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You are here: Home / Trips / Chicago Spring 2018 / TRIP REPORT: Cathay Pacific Lounge and American Airlines Lounge (Heathrow T3) – Springing into Chicago

TRIP REPORT: Cathay Pacific Lounge and American Airlines Lounge (Heathrow T3) – Springing into Chicago

06/04/2018 by Kevincm

Springing to Chicago – Cathay Pacific Lounge and American Airlines Lounge (Heathrow Terminal 3)

Chicago Spring Trip Report - Springing into Chicago

  • Here we go… again (in more ways than one)
  • Off to Heathrow
  • Terminal 3 Oneworld Lounges (Cathay Pacific and American Airlines)
  • AA87 London Heathrow T3 to Chicago O’Hare International
  • The joy of US immigration
  • Intercontinental Chicago – Magnificent Mile
  • Travel Tech: Life with a Canon 50mm f1.2 (yes, it’s another walk around Chicago)
  • Hyatt Regency O’Hare
  • Travel Tech: SkullCandy Ink’d Wireless Headphones
  • Airplane Art Special: From the Balcony of the Hyatt Regency O’Hare ** BONUS **
  • Back to O’Hare, The British Airways Business Class lounge
  • BA296 Chicago O’Hare to London Heathrow
  • Delayed Arrivals and Homeward 
  • Short and Sweet

Oneworld Lounge hopping at Heathrow T3

If you’re an oneworld frequent flyer at Heathrow, T3 is the place to go to lounge hop and see how the different lounges perform in a major international hub without crawling too far, with four lounges within spitting distance of each other

  • The Cathay Pacific Lounge
  • The British Airways Galleries
  • The Qantas Lounge
  • The American Airlines lounge.

With the Qantas lounge closed early in the morning (it doesn’t open until 07:55), and the British Airways galleries akin to the in Terminal 5, I chose the Cathay Pacific Lounge (for the food) and the American Airlines lounge (to be closer to the gate when boarding is called)

So first stop: The Cathay Pacific Lounge.

Cathay Pacific Lounge LHR
Lounge C…

Cathay Pacific Lounge LHR
The Cathay brushstroke. 

Last year, I raved about this lounge being one of the best in Heathrow. Does it still deliver on the service standards?

Well, let’s have a lounge tour first.

Cathay Pacific Lounge LHR
Entrance-way

Cathay Pacific Lounge LHR
Seating area 
a dining room with a table and chairs

Food area

Cathay Pacific Lounge LHR
Seating

Cathay Pacific Lounge LHR
Bar area

Cathay Pacific Lounge LHR
Casual seating

My top tip (and if you’re limited on time), when you get into the lounge – order the food you want from the noodle bar. It 1) saves time and 2) allows you to get settled without having to go back-n-forth.

Cathay Pacific Lounge LHR
What to have….?

With the noodles ordered, I headed over to one of the chairs near the food and bar area, stopping for a glass of bubbles on the way. Why? It might be 6am in the morning, but after that wait – I needed something to keep me going.

The view I had for the window showed traffic on the departing runway, taxing traffic, and planes covered in de-icer fluid.

BA A320 Deicing
Now in day-glow green!

Emirates A380

At least it’s not a windowless box – which some lounges do a good impression of sadly.

After a short wait – my noodles and dim sum were ready. What noodles did I choose?

Cathay Pacific Lounge LHR
Prawn Wonton Noodles, Dan-dan Mein and a Char-Sui bao. Yes. All together. It’s called breakfast. And also – not eating the night before.

With this, I tucked into my noodles, and watched the world go by as I charged my new headphones and caught up with a few things in the office that I haven’t had a chance to put to.

Because I’m strangely married to my job. Or just strange.

Take your pick.

There are other catering options too – with an extensive help-your-self section

food in a tray with salads and other food on a counter
Cold items

Cathay Pacific Lounge LHR
Pastries

a group of silver pots and spoons on a counter
Hot items

Cathay Pacific Lounge LHR
Canned beverages.

Whilst the Cathay Lounge is a wonderful place to be – as it only makes announcements for Finnair and Cathay flights, being there when boarding is called for an American Airlines flight to Chicago flight doesn’t make too much sense.

With my headphones charged up, and my out of office assistant finally switched on (that took longer than it needed to – trust me), I filled the water bottle up – and headed on out of the lounge.

Cathay Pacific Lounge LHR
Honestly – I want this tap at home. Cold water, hot water and bubbly water in a single tap… 

I therefore headed out, and headed to the AA lounge.

After passing the Qantas lounge (which was closed sadly, or else I would had tested that), I headed onto the American Airlines lounge (which is below the Virgin Atlantic Club House).

Qantas Lounge
The Qantas lounge – closed… sadly. I’ll have to come back through T3 again to test it. For science.  

Lets head to Lounge H!

American Airlines Lounge Heathrow
Lounge H

American Airlines Lounge Heathrow
The entrance

I was blipped in, and headed into the warm space.

American Airlines Lounge Heathrow

American Airlines Lounge Heathrow
Central Area.

people sitting in chairs in a room
Seats

a group of people sitting in chairs using computers
Business area.

American Airlines Lounge Heathrow
Less attractive views.

After settling into a seat – I could tell I was in an American lounge straight away, with rather the polite hellos, people where whistling to attract attention.

Wonderful.

I took a brief look at the catering options, and opted for the DIY breakfast. Food in the lounge is still done by Rhubarb – and it shows as the quality of the food for a mass catered lounge is pretty high.

American Airlines Lounge Heathrow
Coffee machines.

Well, it beats the pants off a dry BA bacon roll.

American Airlines Lounge Heathrow
Eggs and Bacon

American Airlines Lounge Heathrow
Tomatoes and Mushrooms

American Airlines Lounge Heathrow
Breads and condiments

American Airlines Lounge Heathrow
A small plate for one.

There’s also a reasonable drinks selection as well too.

American Airlines Lounge Heathrow American Airlines Lounge Heathrow
Drinks selections

American Airlines Lounge Heathrow
In honour of Airwaysfoodie 

And something I like in particular – a classic British sweet shop area, with bags to take away.

American Airlines Lounge Heathrow
Sweetie jars!

As I said, I was using this lounge as a staging point before heading to the gate. And around 7:50, the call was made for the Chicago flight. I bagged everything up and headed for Gate 28 – which whilst it doesn’t seem that far away, it’s still a good old hike.

Heathrow T3
To the gate!

At least the travelators are now repaired and working in Terminal 3, which makes a difference… and saves on shoe-leather. A nice touch.

Heathrow T3

Arriving at Gate 28, I was processed by both the gate agents and the security agents – and headed into the holding pen where there was a big green chair no reason that could be explained.

Heathrow T3
Why does this big green thing exist? 

As I arrived, Business Class boarding had just commenced. By the time I shot a picture of the waiting Boeing 787, Group 3 boarding was cleared to begin – my signal to board the plane and start getting the flying part of this trip under way.

American Airlines Boeing 787 Dreamliner

I headed down the jetway, onto my waiting chariot

Next: AA87. The Squeezeliner. What a squeeze...


Welcome to Economy Class and Beyond – Your no-nonsense guide to network news, honest reviews, with in-depth coverage, unique research as well as the humour and madness as I only know how to deliver.

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Filed Under: Chicago Spring 2018, Trip, Trip Reports, Trips

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