I headed over to the OneWorld international lounge as I was flying Cathay Pacific Business Class. The large lounge is divided into two sections, one for Business Class passengers and OneWorld Sapphire members and the other side for First class passengers and OneWorld Emerald members*. As I am only a Sapphire member, I relaxed in the business class side which was more than great and soaked up the ambiance for a good 45 minutes before heading to my gate.
The OneWorld lounge is much darker than the SkyTeam lounge but has a very calming atmosphere as the dim lighting soothes the senses. The lounge is built in a long hallway style and reminds me of a galley kitchen in an apartment from the 1980s. Everyone must walk through the entire lounge and seating is more limited than I would expect. Despite my initial thoughts, it never felt too crowded and I had no issue finding a place to sprawl out and relax.
The lounge has a small business center against one of the far walls and the business center separates the bar area from the food/kitchen.
Oneworld Business Lounge Food & Drinks
The food and drinks offering is quite abundant and better than the SkyTeam Lounge. I will not lie,I tried almost everything and was extremely impressed by the quality of the food—especially the soup which I actually went back and had seconds of!
Lounge and I will not lie, when I said I tried almost everything and was extremely impressed by the quality of the food—especially the soup which I actually went back and had seconds of!
In the bar area of the lounge, can beer is chilled in the fridge next to the soda, but they also offer Heineken and Blue moon on tap. There was a third beer offered as well, but my memory is failing me. Wine is self-service and there is also a slew of spirits that are available for self-service between the fridges full of soda and mixers. The bartender performs multiple functions, waiting on customers in and around the bar area, clearing tables, and making handcrafted espresso drinks. Be patient if you do not see someone right away as it’s a busy position that really should be filled by more than one person. There is no table service, but the staff does the best they can.
While I was there, I also had a chance to take a quick shower, as I had not showered before leaving my house that morning (I woke up late). The products are top and the showers are large with personal toilets and sinks in each shower suite. The agent working the shower room was all smiles and quickly offered me a disposable toothbrush among other toiletries and then reminded me not to be shy if I needed anything else. Her willingness and helpfulness matched that personality of most other lounge attendants who all seemed to really enjoy their jobs.
Overall, I really enjoyed this lounge and would highly make time to stop by it again if traveling through TBIT on a OneWorld carrier. The only downside to this lounge is there are no runway views and the only windows in the lounge look out upon an enclosed concrete courtyard, limiting the amount of natural light and eliminating all chances of plane spotting.
LAX OneWorld Lounge Access
To access Qantas Oneworld Business Class Lounge, you typically need to be a Qantas Club member or have a valid Business Class ticket on a Qantas-operated flight or any other longhaul international Oneworld operator from LAX. British Airways, Japan Airlines, Iberia, Finn Air and
Qatar Airways business class customers are all welcome to the business class Oneworld Lounge Los Angeles. Passengers flying American Airlines Flagship Business class or Oneworld connect airline Fiji airlines also has access to this lounge
Oneworld Frequent Flyers with status can also access the lounge. If you are a Qantas Frequent Flyer member with Platinum or Platinum One status, you will have access to Qantas Business Class Lounges, regardless of your class of travel. Emerald tier frequent flyers from all Oneworld airlines can use First Class, Business Class or frequent flyer lounges. Sapphire tier frequent flyers are welcome in Business Class lounges.
American Airlines and Alaska Airlines elites can only access these lounges when traveling to or from a long haul flight beyond North America.
*Since writing this review, Qantas has opened the Qantas First Class lounge which is open to Qantas First Class passengers and all OneWorld Emerald Elite customers. This has led to an expansion of the Oneworld Business Lounge. The first Class lounge features a la carte dining with a custom design menu from Qantas’ chef Neil Perry featuring the famous salt and pepper squid loved by all Qantas frequent flyers.
