Airport lounge review - No. 1 Lounge, Gatwick Airport North Terminal, London, UK

If you’re flying from the North Terminal of London’s Gatwick airport you have three choices for lounges if you don’t have an airlines membership that allows you access to one of the airline’s own lounges.

If you don’t have a frequent flyer card that gets you access to a lounge for free you have three choices: No. 1 Lounge, Aspire, My Lounge.

I had a brief look at all three and decided to go for the largest one, No. 1 Lounge. The good news is I can recommend this lounge. It was an excellent experience.

There semi-circular bar offers free drinks (except champagne) and a choice of meals with a sports bar themed area with comfy seats on the lower level. The main lounge has newspapers and good wifi which has a view of the runway and a buffet area with coffee, juice and light snack, although the snacks all seemed to be various types of sugary treats, not my thing. Beyond that is a dining area.

A really nice touch is the next room, which is a library and is set up as an area for work that’s quiet and equipped with power stations and newspapers. Here’s the official list of facilities:

• Complimentary hot and cold freshly prepared food
• Fully tended bar serving complimentary premium British beers and award winning wines
• Great views of the runway
• Free, unlimited wifi and games, including kid’s packs
• Sports bar showing all major sporting events (apparently, although I doubt they show all of them!)
• Newspapers and glossy magazines to take onto your flight
• Complimentary access to Premium Security when you book through No1lounges.com

Sports Bar

You can arrive three hours before your flight and can purchase additional time if your flight is delayed. Access is free with Priority Pass but if you have no membership, you’ll have to pay. Lounge entry for adults is £28 if you book in advance or £35 at the door without booking. Children (2-11) are £16 each and infants go free.

A word of warning, you can only book the lounge that’s in the terminal from which you’re flying. So, don’t book the South Terminal lounge if you’re flying from the North.

The lounge is located after security on the ground floor of the departure lounge towards gates 101 - 113.