Background
oneworld has finally launched its first fully branded lounges, after teasing plans for the dedicated facilities in 2019.
The alliance, which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year, debuted its first lounge at Seoul Incheon International Airport’s T1 in January before bringing the concept to Europe the following month.
This 473 sqm facility at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport was created in collaboration with Aspire and designed by local creative studio D/Dock, with capacity for 118 passengers.
The lounge is open daily from 0530-2200 and access is granted to eligible oneworld Emerald and Sapphire customers departing on international flights outside of the Schengen area, as well as first and business class customers travelling with oneworld member airlines.
At the moment eight oneworld member airlines operate nonstop flights to Schiphol – American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia, Qatar Airways, Royal Air Maroc and Royal Jordanian. According to oneworld, member airlines operate more than 200 weekly flights to Amsterdam.
Where is it?
In the non-Schengen departure area of the airport, located between D and E gates.
There’s a sign for the lounges after you pass through the glossy security area – which was super quick on a Sunday evening thanks to the use of new CT scanners where you don’t have to remove your liquids or laptops.
The sign lists oneworld as lounge 40 and Aspire at 41. Descend the escalators, turn right past the Tony’s Chocolonely shop (or stop off for a bar of the delicious Dutch confectionery) and follow signs for lounges 20-41.
Once you reach the Bvlgari shop, there are signs to take the escalator to the first floor where there are a few more outlets. Walk past the Starbucks and there’s two lifts which take you to lounges 40 and 41 on the third floor. Regular BA flyers might recognise the new lounge’s whereabouts, as it is situated on the site of the previous BA lounge which closed following the Covid-19 pandemic.
Both lounges share a reception desk, with the recently redesigned, darker and perhaps more stereotypically business-like Aspire straight ahead and the brighter, more youthful oneworld on the left.
Departure gates for oneworld carriers are no more than ten minutes from the facility – with the time taken to walk to each one helpfully listed on the flight information screen within the lounge.
What's it like?
D/Dock’s design is characterised by soft cylindrical and spherical shapes, both in the furnishings and lighting fixtures, along with a colour scheme of blues and purples which make up oneworld’s branding – plus some pops of pink. The lounge is also flooded with natural light thanks to floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the tarmac.
The arched entrance is designed to pay homage to Amsterdam’s canal bridges, though with the Seoul lounge also featuring such shapes, this seems like a coincidence rather than Amsterdam-inspired. Walking through the archway lined with LED screens feels far more futuristic than wandering around Amsterdam, and culminates at the jazzy centrepiece bar, which is staffed.
The design here is very similar to the sister lounge in Seoul – from the orange cone lights to the ‘gong’ installation – and gives an impression of oneworld’s branding. While this is a smart move, as guests will recognise the lounge wherever they are in the world, I thought it lacked a local feel – I’m a fan of lounges that nod to the area, whether through artwork, photography or cuisine.
That said, bird silhouettes on top of the bar are designed to nod to those in the city, and spherical lighting is meant to resemble those on bridges in Amsterdam.
Mood lighting changes depending on the time of the day, while window blinds can be used if the sun is shining too bright.
There’s a range of seating which is well spread out, with sofas somewhat separating areas in the open-plan space. Guests can pick from individual armchairs to sofas, window-facing loungers and booths – the latter were in high demand due to their private nature. Sofas are divided into spacious sections by armrests (which also have small tables where you can pop some food or drink). Also notable is that the circular tables beside chairs are not fixed in place, so you can move them closer or further from you.
The far-right of the lounge feels a little more active and designed for business mode, offering four booths along with a curved co-working table if you’re not bothered about sharing space. By contrast, the other end of the lounge features lounger-like chairs and has a more ‘relaxation zone’ feel.
There are also two sound-proofed rooms for work calls or meetings – during my visit someone was simply using it to read a book.
I was impressed with the number of USB-A and USB-C ports throughout, as well as European plug sockets (so make sure to bring an adapter). These are built into the furnishings or tables.
The lounge also has male and female toilets – two cubicles in the female toilets – plus a shower room. Additionally, the lounge was clean throughout my visit and staff were regularly taking away plates and wiping down surfaces.
Food and drink
As mentioned above, there is a centrepiece bar area which is staffed and offers cocktails, Champagne, beers on draft and various spirits and mixers.
The lounge has a self-serve buffet area with complimentary food and drink, which includes a few hot dishes, some salads and cold cuts with a large selection of breads (rolls and slices). It’s not a huge spread, but it’s nice to snack on before your flight home.
During my visit, hot dishes included tagliatelle with tomato sauce, meatballs and white rice, and chicken pilau, as well as some party food-style mini quiches (broccoli and stilton; cheese; and quiche Lorraine) and a soup with croutons. For dessert, guests can enjoy Portuguese pastel de nata, mini muffins or a healthier basket of fruit.
I wasn’t hugely impressed with the quality, however. The sliced cheese was quite hard and dry, while the vegetables on offer were rather tasteless. The warm couscous salad, however, was very tasty and I went back for a second plate.
On the beverages side, there were several bottles of wine for guests to serve themselves – from chilled rosé and white wines to room temperature reds (Caillou 2021 Malbec and Forte Alto Merlot 2022). There is also a fridge of soft drinks in glass bottles.
The lounge also has two coffee machines at either end, with tea on offer too, as well as taps for hot and cold water.
Verdict
This new lounge is a great addition to Schiphol airport, and a bonus for travellers flying on oneworld carriers, offering bright and playful design, ergonomic furniture and excellent incorporation of plug sockets and ports throughout.
I found the lounge to offer a calming pre-flight experience, though it could improve on the quality of the buffet food. While it was quiet during my visit, the queue was very long when I departed at around 1845, showing its growing popularity amongst oneworld flyers at a highly connected European hub.
