Before our flight on Virgin Atlantic, we checked out the Clubhouse at LAX, which is also available to Priority Pass guests. But is it good?

View other posts in this series:

• Trip Introduction: Springtime in the Land of Fire and Ice
• A Nice Time at the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse LAX (this post)
• Simple But Effective: Virgin Atlantic 787-9 Upper Class LAX-LHR
• Sofitel London Heathrow: Great for LHR Terminal 5
• Now With a Nice Kids Area: British Airways Galleries South
• The Reykjavik EDITION: Simple Luxury But Not Perfect
• The Steakhouse (Steikhúsið): A Great Spot in Reykjavik
• Forréttabarinn Reykjavik: Excellent Small Dishes, Good for the Family
• Northern Lights in Iceland: What to Know and How to Find
• Blue Lagoon Iceland: What You Need to Know Before You Visit
• Driving in Iceland: About As Simple As In The United States
• Vik, Iceland: An Excellent Day Trip From Reykjavik
• The Amazing Golden Circle in Iceland: Path and Activities

Location of the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse LAX

The Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse at LAX is located in the Tom Bradley International Terminal (TBIT). However, the check-in area is over in Terminal 2 next to Delta. If you’re flying Virgin Atlantic, you’ll drop your bags off in Terminal 2, clear security there, and then walk about 5-10 minutes over to TBIT. Upper Class customers can use the Delta One at LAX Check-In facility, relevant if you’re originating in LA.

When you get to TBIT, you’ll find the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse on the 6th floor next to the Star Alliance Lounge. If coming from Terminals 2 and 3, it’s just up a set of escalators. If you’re entering directly at TBIT, you’ll need to take two sets of escalators up to the lounge.

Access rules

The Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse LAX lounge is open around 4 hours prior to Virgin Atlantic flights. Additionally, the lounge accepts Priority Pass members starting at 8AM. It generally closes around 10:30PM when the last Virgin Atlantic flight takes off.

The following guests have access to Virgin Atlantic Clubhouses:

• Virgin Atlantic Upper Class customers + 1 guest on the same flight
• Delta One customers (no guests)
• Certain elite customers flying Virgin Atlantic or Delta (international flights)
  • Virgin Atlantic Flying Club Gold members + 1 guest on the same flight
  • Air France / KLM Flying Blue Platinum members + 1 guest on the same flight
  • Delta SkyMiles Platinum or Diamond Medallion members + 1 guest on the same flight
• Certain elite customers flying only Virgin Atlantic
  • Virgin Atlantic Velocity Gold, Platinum, and Beyond members + 1 guest on the same flight
  • Air New Zealand Gold or Elite members only on the LAX-LHR route + 1 guest on the same flight
• Other SkyTeam Elite Plus members (no guests)

You might also be happy to know this is a Priority Pass lounge. However, this one is different from most. Not only is this lounge legitimately a business class style of lounge, it also requires customers to pay up to enter. Your Priority Pass on its own will not be enough to get you in here.

Rules for Priority Pass guests:

• Restricted lounge access is between the hours of 12:30PM – 4:00PM and 6:30PM – 10PM daily (in other words, before Virgin Atlantic flights).
• On top of access via Priority Pass, there is an additional surcharge of $35 US per person, paid directly to the lounge.
  • If your Priority Pass access has a guest fee, the surcharge is on top of the guest fee.
• Access only starting 3 hours before your scheduled departure time.
• No access on arrival.

Don’t be surprised to see a wait to come inside during Priority Pass hours. Despite the surcharge, people are willing to pay for access. Based on who they turned away, I believe Priority Pass customers flying Virgin Atlantic were still able to pay for access during the restricted hours.

Seating at the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse LAX

Once inside the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse LAX, you’ll see a large TV off to the right with plenty of chairs that face the screen. During our visit, it was just showing the news (despite some sports still in progress). There are some stairs behind the TV but those just lead to an emergency exit.

Off to the left of the entrance is the bar area. There are some long countertops with electrical power if you need it.

The bar has a little bit of a swanky vibe to it, similar to other Virgin Atlantic Clubhouses. (We’ve been to both the JFK and LHR locations before but never reviewed them.) There are plenty of two-top tables, which works well for both couples and larger families who are fine stretching out across multiple tables.

Towards the back of the lounge is a nice area to just hang out. The seating feels unique over here and it feels like the spot to socialize.

There are also a couple of rooms here (Sunset and Manor) that look like individual work stations in the event you need to work or take a call.

The food in the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse LAX

Buffet station

Most of the food at the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse LAX is made-to-order. But before we talk about that, let’s briefly show the small buffet. How small? You’re looking at the whole thing below. It’s mostly just salad and fruit, but with a few other things sprinkled in, like popcorn.

On the plus side, there is something to eat without needing to wait someone to serve it to you!

Made-to-order food

The alternative to the buffet is just ordering at your table. While there are lounge attendants who walk around asking what you want to drink, you’re going to want to look at a menu. The QR codes at each table will help immensely with that.

The QR code will take you to the online menu. It’s probably just easier if you check out the link yourself rather than showing a large number of images. On top of that, the menu does change with some frequency, as the choices now are different from what we could choose from. Perhaps the main thing to note is that there are plenty of choices for both large and small dishes. There are also several dishes for little ones.

It was honestly difficult for us to eat a second meal (we ate at the Delta One Lounge before coming here). But, since I wanted to try out a few things for educational purposes, I got a few things. First up is the uramaki roll, which has both crab and avocado in it. It’s reminiscent of a California roll. We like sushi when the rice is still warm but this one had chilled rice. It’s fine, but if you’re looking for sushi in an airport lounge, we think the Delta One Lounge is the gold standard at LAX.

Since we weren’t sure if the kids were full, we also ordered some macaroni & cheese off the kids menu. This version is very cheesy and tastes freshly made. Alex enjoyed eating this one, thankfully, so I didn’t have to really stuff myself silly.

We also ordered a clubhouse cookie, which has both pistachios and dark chocolate. It would have been perfect if this were warmed up as if it were just out of the oven. Instead, it was room temperature and tasted a little dense (but that could have just been because I wasn’t that hungry). Not a bad cookie, but has some room for improvement.

Drinks

I decided it was time to double-fist, but with one of the glasses just being water. The other drink was a nice glass of port. I could have gone with something fancier but it was starting to get past my bedtime. 🙂

Jenn wanted something fruitier so she ordered a bellini. The peach puree was a little too syrupy and she wasn’t that into this drink. While she could have just ordered something else herself, I think she was just looking forward to sleeping on the plane.

The Zen Den

If you’re looking for a private area for some stretching or light exercise, check out the Zen Den. It’s hidden away near the restrooms in the back of the lounge. I didn’t see anyone use it during our stay (and I didn’t have a chance to flag anyone down to learn more).

Once you’re inside the Zen Den, to your left will be some light dumbbells and pillows.

To the right are even more dumbbells. I can appreciate having a fitness area inside the lounge. It’s no Capital One Lounge, but it’ll do.

Retail Therapy

If being in the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse LAX makes you feel like you want to spend money, there is a small store here. It’s really just a few shirts, hand luggage, playing cards, and pronoun badges. Really makes me wonder how much merchandise they sell in a year!

Is the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse LAX worth it for Priority Pass customers?

This is really the $35 question: Should Priority Pass customers pay to access this lounge? There are a few considerations that come to mind:

• You need to be here during the off-hours when Virgin Atlantic isn’t operating a flight or you likely won’t get in anyways.
• There really aren’t other true lounge offerings at LAX when using Priority Pass, and thus no free alternative.
• With no discounts for children, it might not make sense to bring a family here.
• While TBIT is great for international airlines, if you’re not flying on an international carrier, it’s more convenient if you’re flying American (Terminal 4) or Delta (Terminal 3). Otherwise, it might require a long walk to come here.
• If you’re only looking for food, dining in the terminal might be cheaper. However, it’s a good thing that the food in this lounge is mostly made-to-order.
• Those consuming alcohol might get their money’s worth.

That all said, we could see people consider it worth it to come try out this lounge and pay $35 for the privilege to do so. We wouldn’t consider it if we had the kids with us, but if we otherwise didn’t have lounge access, were here during a time when it’s not restricted, and in need of both food and drinks, it’s a possibility.

Does the existence of an entrance fee devalue the Priority Pass model? Since this lounge has worthwhile features–finding made-to-order food in any Priority Pass lounge is hard–we wouldn’t give Priority Pass a hard time over this. Sure, it’s unfortunate that Priority Pass has no other lounge options in LAX. We have more gripe with that than we do with paying a cover for this lounge.

Recommendation: Yes, if you’re an Upper Class customer

If you’re in Virgin Atlantic Upper Class flying out of LAX, checking out the Clubhouse is a decent option for you. You’re going to be departing out of TBIT anyways, so being here for boarding is easier. Of course, you’ll also end up starting out checking bags in Terminal 2/3, so starting in the Delta One Lounge is a reasonable option. That’s what we did after all!

For the lounge itself, it’s a respectable business class lounge with mostly made-to-order food and friendly service. If we were hungrier, I think we would have been fully satisfied with this lounge. And it would have been perfect for us if there were a play area for kids, but we won’t mark it down at all for not having the space.

If you’re not flying in Virgin Atlantic Upper Class, you’re probably a Priority Pass customer who needs to pay to enter the lounge. We think it’s priced such that some will still find they get their money’s worth.

Have you had a chance to check out the swanky Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse LAX yet?

Suggested reading:

• The Best Options for Airport Lounges for Families
• Destination Spotlight: London, United Kingdom
• Why You Need to Collect Virgin Atlantic Points