I’m a frequent visitor to Gatwick airport, as the connection from London Bridge works pretty well for me, and navigating in and out of Gatwick is just way easier than Heathrow. I have however, only been to the South Terminal ever, and I’m going to the North for the first time because of easyJet.
Train goes to the South Terminal only and then it’s another short journey on a shuttle to the North. It feels very different to the South Terminal, and actually reminds of Heathrow T2. The departure hall is so much larger and brighter which is hard to relate to a budget airline.
There are quite a few lounges at North and they all locate near each other – just follow the sign. It is very quiet on the day, which I’m not sure is a norm.
Plaza Premium lounge is on level 4.
I made a mistake by swiping Priority Pass instead of Amex Platinum. The front desk gentleman told me I couldn’t earn Smart Traveller points on Priority Pass visits, and I confirmed it later on their website. It might be a recent-ish change – I think I earned points previously but I’m not certain.
The lounge is fairly large, but by Plaza Premium’s standard probably a bit dated and out of fashion. Or maybe it’s just the light?
Plaza Premium’s recognisable feature: many seats of variety.
You can help yourself to the beer tab, and order from the bar if you need other drinks.
There are four kinds of wine to choose from. Last but not least, let’s check out the food.
The following are available:
- Chilli con carne
- Mixed vegetable pilaf
- Roasted potato with rosemary and onions
- Vegetable jafrezi
- Spanish style chicken with paprika and cannellini beans
- Cheesy cauliflower and green peas cake
- Homemade green vegetable soup
Not enough meat in my view. I used to really like the katsu chicken at LHR T5’s Plaza Premium lounge.
Curiously there’s another lounge, Plaza Express, right across from the door. Mislead by the name I thought it’s a no-frills establishment, like you just grab a bag of sandwiches to go. It is however actually a full-service lounge, small but has a focus on kid-friendly facilities.
I’m still hungry and need to hunt for more food outside the lounge. Priority Pass from Amex Platinum can only access the Pizza Express at South and no restaurant at North is participating. Thankfully I have the Dragonpass from Barclays Premier, which gives me two options.
It might sound shocking, but I’ve never had a cheese burger from Shake Shack yet, and today is the time!
It is indeed very tasty and I’m rather happy with my 60p meal.
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