Review: Copa Club Bogota Airport, Colombia

In this review we will check out the Copa Club business lounge at Bogota Airport in Colombia.

Bogotá Airport

After an all too short (but fun!) one-day stopover in Bogotá it was time to head back to the airport to fly on to my real destination this trip: Panama.

My flight from Bogotá El Dorado Airport to Panama City would be operated by Copa Airlines, the Panamanian flag carrier which is part of Star Alliance. Although I had already managed to check-in online, I still headed straight to the Copa check-in desk once I arrived at the airport to get a proper boarding pass.

The check-in area was neatly organised with one queue for general check-in, one for baggage drop-off for those who already checked in online, and finally a queue for business class passengers and Star Alliance gold members. Having Star Alliance gold status with Turkish Airlines, I could therefore use the latter lane.

Although the rather long general queue barely seemed to move at all, there was fortunately only one person ahead of me in the priority queue, who seemed to take an awful lot of time to check-in all his bags.

When the check-in agent at one of the other desks cleared her passenger, she whisked me over instead of the next-in-line in the general queue, which was a nice touch. Within a few seconds I had my boarding pass in hand and made my way to security and passport control.

Terminal

At this late afternoon hour, there were barely any queues for security and passport control at Bogotá Airport and I was airside in minutes.

Bogotá El Dorado Airport seemed to be a modern and rather pleasant place. The terminal looked bright, clean and there were plenty of opportunities to shop around or to sit down at a cafe for a bite or drink.

I however headed straight to the Copa Club, Copa Airlines’ own business lounge at the airport. It took however quite a while to find the lounge as it was poorly signposted.

After walking around for a while I gave up and just went online to check up the exact lounge location (on the mezzanine level at the bottom of the escalators across from gate 45) – which of course turned out to be at the other far end of the terminal where I was.

Copa Club entry requirements

At the lounge entrance, a friendly lounge agent welcomed me into the Bogotá Copa Club, which was near empty by the time I got in.

Of course, business class passengers flying Copa Airlines have complimentary access to the Copa Club. The same counts for Copa Airlines ConnectMiles elite members as well as elite members of other Star Alliance frequent flyer programmes.

As I have Star Alliance gold status through Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles, I was able to access the lounge free of charge as well.

The Copa Club also welcomes Priority Pass as well as other lounge pass holders. The business lounge is open from 3.30am until 9pm daily.

Copa Club seating

With a size of 434 square metres and a capacity of 107 guests, the Copa Club certainly has a decent size for a non-hub lounge. The fact that during my entire stay the lounge remained fairly empty – with perhaps having 10 visitors at its busiest – did add to the quiet surroundings and calm atmosphere.

My first impression of the lounge was good: despite being located a basement it did feel bright and still fairly fresh and new (the lounge only opened in August 2018). Thanks to the smart use of decorative elements, it certainly made for a warm and welcoming place to wait for my flight.

The centrepiece of the lounge is of course the manned bar in the main room of the lounge. There is a diverse area of seats and couches around it.

There are two other rooms in the Copa Club. One room has been turned into a nicely decorated TV room/library featuring some comfy seats and couches. This was by far my favourite part of the lounge to hang out.

The Copa Club also features a business area with some work stations and computers. Plugs were plentiful throughout the lounge and internet was fast.

Copa Club buffet

The Copa Club has a small buffet located directly opposite the bar. The food was unfortunately rather limited in size and did not consist of more than just some fruit, dry biscuits and two types of sandwiches. Even though the sandwiches tasted fairly good, it is not a substitute for a full meal.

At the buffet, there is also a coffee machine making a decent brew. For any other drink you have to go the manned bar and order your choice of beverage there.

Service was friendly and fast during my entire stay in the lounge. Alcoholic drinks, whether it’s beer, wine or strong booze, are complimentary although I’m not sure if that counts as well for the more premium brands of alcohol put on display.

I had however no problem at all getting several free beers and gin tonics from the bar while waiting for my flight, and there didn’t seem to be any limit on the drinks you can order.

Restrooms

In the back of the lounge you can find the toilets, which were kept immaculately clean during my entire stay in the lounge. Unfortunately, the Copa Club does not have shower rooms available.

Boozing

I spent around one-and-a-half hour in the Copa Club and must say I enjoyed my time in the lounge, which was better than I expected.

After a quick snack I printed some pages which I would need later during for the Panama part of the trip, I moved to the pleasant library room where I just relaxed for a while drinking some G&T’s while watching Mel Gibson slaughter some British redcoats on TV – all dubbed in Spanish of course.

In short

The Bogotá Copa Club is a neat little lounge which is definitely a comfortable, well-appointed place to wait for your flight. The lounge felt fresh and warm and features plenty of comfortable seats and couches to wind down in a quiet atmosphere.

If your purpose of the lounge visit is to get some work done in the business centre, or to simply relax with a good drink, the Copa Club will certainly not disappoint. The barkeep made some pretty good drinks and especially the library/TV room makes for an excellent place to sit down and enjoy your stay.

The major drawback of the lounge is the extremely limited lounge buffet. If you are hungry and seek out a full meal, you are better off heading to another lounge or seeking out one of the restaurants in the terminal.

Trip report index

This article is part of the ‘A Piece of Panama With a Bit of Bogota and a Slice of San Jose‘ trip report, which consists of the following chapters:

1. Review: Air France Economy Class Bucharest to Paris (Airbus A320)
2. Review: Air France Business Lounge Paris CDG Airport Terminal 2E – Hall K
3. Review: Air France Economy Class Paris to Bogota (Boeing 787)
4. Review: Hotel Morrison 114, Bogota, Colombia
5. A Short One-Day Stopover in Bogota, Colombia
6. Review: Copa Club Bogota Airport, Colombia (current chapter)
7. Review: Copa Airlines Economy Class Panama to Bogota (Embraer RJ-190)
8. Review: Tryp by Wyndham Panama Centro
9. How to Visit the Miraflores Locks on the Panama Canal
10. Into the Casco Viejo – Exploring Panama City’s Old Town Centre
11. Isla Taboga: A Day Trip to the Island of Flowers
12. A Panama Day Trip to the Portobelo Forts and Tropical Isla Mamay
13. Review: Copa Club Panama Tocumen International Airport
14. Review: Copa Airlines Economy Class Panama to San Jose (Boeing 737-800)
15. Destination San Jose: A Day in the Capital of Costa Rica
16. Review: VIP Lounge Costa Rica, San Jose Airport (SJO)
17. Review: KLM Economy Class San Jose to Amsterdam (Boeing 787)
18. Review: KLM Crown Lounge (Non-Schengen) Amsterdam Airport
19. Review: KLM Economy Class Amsterdam to Bucharest (Boeing 737-800)