Inside Lufthansa’s new lounge at Newark Liberty Airport

This is a completely new concept in the lounge of German airline Lufthansa and has just officially launched at Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR).

The new and improved lounge features a chic bar, bistro-style kitchen and first-class dining area, as well as clean lines and modern furnishings. The lounge is inspired by Allegris, Lufthansa’s new name for its enhanced passenger experience, including sleek new first and business class cabins.

Lufthansa said it will spend about $2.7 billion on product improvements over the next year and a half, including lounges, new seats on many planes and upgraded food service. The Newark lounge is a prime example of what Lufthansa is doing.

“We are very proud to now be able to open a new lounge with a new concept in terms of design and customer experience,” said Victoria Schuster, vice president of customer experience programs at Lufthansa. A ribbon-cutting ceremony took place today at Newark Airport, attended by Lufthansa executives and representatives from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

Related: Your first look at Lufthansa’s Allegris aircraft, with new seats in all cabins and a surprise in first class

Lufthansa’s new lounge in Newark – location

You’ll find Lufthansa’s shiny new lounge in Terminal B at Newark Liberty International Airport in B3 Satellite, which is located between Gates 60 and 68. The current lounge occupies the same space as the previous Lufthansa lounge, but now has 25% more space. The entrance to the lounge is right near Gate 68. It’s across the street from the Scandinavian Airlines lounge—the only two lounges in this part of the airport.

1 belong to 5

CLINT HENDERSON/THE POINTS GUY

Opening hours are 2:15pm to 9:30pm, seven days a week.

What you can expect at the new and improved Lufthansa Lounge

The refreshed lounge is inspired by Lufthansa’s investment in new aircraft interiors, which are being gradually introduced into the fleet starting with the new Airbus A350. Some of the airline’s Munich flights are has feature new and Improved cabin.

The highlight of the improved lounge is what the airline calls the Skyline bar, which has a wide selection of alcoholic drinks, including a new cocktail that Lufthansa launched today called the Ziegler Avionic Lufthansa Aperitif. This cocktail also has tonic (which tastes like) or Champagne added. To me, it’s best described as an Aperol spritz-like drink.

“The inspiration for that bar was to see how we could bring people together,” said Marc Suhr, Lufthansa Group’s Newark terminal manager. The idea, he said, was to get people together for a pre-flight drink and have a central social gathering place.

I call it one of the standout features of this space and it reminds me of the bars that American Airlines and Delta Air Lines have installed in some of their new lounges.

You’ll see the new Allegris aircraft interior inspiration reflected in the lounge’s color choices and design elements. You’ll see shades of gray, navy blue accents, and metallic accents throughout the lounge.

Lufthansa wants a new, more expansive lounge with more areas where passengers can choose to work, eat, socialize or just relax in separate areas of the space.

“Whether you’re traveling alone or in a group, and whatever your needs, you’ll find a seat to suit your needs in the lounge,” says Schuster.

Indeed, you’ll find two small, soundproofed rooms – perfect for meetings or Zoom calls.

There are also small seating areas spread throughout the waiting room.

“We want to be much more flexible in responding to passenger needs,” said Jessica Scheibach, senior director of customer experience and lounge design at Lufthansa.[We want customers to] feels like an oasis of peace where they can really relax and have all their needs met. If they need a meeting space where they can make a call quietly, they can relax there. If they just want to sit comfortably in a group, we have an area to do that too.”

While the curtains were drawn during our tour, it was still possible to see some planes at nearby gates if you looked behind the curtains.

Leather sofas and chairs in navy, brown, grey and camel are located throughout. There are plenty of separate seating areas with comfortable chairs and power outlets.

There is also a conference table with plenty of plugs.

I love the world clocks hanging on a couple of walls in the living room.

The bathroom was modern but a bit small. Sadly there was no shower in this lounge.

The lounge features an upgraded food menu spread across multiple buffet areas. There is a wide variety of delicious food available and an open kitchen.

Some of the treats are local to New Jersey, like the candy bar, which features local favorites like Saltwater taffy and M&Ms. Did you know M&Ms were invented in Newark, New Jersey? I didn’t know either!

There is a tasting bar with a variety of cold cuts, a variety of breads, including some popular German breads, and a selection of salads.

The giant mural on one wall is actually a photo of one of New Jersey’s many farms. It’s just one example of the effort to incorporate New Jersey elements into the lounge’s atmosphere.

“We built the pub area there, and it’s focused on farmland. So that’s where you see the New Jersey farmland in the background. And everything is based on that idea,” Suhr says. Many New Jersey farm products are also featured on the menu at the lounge.

Another improvement is a new area dedicated to first class passengers dining from an à la carte menu.

This section is for passengers flying on the two first-class flights departing from Newark Terminal B—Swiss to Zurich and Lufthansa to Frankfurt. You can also choose to dine here if you’re a Lufthansa elite member.

Lufthansa executives say first class is where you’ll see the strongest highlights of the new Allegris product, “For example, you’ll see the leather upholstery, the dark blue leather is exactly the same as the leather you’ll see in our first class cabins on the aircraft,” Scheibach says.

The menu looks fantastic, with dishes like brown sugar pork tenderloin with white radish and carrot puree or zucchini risotto with basil pesto.

I tried the buttermilk panna cotta they serve for dessert—it was delicious. An impressive wine list is also available for first-class dining.

In my opinion, this is the most fashionable and attractive area of ​​the lounge, and many visitors would be heartbroken not to have tried it if they weren’t the first one in.

How to get into the new Lufthansa lounge

Passengers flying business or first class on United, Lufthansa, Swiss or Austrian Airlines can use the new Lufthansa Lounge, although the number of eligible flights departing from B3 at Newark is limited.

Passengers with Star Alliance Gold status in any program other than United Airlines also have access to the new Allegris-inspired lounge (up to one passenger per flight). Star Alliance Gold members with United MileagePlus status can only access United Clubs within the United States prior to international flights on Star Alliance airlines (unless seated in first or business class).

According to information in the American Express app, people who have The Platinum Card® from American Express can use the lounge even if they are flying economy class, as long as they are flying on a Lufthansa Group flight. Cardholders must present a physical card to enter. Platinum cardholders are not allowed as guests.

In fact, holders of the American Express Platinum Card®, American Express Business Platinum Card® and Centurion Black Card is by invitation only. now have access to selected Lufthansa lounges when flying on Austrian Airlines, Lufthansa or Switzerland flight since 2017.

The information about the American Express Centurion Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Priority Pass members can also access this lounge during certain hours, but it looks like that may be under negotiation now. Priority Pass members currently cannot access the new lounge between 2:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.

Priority Pass members can still access Lufthansa’s business-class lounges at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in New York City and Dulles International Airport (IAD) in Washington, DC, but that may change at some point.

Related: Is Priority Pass lounge membership really worth it?

The last word on the new Lufthansa Lounge

The new and improved Lufthansa lounge at Newark is stylish and has some nice touches. The lounge has been expanded by 25% and now makes better use of the available space. It’s a welcome respite in an area of ​​Newark Liberty International Airport that doesn’t have many lounge options. It will be interesting to see how the lounge scene here evolves over time, especially if Priority Pass members can still access the Lufthansa lounge when flying out of gates 60-68 at EWR.

We’re also excited to see this new design concept rolled out to more Lufthansa lounges. The airline told TPG that New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and Washington, DC’s Dulles International Airport (IAD) will be next, although Lufthansa can’t yet promise an opening date for either lounge. They did say that the planning and design phase is well underway, so stay tuned.

Lufthansa serves approximately 26 destinations in North America.

If you happen to be passing through Berlin, there’s also a new Allegris-inspired lounge opening at Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER).

Read more related: