What Liked
- Excellent food
- Complimentary alcohol including champagne
- Showers
- Modern decor
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This review is for the American Airlines Arrivals Lounge on Heathrow Terminal 3.
The American Airlines Arrivals Lounge is different to the departures lounge. It’s located in the arrivals hall, after you collect your baggage. It’s designed to allow you to get something to eat and freshen up, after a long haul flight.
This will be new to readers in the US. As you don’t have arrivals lounges there!
The American Airlines Arrivals Lounge at Heathrow is excellent. It’s a square room with a buffet counter on one side. There is hot food in the buffet and from an a la carte menu.
Both the buffet food and a la carte dishes were really nice. Properly made food.
There were also showers for you to freshen up. There is complimentary alcohol, including champagne.
The decor was modern and classy.
I arrived off a long American Airlines flight with a slight headache and not much in my stomach. The American Airlines Arrivals Lounge at Heathrow turned that around in about twenty minutes. Tucked up on the second floor of Terminal 3, it's the kind of welcome you don't get back home in the US. A proper sit-down, a hot meal, and a cup of tea before you face London.
Here's the part that sold me. There's an a la carte menu on top of the buffet, and my avocado on toast was so good I ordered it three times. The sacrifices I make for the readers. My daughter went for the pancakes, there's complimentary champagne if you ask, and showers to scrub off the flight. Open 6.30am to 2.30pm, so it's a morning-arrivals affair.
One honest catch before you get excited. You can't just wander in. It's for same-day arrivals in American's Flagship cabins, top-tier AAdvantage and oneworld Emerald members, or anyone landing on a British Airways business or first ticket. Below, I'll walk you through exactly who gets into the American Airlines Arrivals Lounge at Heathrow.
If this lounge is out of reach on your next trip, Priority Pass opens up over 1,700 others worldwide for around $26 a visit, and the Heathrow Express will whisk you into central London for £10 with kids going free. Both are on my recommended resources page, and both have saved me a small fortune.
The American Airlines Arrivals Lounge Heathrow is in Terminal 3. Once you go through immigration and collect your baggage, you get to the arrivals hall.
Follow the signs and take the lift to the 2nd floor. From there, you can enter the lounge.
Heathrow Terminal 3 is the home of American Airlines at Heathrow, and where a lot of the long-haul oneworld traffic lands. So if you've just stepped off a Flagship flight from the States, this is the building you'll find yourself in. No security to clear on the way in — you're coming the other direction, straight off the plane and through the border.
Because it's an arrivals lounge, the walk isn't from a departures security lane. It's a short hop up from baggage reclaim. Once you're in the arrivals hall, the lift up is quick — you're at the door in a couple of minutes, headache and all.
One thing worth setting your expectations on. This isn't a terminal where you can lounge-hop on the same ticket. The arrivals lounge sits on its own in the public area before security, so there's no second lounge to wander into next door the way there is up in departures. You get the one. Frankly, after a long-haul flight, one good lounge with a hot breakfast and a shower is all I wanted anyway.
A walk along the South Bank
The best thing I did in London cost me nothing. Walk the South Bank along the Thames, from Westminster down towards Tower Bridge. You get Big Ben, the London Eye, the river, and a proper feel for the city without spending a penny. Do it in the morning before the crowds thicken.
London in a Day: Tower of London, Westminster & River Cruise
If you only have one day and want it done properly, book your spot here. It's $128, rated 4.8* from over 900 reviews, and it bundles the Tower of London, Westminster and a river cruise into one go. Honest catch — it's a long, tiring day on your feet. But you'll tick off the big hitters without working out the logistics yourself.
London Borough Market & London Bridge Food Tour
For something tastier, you can book here. It's $115, rated 4.96* from over 670 reviews, and you eat your way round Borough Market with a local guide. Come hungry. Skip breakfast and let the tastings do the work.
London Top 30 Sights Walking Tour
On a budget? Buy tickets here. Just $26, rated a near-perfect 4.97* from nearly 800 reviews, and a small-group guide walks you past 30-plus sights. Brilliant value. The only thing it won't do is get you inside the paid attractions — but for an orientation on day one, it's hard to beat.
American Airlines passengers: you can get into the American Airlines Arrivals Lounge at Heathrow if you arrive on a same-day flight in Flagship® First, Flagship® Business Plus, or Flagship® Business.
Also, AAdvantage Executive Platinum®, AAdvantage Platinum Pro®, ConciergeKey® members, and oneworld® Emerald? status holders are eligible.
If you arrive on a British Airways business class or first class flight, you can also get in.
Below are the ways through the door at the American Airlines Arrivals Lounge:
So it's not a wander-in-off-the-street kind of place. You need the right cabin, the right status, or the right ticket.
So does American Airlines have an arrivals lounge at Heathrow? Yes. The American Airlines Arrivals Lounge Heathrow sits in Terminal 3, and it's there for arriving passengers rather than departing ones. You'll get through the door if you've landed in a Flagship cabin, hold oneworld Emerald status, or arrived on a British Airways business or first ticket.
One thing worth flagging before you bank on it. The lounge runs from 6.30am to 2.30pm. Land mid-afternoon and the door stays shut, so check those hours against your inbound flight.
The Lounge Access with Priority Pass
If that list rules you out on your next trip, don't despair. Priority Pass is the way I get into lounges, and there's a tie-up where you can Signup here and get a 30% discount.
The cheapest membership is £69. Standard Plus is £183 a year and gives you 10 free visits. That works out at £18.30 a visit. For hot food, a few drinks and a quiet seat of your own.
Unlimited membership costs £377 a year and unlocks over 1,800 lounges worldwide. Which is pretty cool if you fly a lot.
For me, a lounge beats buying food in the terminal every time. Wagamama at Heathrow will charge you the best part of £15 for a main and another £6 for a drink. A proper meal and a couple of rounds before your flight, and you're easily £60 down with the service charge.
One honest catch. Priority Pass lounges get busy, and they can turn you away when they're full. I now pay £7 to pre-book a timeslot, which guarantees my spot.
Heathrow is well covered too. There are several other Priority Pass lounges spread across the terminals, so your membership unlocks plenty of options before you fly out again, not just on the way in.
The American Airlines Arrivals Lounge Heathrow is open from 6.30am to 2.30pm. It’s a small square shaped room. There is a buffet on one side of the lounge. There is hot food and tea/coffee served here.
The seating is low style lounge seating and restaurants style tables and chairs. The lounge seating had power sockets too.
There is also one Mac computer in the lounge.
The decor of the lounge was really nice. Modern and fresh. The seats were all made of leather and in good condition.
One thing worth knowing for planning: those opening times hold the same every day, with no later evening session and no weekend variation to catch you out. The American Airlines Arrivals Lounge Heathrow is built around the morning rush of long-haul flights from the States, so if your flight lands early you're golden — turn up mid-afternoon and the door's already shut. Frankly, that's the one timing detail I'd double-check against your inbound flight before counting on a hot breakfast.
Worth knowing this is an arrivals lounge, so it won't help you on the way out. If you're flying off rather than landing, the BA lounge in Terminal 3 is the one I'd point you to before your flight.
Step inside and the American Airlines Arrivals Lounge at Heathrow feels modern and calm, a world away from the strip-light interrogation of a normal terminal. There are showers to scrub off the flight, comfortable seating to actually sink into, and the kind of quiet that lets you reset before London.
The food really stood out. It was terrific.
There were 3 hot dishes in the buffet. Roast vegetables, chicken and penne pasta.
There was also some sandwiches, cheese, cold cuts, cinnamon buns and toast.
Everything looked really good. I didn’t eat from the buffet as they had an a la carte menu. With the following options
My daughter had the pancakes. I had the avocado on toast. Both were very good.
My avocado on toast was so good, that I had 3 of them. It came with tomato and chilli salsa.
The buffet had tea and coffee. The tea selection was from clipper. I had an English Breakfast tea. Which was good
There was also complimentary alcohol. I think you had to ask the lady to serve it to you. The menu mentioned Bloody Mary and champagne.
I assume they also had a full range of beers, wines and spirits.
Complimentary champagne is a lovely touch, but if you want the gold standard for drinks at Heathrow, my Virgin lounge at Heathrow review shows what one of the best business class lounges in the world pours.
Drinks at the American Airlines Arrivals Lounge at Heathrow are complimentary, and yes, that includes champagne if you ask for it. After an overnight flight a cold glass while the jet lag wears off feels borderline spiritual. There's tea and coffee too, if you'd rather steady yourself with a proper cuppa before heading into London.
I’m so glad I came here. I hadn’t eaten much on my American Airlines flight. And I had a slight headache.
I came to the American Airlines Arrivals Lounge Heathrow. I got a decent meal and a cup of tea. And felt much better.
It’s a small lounge that has everything you need after a long flight. Great food, complimentary alcohol and showers.
If you're landing at Heathrow Terminal 3 in a Flagship cabin, with oneworld Emerald status, or off a British Airways business or first ticket, the American Airlines Arrivals Lounge Heathrow is a genuine reason to set your alarm for an early arrival. The 6.30am to 2.30pm window is the one thing I'd check against your inbound flight. Land mid-afternoon and you'll be looking at the closed door, not the avocado on toast.
If you don't have the status or the ticket to get in, don't sulk about it. A Priority Pass membership opens up over 1,700 lounges worldwide for around $26 a visit, and it's saved me a small fortune over the years. Grab one through my link before your next trip. But if you can get through this particular door after a long-haul flight, take it. A hot breakfast, a proper cup of tea and a shower. That's all I wanted, and that's exactly what I got.
If this has you wanting to make the airport bit nicer every time, have a look at my guide to Heathrow airport lounges with Priority Pass — it walks you through the options and a 30% saving that's pretty hard to argue with.
So would I send you to the American Airlines Arrivals Lounge Heathrow? Honestly, yes. The food was the standout — a proper a la carte menu sitting on top of the buffet, which you don't always get in an arrivals lounge. The decor's modern and fresh, the leather seats are in good nick, and there are power sockets where you actually need them.
One honest catch before you bank on it. It's a morning lounge. The door shuts mid-afternoon, so if your inbound from the States lands late, this won't be the welcome you were hoping for. Check your landing time first. Get that right, and it's a lovely place to reset after an overnight redeye.