With yesterday’s announcement, LAX is certainly on the front foot when it comes to new ground experiences. With both the new Air France and now Virgin Atlantic lounges at Los Angeles International Airport and their unique approaches to luxury, functionality, and aesthetics, there’s plenty of choice available now for SkyTeam passengers.
Air France Lounge: Classic Elegance, Reimagined
The new Air France lounge at LAX exemplifies the brand’s tradition of French elegance while seamlessly integrating modern design elements. Located in the satellite terminal at Tom Bradley International Terminal (TBIT), this space is the first of the two lounges to offer a contemporary retreat from the bustling airport, perfectly designed to provide relaxation and luxury for international travellers.
The Air France lounge follows the continued design aesthetic of the airline’s most recent lounges and it’s a welcome addition to this popular west coast destination. Passengers are greeted by a harmonious blend of sleek, contemporary lines and rich, classic textures. The colour palette is dominated by soft blues, neutral tones, and subtle gold accents, a nod to the airline’s traditional French heritage. The combination of wood, marble, and plush upholstery creates a cozy yet refined atmosphere, exuding warmth and sophistication.
As expected with any modern lounge, there are distinct zones for dining, working, and unwinding. Passengers can choose from intimate seating nooks or more open areas, all bathed in natural light thanks to the floor-to-ceiling windows that frame the apron. The thoughtful use of lighting enhances the serene atmosphere, while curated French artwork adds a cultural touch.
True to the Air France brand, the lounge’s culinary offerings are one of its major highlights. The open kitchen concept allows passengers to watch as chefs prepare gourmet meals, bringing a sense of theatre to the dining experience. Menus are seasonal and focus on classic French cuisine, offering everything from light bites to full meals, paired with an impressive selection of wines and champagnes. There is also a self-service buffet offers a variety of French pastries, salads, and snacks, for a touch of French gastronomy before their flight.
Although nothing compared to its hub offering, the LAX wellness area features private shower suites and a tranquil ambiance, allowing passengers to freshen up.
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Virgin Atlantic Lounge: Bold, Playful, and Iconic
Virgin Atlantic’s new lounge at LAX offers a bold contrast to Air France’s refined approach. Known for pushing the boundaries of airline design, Virgin has created a lounge that is vibrant, eclectic, and brimming with energy. It’s an exciting space designed to reflect the airline’s youthful and dynamic brand identity, all while offering a luxurious pre-flight experience.
Stepping into the Virgin Atlantic lounge, expect to get the same wow factor that you get from virtually every Clubhouse that Virgin has operated. That said there’s clearly a new design aesthetic at play here. Rich jewel tones, metallic accents, and plush textures dominate the design, creating a stylish and contemporary environment that mirror the airline’s latest cabin interiors, albeit a little more bling than we were thinking. The layout is segmented into distinct zones, each offering its own vibe—whether you’re looking to relax, socialise, or catch up on work.
The centrepiece of the lounge is its eye-catching bar, which feels more like a trendy LA hotspot than a traditional airport amenity. The use of mood lighting that sets different scenes throughout the day, there is also sleek furniture and metallic finishes that gives the space a glamorous, almost theatrical feel, perfectly in line with Virgin’s reputation for bold design choices.
Dining in the Virgin Atlantic lounge is an experience unto itself. The menu features fresh, locally sourced ingredients and a variety of options that cater to every palate, from light bites to more indulgent dishes. Vegan and vegetarian offerings are thoughtfully included, reflecting a modern approach to dining that prioritizes inclusivity and sustainability.
The bar, meanwhile, serves up a carefully curated selection of premium wines, spirits, and craft cocktails, offering a sophisticated drink menu that rivals the best lounges worldwide. Whether passengers are looking for a relaxing drink or a full pre-flight meal, the lounge delivers an experience that feels authentically Los Angeles while maintaining Virgin’s signature cool approach to flying from A to B.
Virgin Atlantic’s lounge is designed with a tech-savvy, entertainment-focused traveler in mind. Beyond the usual workstations and Wi-Fi, the lounge features a fully stocked entertainment zone with gaming consoles and large TVs, providing a more engaging way to pass the time. This space, infused with Virgin’s playful spirit, appeals to younger travellers or those simply looking to enjoy themselves before a long flight.
For business travellers, there are private work pods that offer a quiet space to get things done, complete with all the connectivity and power you need. The lounge also features private showers, ensuring that passengers can freshen up before their flight in true Virgin style.
The debut of the Air France and Virgin Atlantic lounges at LAX marks a transformative moment for SkyTeam passengers flying out of Los Angeles. Together, these lounges bring the perfect blend of comfort, style, and functionality to one of the world’s busiest airports, setting a new standard for what premium passengers can expect from an airport experience.
Both lounges are available to SkyTeam passengers, with reciprocal access for those flying on airlines such as Delta, Air France, or Virgin Atlantic. This consistency in luxury and service ensures that passengers traveling on SkyTeam member airlines out of LAX can enjoy world-class amenities before their flights, and for the first time in a long time international SkyTeam members flying from TBIT have an enhanced start to their journey from this west coast hub. Although our only critique is that perhaps these two SkyTeam members should have combined their efforts in creating a larger, more impressive space for both. Perhaps the SkyTeam lounge crawl will become part of LAX’s experience in the same way the Oneworld lounge crawl in Heathrow’s T3 between Qantas and Cathay has become a bit of a sub-culture too.
As I do every year, I ask on your kind support to keep things going. If you are able to donate – whatever amount – it all gets funnelled back in to the site, to keep the site full of content. And I thank you personally for your kind support.