No. 1 Lounge Gatwick North Review 1

 No.1 Lounge Gatwick North review

Gatwick North terminal in London is not the best airport for top business class lounges. Apart from the Emirates and Virgin Atlantic lounge there isn’t much to choose from. Qatar Airways uses the terrible Club Aspire Lounge for its business class customers at Gatwick. Avoid at all costs. The No.1 lounge Gatwick North is quite a decent offering. The No.1 lounge is also in the Priority Pass program. This means that entry to the lounge can be paid for and therefore is not that exclusive.

Quick Index no. 1 lounge Gatwick

                                  

 the number 1 lounge Gatwick Location

After passport control you go down into the ‘Lounge Pavillion’ area. Gatwick North is not a large terminal building. You cannot get lost. Just follow the signs for airport lounges.

No.1 Lounge Gatwick North review signs to lounges
After immigration, turn left, look up and follow the signs.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review lounge signs
Look up and follow the signs for lounges.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review lounge signs
Gatwick North terminal in London is not big. Keep following the signs for your business class lounge experience.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review lounge signs
Premium lounges await at Gatwick North terminal. Keep walking!
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review lounge signs
When you get to the lifts, or elevators, for our American friends, choose your lounge                           

                                

number 1 lounge class dress code

They say it’s  a smart casual dress code for this lounge. However people are wearing jeans, shorts, track suit pants/bottoms and T shirts. There are a few people wearing shirts, but, the majority of people are wearing casual clothes. Not many people wear ‘business’ clothes in business class anymore.                                                                                                                                

                                

Who can Get in 

Anyone can get in since the No.1 Lounge is a paid lounge too. It is part of the Priority Pass Program. So if you have a few hours to kill you can pay $30 US to get in. There is a time restriction of 3 hours for the lounge when it’s busy. Pre-booking is possible. Opening times are daily 04:00 to 22:00.

                                

Seating in the no.1 lounge Gatwick

The lounge is spacious. There’s a big bar area and a separate dining area. In addition there is a library area with comfortable sofas and bench style seating. Don’t miss your flight by sitting near the big TV, adjacent to the bar area.

No.1 lounge Gatwick North review dining table area only1invillage
Feel like you’re in a restaurant at the dining tables in the No1. Lounge, Gatwick North.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review seating only1invillage
Padded comfortable bar stools to help you prop up the bar!
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review seating bench seating only1invillage
If it is daytime you can eat and watch the planes from the bench type seating.

No.1 lounge Gatwick North review sofas only1invillage

There’s a quiet area outside the library area with a comfortable long sofa.

No.1 lounge Gatwick North review sofas outside main area only1invillage
If you don’t want to sit with people inside the lounge, head outside, near the entrance door.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review seating the quiet library area only1invillage
Studded sofas in the library area of the No.1 Lounge, Gatwick North, London.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review quiet corner in the library only1invillage
Relax in the quiet corner of the library on an armchair, in the No.1 Lounge.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review TV area
Don’t miss your flight! Sit in the TV area to remind yourself of your boarding time.                                                                                             

                                

Bathrooms and Showers number 1 lounge Gatwick

This is an easy part of the review. There are not any showers!!! The toilets are however reasonably glamourous. They contain L’occitane hand soap which is a leading French cosmetics brand. The toilets have shiny black tiles and are modern.

No.1 lounge Gatwick North review
There are toilets , but, no showers in the No1. Lounge at Gatwick North terminal, London.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review toilets
Each toilet cubicle is shiny and modern.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review hand wash
High end hand wash and lotion by L’occitane in the No.1 Lounge wash rooms.

                              

Food and Beverages at the number 1 lounge Gatwick

The food and beverages consist of hot and cold dishes. There are also some pretzel like snack foods. All the food is arranged in one central area, with options to take your food all over the lounge. There are small round bar tables to eat at, long communal benches or formal dining tables.

No.1 lounge Gatwick North revie food central areaw
The food is in the centre of the lounge.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review food central only1invillage
The food options are laid out in the central area, after the bar in the No.1 Lounge.                           

                              

The Dinner

We visit at dinner time. The hot food doesn’t look great, it is all a bit brown. There are some salads and vegetables to brighten up the spread.

No.1 lounge Gatwick North review dinner time only1invillage
Buffet style food is pretty standard at most business class lounges. There’s no a la carte service at the No.1 Lounge, Gatwick North terminal London.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review hot food buffet options for dinner only1invillage
Chicken chasseur, macaroni cheese, lentil and root vegetable ragu and garlic and rosemary roast potatoes. Help yourself. Whilst not the most appetising to look at, it is a lot better than what’s on offer in the Club Aspire Lounge.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North re view salad selection cold food only1invillage
Lighten and brighten up your meal with some salad selections.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review dessert at dinner time only1invillage
Finish off your meal with a selection of desserts.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review help yourself nibble snacks only1invillage
If you’re not too hungry and only want a nibble, snack on these tasty offerings.
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review dinner plated up only1invillage
Here is the dinner plated up. We try to make it look elegant! There’s a bit of mac n’ cheese, a roast potato, some lentil ragu and a blob of chicken chasseur.

                              

The beverages

The bar area is comfortable and has three beers on tap.

No.1 lounge Gatwick North review beverages available beer on tap
Amstel, Indie and Stowford Press are your beer selections on tap at the No.1 Lounge Gatwick North, London.

There is a bar person to fix you a cocktail.The selection of alcohol is pretty much like the selection in other Priority Pass lounges, like the one in Bangkok we have also reviewed.

No.1 lounge Gatwick North review beverages available beer on tap
Prop yourself up at the bar before your flight. Your friendly bar tender is there to assist.

The tea selection is pretty standard. Black tea and herbal teas by Twinings. You can get hot water from the coffee machines which are next to the tea bags.

No.1 lounge Gatwick North review beverages available Twinings tea selection only1invillage
Twinings is an English beverages company specialising in tea. Good tea at a British airport!
No.1 lounge Gatwick North review beverages available tea hot water and coffee machines only1invillage
You can get hot water only from the coffee machines. The coffee machines deliver ok lattes and cappucinos.

The coffee machines make ok cappucino and lattes.

Soft drinks are available too. Some mystery juice is on offer.

No.1 lounge Gatwick North review fizzy drinks and mystery juice only1invillage
There are some self serve soft drinks, including mystery juice in the No.1 Lounge Gatwick North.

Wifi and charging stations

The wifi wasn’t working and no one knew the password!  The computer stations outside the lounge were not working either.

No.1 lounge Gatwick North review computer stations only1invillage
They look nice, but, they were not working and no one even knew the password! Tut tut.

The grumpy staff member on the door telephoned someone and they had no idea. That’s a real strike against a lounge. Wi-fi that works is a minimum expectation for travellers.

No.1 lounge Gatwick North review charging stations only1invillage
You can charge your devices in the library area, but, don’t count on the wi-fi working!                                                        

                              

Final Thoughts on the no. 1 lounge Gatwick

No.1 lounge Gatwick North review only1invillage
The No.1 Lounge just might be the top choice for paid lounges at London’s Gatwick North airport.

Here’s a summary of what you get and what you don’t in the No.1 lounge at Gatwick North terminal in London.

There’s natural light, which always makes you feel less claustrophobic when on lower levels of an airport terminal. However, since we visit at night we don’t feel the benefit of sunlight.

The lounge is a reasonable size, unlike the Club Aspire Lounge we visit on the same day. There’s enough space to feel like you’re getting away from the crowded terminal.

Adding some showers would be a great idea, in our humble opinion.

Although the food isn’t anywhere near gourmet standard, at least it is edible! That isn’t to say that it is tasty, it is palatable if you’re hungry. The drinks selection is what we expect from a Priority Pass Lounge, this being our third worldwide lounge in the program. The Bangkok Miracle First Class Lounge has far better food, even offering 5 made to order dishes which were good. Click here to read about the Bangkok Miracle First Class Lounge.

Most importantly, in the 21st century, everyone wants wi-fi that works. 

Related Articles 

No. 1 Lounge Gatwick North Review 4

VILLAGE NEWS!

Subscribe to our newsletter to hear about unique travel destinations, when to go, what to see and other top travel tips!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You may use these HTML tags and attributes:

<a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>