Best Business Class Lounge. Al Mourjan Garden Lounge
Have you ever wondered what are the best Business Class Lounges around the world?
With over 2 million miles logged across more than 200 airports on all six continents, I’ve had the privilege of visiting countless lounges. This extensive experience has equipped me with valuable insights into what truly defines a remarkable lounge.
Spanning Business Class travel, elite status across all three major airline alliances, and access to contract lounges through networks like Priority Pass and Dragon Pass, I’ve encountered the spectrum of lounge experiences – from exceptional to subpar.
This ranking follows my Top 10 Best Business Class Airlines ranking, as a top-tier Business Class lounge plays a pivotal role in my decision to book a Business Class ticket. For premium airlines, it’s an opportunity to leave a lasting impression that can be challenging to achieve on board. Such lounges offer amenities like showers, spas, and elevated dining that simply don’t translate well at altitude. The best lounges provide a haven of tranquillity amid the airport’s hustle and bustle.
For many travellers, the lounge becomes a central aspect of the Business Class journey, especially on overnight flights where the primary goal is rest. Some patrons visit to relax and enjoy a few drinks, while others explore every amenity at their disposal.
It’s important to recognize that rating lounges can be more complex than evaluating airline products themselves. The experience can vary significantly depending on factors such as the time of day you visit, your intentions within the lounge, and more. Nevertheless, I’ll strive to account for these variables as I present my rankings.
Now, let’s delve into the key characteristics that distinguish an exceptional Business Class lounge.
Airline business class lounges come in a diverse range of forms and sizes. Generally, they offer certain standard amenities that most travelers would anticipate. Creating an exceptional airport lounge hinges on several factors, spanning from the quality of staff and service to architectural design, practicality, creature comforts, catering, and entertainment offerings.
Rather than constructing a subjective ranking, my approach is to thoroughly assess each of these vital elements and assign ratings accordingly. By adopting this methodology, I aim to minimize any personal bias and provide a more objective evaluation.
Every lounge listed here has been visited by me on multiple occasions. I will utilize eight distinct categories, each with a maximum score of 10, to evaluate approximately 30 lounges.
This will largely be determined by the size of lounge, deco and how busy the lounge gets. Being able to relax in some quite and privacy is an important aspect for regular frequent travellers. A good lounge should feel somewhat exclusive?
This is about the architecture & design of the lounge. Lounges come in a large variety of designs and aesthetic. Good design and architecture provides a space a flow, clarity with well designated areas for different facilities. It has the power to directly impact the mood which informs the ambience above.
Some areas can energize and inspire while others are created purely for peace and tranquillity. We all crave for these things are different points in the journey.
Largely self explanatory. What is the catering like? Does the lounge provide a good variety of food and beverages? What about a la carte service? Do they provide a decent champagne?
When you are travelling and especially on transit, being able to freshen up is a god send. But not all shower facilities are the same. Some have only a few so involve a queue system.
Some have tiny stuffy cubicles where you come out instantly sweating from the heat and humidity because of bad ventilation, essentially negating the whole point of being fresh!
Top lounges though go beyond showers and provide facilities such as spa treatments (some complimentary and some add on ), saunas and steam rooms are a feature of good Scandinavian lounges also.
Choice and availability of seating, comfort, stylish?
The essentials here would be ease of connectivity/Wi-Fi/power which is enough for you to entertain yourself. But many good lounges go beyond this, and provide amenities like games rooms, pool tables, art, sculptures etc, self playing piano etc etc
There’s an array of things airline can offers customers in a lounge. Sometimes even small thoughtful things help going beyond your standard sterile room feel. Things like fresh flowers, garment presses, waiter service, efficient ordering system, sleeping arrangements, massage, yoga rooms are all things that are offered by airlines.
This may not seem an obvious marker but you only ever notice this when a lounge just happens to be in a very inconvenient location within the airport terminal. Is it easy enough to get to your gates?
Sometimes a lounge may not be accessible at all if you are transiting just by nature of that airport ( I’m looking at you Stockholm! )
| Location: 9 Design: 9.5 Ambience: 9 Seating: 9 Food & Beverage: 8 Showers & Spa: 6 Entertainment: 5 Additional facilities: 6 | This brand new lounge at Athens International Extra Schengen area only opened in 2021. The expansive 1200 metre space boasts beautiful architecture, thoughtful design and layout with strong Aegean branding. It just works and flows effortlessly, creating a great ambience that every good lounge should have. Catering is impressive showcasing local Greek delights. Extensive beverage options with good coffee solidifies this. All in one, it is a surprising entry into my top 10 considering it caters mostly to regional flights! |
| Location: 8 Design: 7 Ambience: 8.5 Seating: 8 Food & Beverage: 8.5 Showers & Spa: 8 Entertainment: 7.5 Additional facilities: 6 | One of two American lounges, which I would have been surprised with 5 years ago ! American Flagship Lounges are the more premium American lounges located in all AA hub locations. This means an elevated experience than Admirals clubs, with great selection and variety of catering and beverage with a Champagne welcome to every lounge! What is even more impressive is, these lounges allow other oneworld Sapphire members in and still somehow manage crowding with an acceptable level. Note: JFK Flagship Lounge has now been rebranded as the “Greenwich Lounge”. I visited again this month and will do an updated review for it. |
| Location: 8 Design: 8 Ambience: 8.5 Seating: 8.5 Food & Beverage: 8 Showers & Spa: 8 Entertainment: 6 Additional facilities: 7 | Iberia is not an airline that made it into my top 10 airlines for Business Class. It’s lounges in Madrid however are impressive and a class above the product offered onboard. The enhanced ground experience here ranges from well designed spaces with a relaxing deco, good food and beverages as well as welcome facilities such as good showers, nap rooms, bar and kids play areas. Tarmac views span the entire length of the lounge and even from the other 2 ends! |
| Location: 8 Design: 9 Ambience: 9 Seating: 8.5 Food & Beverage: 9.5 Showers & Spa: 8.5 Entertainment: 6 Additional facilities: 6 | Qatar is a super premium airline consistently ranked and voted as the world’s best in Business. It’s lounges do not let you down. What is more impressive is these are it’s outstation lounges, which unlike most other airlines give you as consistent a premium experience as possible. Being able to only get in if flying Business or First Class on the day, ensures a level of exclusivity. More intimate service such as full a la carte dining restaurants, more relaxed bars adds to a spa like feels to the whole space. |
| Location: 9 Design: 8.5 Ambience: 9 Seating: 9 Food & Beverage: 9.5 Showers & Spa: 8.5 Entertainment: 6 Additional facilities: 6 | Another outstation lounge, that really impresses, Qantas London Heathrow Lounge. It currently caters for both it’s Business & First Class customers and thus, Qantas has made it’s best efforts to cater to both groups within one space. Here you also have a formal a la carte sit down restaurant, 2 bars and a relaxed but stylish space to actually enjoy yourself before a flight ! I have used Qantas’s Sydney Business Lounge back in 2017 as well as Hong Hong Lounge a few times more recently. Shockingly I found its home flagship super busy and on the shabby side, the whole experience left me wanting that just amongst those 3 it would be ranked 3rd! |
| Location: 9 Design: 8 Ambience: 8 Seating: 8.5 Food & Beverage: 9.5 Showers & Spa: 9 Entertainment: 7.5 Additional facilities: 8 | When United launched it’s excellent Polaris product onboard, the project spanned the bigger spectrum of passenger experience with the Polaris Lounges themselves. Some may be argued it to be even more impressive than it’s onboard cabin. United has eliminated international First Class, yet is tackling two birds in one stone here with some First Class like features on the ground here too. A la Carte fining in the form of the dining, very fancy shower suites with extensive plush amenities, good buffet and bars, it really just has it all! Again crowding can be an issue if you happen to be using it at 6pm on a weekday where all European flights are departing. |
| Location: 9 Design: 8.5 Ambience: 9 Seating: 9.5 Food & Beverage: 9 Showers & Spa: 9 Entertainment: 7 Additional facilities: 8 | Cathay has several good business lounges in its Hong Kong Hub, with The Wing, The Deck and perhaps the main flagship, The Pier Business which is the sister to The Pier First Class lounge. Providing a large linear layout with apron views, every room/area you walk into provides a different type of sanctuary. With deco and upscale furniture throughout to provide you endless choices to relax. The amenities range from bar, spa like showers, tea house, the famous noodle bar, work areas, and quite sleep area. The only thing lacking is a formal a la carte but I believe the catering and rest of the facilities on offer more than make up for this, as the noodle bar is essentially fresh to order. Cathay has a great lounge in London Heathrow too! |
| Location: 9 Design: 9 Ambience: 8 Seating: 8.5 Food & Beverage: 9 Showers & Spa: 9 Entertainment: 8.5 Additional facilities: 9 | Turkish Business lounge is simply an outstanding lounge that sometimes feels like 2/3 lounges all in one. It is big, because it needs to be! Turkish has a one of the largest networks of any international carrier. The architecture is simply stunning, and you will be spoilt for choice with where you want to relax or what fresh local delicacies you want to sample. It’s all there. The facilities are endless. Private Bedrooms for long layovers? Yes. Games and VR experiences? Yes. Kids entertainment? Yes. Free Massages? Yes. Art Gallery? Why not! Despite the size, it can still get rather crowded in the main areas. They unfortunately overlooked some small details such as providing enough handy power points! |
| Location: 9 Design: 9 Ambience: 8.5 Seating: 9 Food & Beverage: 9.5 Showers & Spa: 9 Entertainment: 8.5 Additional facilities: 8 | If I doing this list in 2019/2020, Qatar’s Al Mourjan lounge might have been further down on the list. At peak times it had serious overcrowding issues. Fast forward to 2023, and Qatar now has two Al Mourjan Lounges in it’s Doha base, as well as 2 other frequent flyer lounges. This appears to have mitigated the overcrowding issue and the spaces felt very premium again in my visit just a couple of days ago. The new Al Mourjan Garden is beautiful in the northern part of the airport and provides the same top notch facilities you will find in the original Al Mourjan Business . I would consider both to be at top of the game. |
| Location: 9 Design Ambience: 8.5 Seating: 9.5 Food & Beverage: 9.5 Showers & Spa: 8.5 Entertainment: 9.5 Additional facilities: 8 | Beating Al Mourjan by the tiniest of margins is Virgin Atlantic’s Clubhouse! Virgin Clubhouses have long been the best and fanciest Business Class lounges worldwide and it still holds onto this, just. With good a la carte dining at your fingertips wherever you happen to sit, stylish bars and entertainments galore. It also boast some of the loveliest staff around to pamper you to enjoy your time! Post pandemic there has been some changes however that could impact it’s position going forward. The spa in Heathrow, has now been replaced by a workout room with Pelaton bikes, it’s a nice novelty feature but would have solidified it’s offering if this was in addition to the Spa than a replacement of it. Another thing to note since joining the SkyTeam alliance, the number of eligible guests has increased. We will have to see how this unfolds and changes the experience when the lounge can already feel crowded at times. |
I have rated over 30 of the Best Business Class Lounges all across the world and as you can see, the top 10 do not have the biggest gaps between them. As I acknowledged, rating lounges can be more tricky.
Some people may be feeling lounges are just not what they used to be. Part of this is that they certainly are not the exclusive domain of top class flyers anymore, where every Tom, Dick and Harry can enter. Even some of the worlds biggest airlines can provide a chaotic zoo like experience with a sad food selection and no where to even sit. But that is not the case for any of the ones listed here.
Notable airlines that just missed the spot are Air France lounges in CDG 2E and the stunning lounge at CDG 2F at number 11, and Singapore Airlines SilverKris T3 Lounge made it to position 12. Emirates, Japan Airlines, Finnair and Oman Air also have very good lounges that surprisingly did not make it into this list but are in top 20.
First Class Lounge round up coming soon! What are your thoughts of these 10 lounges? Let me know in comments below 🙂
Faze, founder of Wander Up Front and Elevate Your Stay, is a London-based travel specialist with a deep passion for aviation. With over 2 million miles flown, he has spent the last 7 years focusing on First and Business class experiences.
Faze provides straightforward, no-frills insights into premium airline products and services, sharing what matters to help travellers make informed choices.
Follow him on his adventures and behind the scene stories on Instagram !
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