Review: Brussels Airlines The Loft Business Lounge

This review details the Brussels Airlines ‘The Loft’ business lounge in the Schengen-zone departures terminal (A gates) at Brussels Airport (BRU), Belgium.

Flying from Brussels Airport

On a recent trip to Belgium and the Netherlands, I had the chance to visit ‘The Loft,’ the flagship business lounge of Brussels Airlines at their home airport in Brussels.

I was excited to review this business lounge, as I had heard many great things about the Brussels Airlines Loft before.

Brussels Airport is a relatively pleasant and well-operated airport, and although I don’t rank it among Europe’s best, I always enjoy flying from here.

There were no queues at all at the fast-track security line when I arrived in the early afternoon, and I was airside within minutes.

Brussels Airport consists of a single terminal building with different concourses: Pier A (the A gates) is for Schengen-zone departures, while Pier B and T (the B and T gates) are for flights to non-Schengen countries.

The terminal was nicely decorated for Christmas, and after watching a British Airways flight push back from the gate through the large glass windows, I headed towards the Brussels Airlines business lounge.

Brussels Airlines The Loft location

The Brussels Airlines flagship lounge, The Loft, is located at the A Gates, so this is the lounge you would access when flying to a Schengen-zone country.

For what it’s worth, Brussels Airlines also has a business lounge at Pier B for its non-Schengen flights, called ‘The View’.

To reach the Brussels Airlines The Loft Business Lounge, take the escalator or lift across from Gate A42 one floor up.

On this floor, you’ll find both the entrance to the Brussels Airlines The Loft and the entrance to the only other business lounge in the Schengen departures concourse, the third-party Diamond Lounge.

The Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge is open daily from 5am until 9pm, meaning it is effectively open for all flight departures throughout the day, from the first in the morning to the last in the evening.

Brussels Airlines The Loft Business Lounge entry requirements

To access ‘The Loft’ business lounge at Brussels Airport, you will need a business class ticket on Brussels Airlines or another Star Alliance airline, such as Lufthansa or Swiss.

You can also access the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge with Star Alliance Gold status when travelling in economy class on Brussels Airlines or another Star Alliance carrier.

Passengers who hold Lufthansa Miles & More Frequent Traveller status can also access the Brussels Airlines business lounge if they are travelling on a same-day flight in economy class with a Star Alliance airline.

Star Alliance Gold passengers can bring one guest for free, as well as any infants under the age of 2, provided they are also flying with Brussels Airlines or another Star Alliance carrier.

Lufthansa Miles & More Senator members can bring one guest for free, along with any children under the age of 18 travelling with them, provided they are flying on Brussels Airlines or another Star Alliance airline, while HON Circle members can bring one guest, one spouse or partner, and all their children under the age of 18.

If you don’t have airline status, you can pay for access to The Loft business lounge, though this is only possible if you’re flying with Brussels Airlines.

For premium economy passengers, lounge entry costs €39 with a maximum visit duration of 3 hours, while economy class passengers pay €49, also with a 3-hour limit.

However, note that paid lounge access is not available with a Brussels Airlines economy light ticket, though you can visit the lounge with such a ticket if you hold Star Alliance Gold status or Miles & More Frequent Traveller status or higher.

Paid access is only available during off-peak hours, and payment can only be made by card.

Lounge membership cards, such as Priority Pass, are not accepted at the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge.

As I hold Star Alliance Gold status through the Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles frequent flyer programme and was travelling in economy class on LOT Polish Airlines to Warsaw, I was able to access the lounge before my flight.

A look around The Loft

With a total floor space of 2,040 square metres (almost 22,000 square feet), the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge easily ranks among the largest of any airport lounge in Europe.

It’s a massive lounge, and even at peak times, guests will easily find a comfortable place to sit.

The business lounge is shaped like the letter L, with one wing leading to the bar and the other to the Lexus-sponsored and themed section.

At the point where the two wings meet, roughly in the middle of the lounge, you’ll find the main buffet area.

The main part of the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge features a beautiful modern design, and despite its large size, it has a warm and cosy feel thanks to blue-and-purple LED mood lighting around the bar and buffet.

There is a wide variety of seating options, ranging from dining tables and bar stools at high-top tables to comfy leather armchairs and various other seats.

A great feature of the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge is that nearly all seats have access to a power socket, something that is sadly often overlooked by airport lounge designers worldwide.

The comfortable armchairs by the windows near the bar area offer a great view over the apron between Pier A and Pier B, providing excellent planespotting opportunities.

Due to its proximity to both the bar and the main buffet area, this is usually the most popular spot for passengers to sit, so if you prefer privacy, it’s better to move further away.

The back of the business lounge, overlooking the terminal concourse, is usually much quieter, and besides some comfortable chairs, you will also find a couple of workstations here.

If you’re a top-tier Lufthansa Miles & More HON Circle member, there is a dedicated section of the lounge reserved for you.

Lounge partnership with Lexus

The newest part of The Loft business lounge was made possible through a sponsorship deal between Brussels Airlines and Lexus, who teamed up to create the interior design.

This part of the lounge showcases some of Lexus’s own design awards, allowing guests to discover the brand and lifestyle of this luxury carmaker.

While the Lexus-themed part of the lounge arguably looks beautiful, I do personally find the blatant sponsorship and advertisement a bit tacky for an airline business lounge.

That said, there are some comfortable seating options in this wing of the lounge, with some chairs inspired by the bucket seats found in luxury and sports cars.

As it’s further from the main bar and buffet area, you’ll also find this part of the lounge to be typically quieter.

In the Lexus-themed wing of the Brussels Airlines business lounge, you’ll also find a smaller secondary buffet area and fridges stocked with beer and other drinks.

Brussels Airlines business lounge food buffet

The main buffet area of The Loft can be found in the centre of the lounge where the two wings meet, although there is also a smaller buffet area in the Lexus-themed section of the business lounge.

Throughout the lounge, typically near the coffee corners, you’ll also find a few counters with cakes. cookies, and fruit.

The main buffet area is visually stunning, with several containers of hot dishes placed on the outer ring and cold items on a circular island in the centre.

I found the food at the Brussels Airlines The Loft Business Lounge to be rather average for a flagship business lounge of a European airline at its home airport hub, both in terms of quality and overall selection.

Although you certainly won’t leave the lounge hungry, the food on offer the day I visited wasn’t particularly appetising.

For lunch, there was soup on offer, along with a few hot dishes such as rice with vegetarian curry sauce and spring rolls, as well as a large buffet container with penne pasta and a choice of Bolognese sauce or tomato sauce with vegetables.

There was also a decent-quality salad bar, cold cuts and sliced cheese, bread, hard-boiled eggs, and a giant bowl of tiramisu at the lounge buffet.

The bar at The Loft

If you like beer, you’re in for a treat when you visit The Loft, as this Brussels Airlines business lounge at Brussels Airport offers four different Belgian beers on draught at its bar, with more available in bottles in the fridges.

You can tap your own glass of beer, and as you’d expect from a proper Belgian bar, each beer brand has its own special glass.

When I visited the Brussels Airlines lounge, there was Stella Artois (a lager), Hoegaarden (a witbier/bière blanche), Leffe Blonde (Belgian blonde), and Victoria (a Belgian strong golden ale) available on draught.

In the fridges, you could also find bottles of the non-alcoholic version of Stella Artois, Leffe Brune (Belgian brown/double), and Pauwel Kwak (amber ale), although the distinctive hourglass-shaped beer glasses for the latter were sadly not available in the lounge.

There is no champagne available in the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge, though there is a French crémant sparkling wine, as well as some mediocre white and red wines.

When it comes to strong alcohol and liqueurs, the selection is decidedly average at best, with only Eristoff vodka, Campari, Gordon’s gin, white Bacardi rum, and William Lawson’s whisky available.

If you don’t want to drink alcohol, you can help yourself to the usual soft drinks from a soda fountain at the bar or pour juice from large carton packages.

Besides the main bar, there are several fridges spread throughout the lounge, mostly filled with bottled beer, which you can help yourself to.

Throughout the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge, there are also a few counters with coffee machines where you can make yourself some tea or coffee or get tap water from a fountain.

The Brussels Airlines business lounge uses Belgian Rombouts coffee, and the machines make a decent cup to get you caffeinated before your flight.

Toilets and showers

There are showers available in the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge, and if you decide to freshen up here before your flight, you’re in for a real treat.

Brussels Airlines has teamed up with Grote to create shower rooms at The Loft that resemble mini spas, thanks to the large rain showers.

These can be adjusted to your liking using an innovative touchpad and nearly a dozen physical buttons to change the settings.

You can blast yourself with strong water beams coming from all directions, including the sides of the cubicle, opt for a gentle drizzle, or choose the waterfall mode.

It’s also possible to adjust the lighting in the shower room and play music.

In the shower room there is also a proper Japanese toilet, washbasin, and a high-quality hairdryer.

The only slight drawback is that the shower gel and shampoo are unbranded and look rather cheap, otherwise the Brussels Airlines business lounge showers would without doubt be the best airport shower in the world, though even with any quality toiletries, it still has a strong claim.

Nap rooms

Inside the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge, there are also nap rooms available on a first-come, first-served basis.

With proper doors, mood lighting on the ceiling resembling a starry sky, and pillows provided (and possibly blankets too, although I didn’t ask for that), these nap rooms offer a great spot to get some shut-eye if you’re exhausted from your travels.

Other lounge facilities

There are many other useful facilities and amenities at the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge, including luggage lockers and a beautiful Smurfs-themed children’s play area that will delight the youngest travellers.

In the lounge, you will also find relaxing massage chairs.

For those who want to work on their laptop, the Brussels Airlines business lounge has dedicated workstations that are ideal for the task.

The Wi-Fi connection was fast and stable throughout the entire lounge, and as I mentioned earlier, there is certainly no shortage of seats with power sockets.

Another nice feature of The Loft is the in-lounge Neuhaus chocolate shop, where you can buy your favourite Belgian chocolates and bonbons, and occasionally sample them for free as well.

Tintin memorabilia

If you’re a fan of Belgian comics, there is also lots to like about The Loft.

Brussels Airlines is famous for having some of its planes adorned with special liveries, including those inspired by Belgian cartoons and comics, such as planes with Smurfs and Tintin livery.

It’s therefore unsurprising that inside the Brussels Airlines business lounge, you can also find these comic book characters, with Smurfs featuring on the walls of the children’s play area and several Tintin memorabilia and exhibits scattered throughout The Loft.

My time in the Brussels Airlines lounge

I spent a highly relaxing afternoon in the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge, enjoying a few quality Belgian beers and having a decent lunch.

Although my flight to Poland was only departing in the early evening, I arrived early at the airport to get some work done on my laptop, which I was certainly able to do in the quiet surroundings of the Brussels Airlines business lounge.

Once I finished my work, I enjoyed a refreshing shower and spent some more time sitting near the window with a delicious Belgian beer or two while doing some planespotting.

Throughout my stay, the service in the business lounge was of great quality, with empty plates and glasses regularly picked up and tables cleaned, and the lounge staff were all extremely friendly (though it perhaps helped that I speak the local language).

Catching my flight

After my great time in the Brussels Airlines lounge, I made my way to the end of Pier A, where the departure gate for my flight to Warsaw was located.

As I’ve reviewed LOT Polish Airlines economy class numerous times before, including on the Embraer 175 that was operating today’s flight from Brussels to Warsaw, I won’t go into detail about the experience this time.

Conclusion

The Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge at Brussels Airport is a visually stunning space and well above average in quality compared to other European lounges.

At 2,040 square metres (almost 22,000 square feet), the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge is one of the largest in Europe, offering plenty of seating and maintaining a peaceful, quiet environment even during peak times at Brussels Airport such as the morning departures bank.

Some of the standout features of the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge include its bar with four Belgian draught beers and additional bottled varieties, its beautifully designed nap rooms, and its relaxing rain showers that feel almost spa-like.

The lounge also offers many other useful amenities and excellent features, including a Neuhaus chocolate shop, high-quality workstations, and a lovely view of the apron from the comfortable armchairs by the window.

However, there are a few aspects that could be improved at the Brussels Airlines The Loft business lounge, as I found both the food quality and selection to be average, along with the choice of wines and spirits.

Although the modern lounge décor is beautiful and the design elements featuring Belgian comic book characters like the Smurfs and Tintin add a nice local touch, I found the advertisements by sponsorship partner Lexus a bit tacky for a flagship airline business lounge.

Overall, I do think Brussels Airlines has created a really nice and pleasant business lounge with its concept of The Loft, and it’s well worth a visit before your flight from Brussels Airport.