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Review: the Plaza Premium Arrivals Lounge at London Heathrow airport’s Terminal 2

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This is my review of the Plaza Premium Arrivals Lounge at London Heathrow Terminal 2.

This is part of our series of reviews of airport lounges across the UK. You see all of the reviews here.

Regular HfP readers might recall my visit to the Plaza Premium Arrivals Lounges at Heathrow Terminal 4 and Terminal 3 a few weeks ago.

The Plaza Premium Arrivals Lounge at T4 (click for review) opened earlier this year and the Arrivals Lounge at T3 (click for review), in the old Delta space, had only been open for a couple of weeks when I was saw it.

As I had some spare time after seeing those two lounges, I also asked to see the older Plaza Premium Arrivals Lounge in Heathrow Terminal 2.  Three years ago Rob was invited to the opening party and he wrote a brief review then, but we hadn’t covered it since.

The Plaza Premium Arrivals Lounge at Heathrow Terminal 2 is located next to the exit from the customs area.  It is far easier to reach than the Terminal 4 (up the lift or escalator to the mezzanine) and Terminal 3 (outside the terminal) lounges.

What’s interesting is that Plaza Premium seems to have a different focus for each one of their Heathrow arrivals lounges.  Whereas the lounge at Terminal 3 focuses on showers and a quick breakfast and the lounge at Terminal 4 concentrates on dining, the arrivals lounge at Terminal 2 is focused more on relaxation with a huge spa area.

Plaza Premium Arrivals Lounge Heathrow Terminal 2 review

The lounge area seems very small with a bar and just a couple of tables.

Plaza Premium Arrivals Lounge Heathrow Terminal 2 review

However, there is more on offer than it first appears – the bar serves a good selection of food to order as well as the expected soft and alcoholic drinks.

Plaza Premium Arrivals Lounge Heathrow Terminal 2 review

The spa area is located behind the bar and can be accessed through a door next to the reception.

There are 8 shower rooms and several treatment rooms which can also be used as day sleeping rooms.  A 30 minutes massage for costs £45 whilst using the resting suite for 3 hours costs £60.

Plaza Premium Arrivals Lounge Heathrow Terminal 2 review

The lounge is open from 5am until 10pm and access for 1 hour costs £25 (2 hours costs £35).  You can pre-book via the Plaza Premium website here.

It can also be accessed using Priority Pass or a Lounge Club card.  You can also get in by showing your American Express Platinum card due to their deal with Plaza Premium, even if you have forgotten your Priority Pass.  One off visits can be pre-booked via the Lounge Pass website.  You can also use the lounge purely to take a shower for £15.

Conclusion

The Plaza Premium Arrivals Lounge at Heathrow T2 looks worth a visit when flying into Terminal 2.  The lounge is not the largest, but has a good food and drink selection as well as impressive-looking spa facilities.

It is also potentially an option if you are picking someone up from the airport, especially if you have a Priority Pass, although the lounge has been asking to see a boarding pass at busy periods.  This is not the case with the Terminal 4 or Terminal 3 arrivals lounges.

After seeing all three Plaza Premium arrivals lounges, I’m now keen to see what they can rustle up for the – opening in just a few weeks – departure lounge in Terminal 5.

You can find out more on the Plaza Premium website’s Heathrow page here.

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Getting airport lounge access for free from a credit card

How to get FREE airport lounge access via UK credit cards (April 2025)

Here are the five options to get FREE airport lounge access via a UK credit card.

The Platinum Card from American Express comes with two free Priority Pass cards, one for you and one for a supplementary cardholder. Each card admits two so a family of four gets in free. You get access to all 1,500 lounges in the Priority Pass network – search it here.

You also get access to Eurostar, Lufthansa and Delta Air Lines lounges.  Our American Express Platinum review is here.

You can apply here.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold is FREE for the first year. It comes with a Priority Pass card loaded with four free visits to any Priority Pass lounge – see the list here.

Additional lounge visits are charged at £24.  You get four more free visits for every year you keep the card.  

There is no annual fee for Amex Gold in Year 1 and you get a 20,000 points sign-up bonus.  Full details are in our American Express Preferred Rewards Gold review here.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard gets you get a free Priority Pass card, allowing you access to the Priority Pass network.  Guests are charged at £24 although it may be cheaper to pay £60 for a supplementary credit card for your partner.

The card has a fee of £290 and there are strict financial requirements to become a HSBC Premier customer.  Full details are in my HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard review.

HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard

A good package, but only available to HSBC Premier clients Read our full review

Got a small business?

If you have a small business, consider American Express Business Platinum which has the same lounge benefits as the personal Platinum card:

American Express Business Platinum

50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

You should also consider the Capital on Tap Pro Visa credit card which has a lower fee and, as well as a Priority Pass for airport lounge access, also comes with Radison Rewards VIP hotel status:

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review

PS. You can find all of HfP’s UK airport lounge reviews – and we’ve been to most of them – indexed here.

Category

General

Comments (29)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • mike says:
    13 Sep13 September 03:43

    Any update when the T5 departure lounge will open?

  • HAM76 says:
    13 Sep13 September 05:27

    I’ve been asked for a boarding pass in all three of them when I made my lounge trip across Heathrow two weeks ago. At that time the lounges where virtually empty with me being the only guest in T3, one of three in T4 and maybe a dozen in T2.

    • Clive says:
      13 Sep13 September 07:58

      I’ve been asked for a boarding pass at the T4 one too – don’t know why the review states otherwise with such conviction 🙂

      • Rob says:
        13 Sep13 September 08:56

        Because I was in the T4 lounge yesterday (see Instagram) and was not asked! (And didn’t have ……)

        • Danny says:
          13 Sep13 September 10:01

          I was also in T4 on Monday and no BP was asked for.

          • Simon Schus says:
            13 Sep13 September 17:06

            As a datapoint: I was asked for a boarding pass at T2, T3 and T4 in the past two weeks – even when the T3 lounge was empty! (3 people).

            I’ve also had times recently where I haven’t been asked in T2- generally though, I’ve been asked.

  • David says:
    13 Sep13 September 06:58

    Do they charge for any of the food and drinks, including alcohol?

    • Andrew says:
      13 Sep13 September 09:43

      They charge for premium alcoholic drinks. The last two times I ate there I had terrible food poisoning. A colleague visiting a different time had the and experience. Needless to say I gave up on the place!

  • Chris says:
    13 Sep13 September 09:12

    Are we talking boarding passes for flights arriving into that specific terminal?

    Are they scanned?

    • The_real_a says:
      13 Sep13 September 11:33

      No, any same day boarding pass is fine. I often use the arrivals lounge BEEFORE my flight. No issues.

      • Simon Schus says:
        13 Sep13 September 17:07

        Ditto. Mostly because the T3 lounge offers a quiet room for making phone calls which is something that I’ve found difficult to find airside.

    • HAM76 says:
      14 Sep14 September 20:55

      I was on a BA flight into/from T5 and could get into any of the arrival lounges. It’s a different matter if you want ro access a departure lounge.

  • Nick M says:
    13 Sep13 September 09:48

    If accessing with Amex Plat, do they just look at it?

    • Simon Schus says:
      13 Sep13 September 17:11

      No, they swipe the card: and then they are prompted for the geographical issuer of the card (e.g. UK AMEX, Hong Kong AMEX etc). In some cases, the process of swiping the AMEX and choosing the origin/type of card took longer than the Priority Pass. Nothing appeared on my bank statement though (not even a ‘zero charge’) so I guess this is just some way of the lounge charging AMEX for access, or even just for statistical collection purposes if AMEX pays a lump sum per year for blanket access.

      • Roger says:
        14 Sep14 September 04:58

        I used amex platinum at Amex lounge in Delhi.
        was asked to verify with PINS entry and can see 2p charge on my card.

    • HAM76 says:
      14 Sep14 September 20:58

      In T3 they swiped my Amex and I was asked to sign on the screen.

  • Leigh says:
    13 Sep13 September 09:51

    Never used arrival lounge before. My next return flight arrives at T5 (5am), too early for my train journey, so could make use of the arrival lounge. Would I be able to use arrival lounge at other terminals as there is none at T5?

  • Koshka says:
    13 Sep13 September 12:22

    I eat lunch there quite often when I arrive. There are usually 2-3 starter, main and dessert options. Typically soup / salad then chicken curry, chicken stew and a veggie option. The service can vary greatly which is weird given there’s usually only 2-3 guests. I’ve lost count of the number of times that they’ve forgotten to bring water or tea over even though I’d happily wait at the bar for it. No food poisoning but they once conducted what sounded like a very aggressive exit interview with a member of staff right next to me.

  • Optimus Prime says:
    13 Sep13 September 14:28

    OT – Gatwick is packed on a Wednesday afternoon… have struggled to find a seat in the BA lounge!

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

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