Other reports from this trip –
Introduction: Christmas in Hawaii
Report: Heathrow and the Concorde Room
Review: British Airways A321neo in Economy
Review: Hilton Amsterdam Schiphol Airport
Review: British Airways lounge, Amsterdam Schiphol
Review: British Airways A320 in Club Europe
Review: British Airways 777 in First Class
Review: American Airlines A321 Transcon in First Class
Review: Hilton LAX Airport
Review: Hilton Grand Vacations, Grand Islander, Honolulu
Review: SouthWest Airlines in Economy
Review: Hilton Garden Inn, Kauai
Review: Hilton Grand Vacations, Kingsland, Waikoloa
Review: British Airways lounge, Boston
Review: British Airways 747 in Club World
Review: Hilton Budapest
Introduction
Sunday morning and the start of our trip was finally here! Well, the start of the start of our trip, really. Today we’ll be travelling to Amsterdam and staying overnight, before really starting the long trek to Hawaii tomorrow. I love any excuse to travel so I was really looking forward to this one.
The trip started with a tube ride to Heathrow, on the Piccadilly Line, which is the easiest way for us to get to the airport from home. It takes just over an hour so we generally get on-board, switch our iPads on and get engrossed in some film or tv series, so the time passes quickly
On this trip, I was watching The Good Place, a light hearted series on Netflix about getting into Heaven. I’m not sure what my chances are of getting in there, but I really hope they have first class seats!
We arrived at terminal 5 shortly after 2pm for our 4.30 flight to Amsterdam, with the intention of heading to the Concorde Room for a quick lunch before flying. Although we were flying to Amsterdam in economy, we get access to the Concorde Room on the basis of having a Concorde Room Card, earned by reaching 5,000 Executive Club tier points in a year.
The airport was quite quiet and looking very Christmassy!
In this post…
The First Wing
The Concorde Room is in the South Lounge Complex in Heathrow’s Terminal 5. As British Airways Executive Club gold card holders, we are able to use the First Wing, British Airways’ premium check in and security lane. As is most often the case, both check in and security were very quiet so we were airside in minutes.
The First Wing takes you directly into BA’s Galleries First lounge, which is on the same level as, and just a short walk from, the Concorde Room.
We quickly passed through the lounge and headed across the wintry looking corridor to the Concorde Room Entrance.
The Concorde Room
We entered the lounge to the sound of live piano music, something BA introduced a couple of years back, which I really like.
As always, we were greeted by various staff members as we walked in, many of who have become friends over our years of having access. One of the benefits of the CCR that I like most is the dedicated team working in there. As a regular visitor you get to know them well, which makes each visit feel like a reunion.
The lounge was fairly quiet so we had our choice of seats. We headed straight to the bar and went wild – I had a sparkling water and Danielle had a cup of tea. Danielle hasn’t been well recently and is avoiding alcohol so I was doing my best to be supportive. It wasn’t easy, knowing that there were many bottles of chilled Laurent Perrier on the other side of the bar!
With a couple of hours until our flight, we decided to go through to the dining room for some lunch. One of the up / downsides of being a CCR regular is that the team working in there get to know what you like. I was offered a glass of champagne by seven different staff members while waiting for my starter, which tested my resolve to the limit! I’m pleased to say that I resisted. The nip on the thigh from Danielle each time probably helped…
The menu changes every month in the Concorde Room, with one starter and one main being removed and replaced. This is the December 2019 menu.
I ordered the goats cheese tart as a starter and we both had the ox cheek main course. We also ordered a mac & cheese to share. I find the food in the Concorde Room can be a bit hit or miss at times, but these were all delicious.
After lunch I went to have a look out on the Concorde Room terrace. It has great views over the apron and out to the runway and, with floor to ceiling windows, it feels very bright and airy.
British Airways introduced afternoon tea to the Concorde Room last year, but it’s rare that I pass through in the afternoon and even more rare that I have time to have a wander around. This trip just happened to coincide with afternoon tea being put out so I thought I’d take some photos to let you see what it’s like. Personally, I was very impressed. I hope you like it too.
The afternoon tea in the Concorde Room is very ‘British’, with crust-less sandwiches, trays of cakes, and scones with jam and clotted cream (jam first, of course!). Pots of tea and bottles of champagne are also left out for self service. I was really quite impressed. While I was still on my eternal diet, I did sneak a mini eclair and it was delicious.
Boarding
All too soon it was time to head to the gate for our flight to Amsterdam so we said our goodbyes and left the lounge, knowing we’d be back there tomorrow.
Our flight was leaving from gate A12, situated behind the main World Duty Free shop and just a short walk from the Concorde Room. The quickest way to get there is to cut through the duty free area, so we turned right at the MAC counter and arrived at the gate with boarding in full flow.
There was a small crowd in front of us, but group boarding was being well managed and the group 1 lane was empty so we headed straight through, with Danielle busy chatting on her phone…
Next stop, Amsterdam…
