London Gatwick Airport Lounge Guide 2026: North vs South Terminal

London Gatwick has twelve lounges split across the North and South Terminals, with no airside link between them. Plaza Premium and the No1 Lounges sit on the North side, the British Airways Club Lounge anchors the South, and Priority Pass, LoungeKey, and DragonPass open most non-airline doors. Pre-book online for a fixed price, because walk-in rates run noticeably higher in 2026.

Gatwick is the kind of airport where the lounge you want depends almost entirely on the terminal you fly from. The North and South Terminals are not connected airside, the inter-terminal shuttle has been out of service for several years, and you cannot pop between them on a layover without exiting and re-clearing security. So the practical question is not "which lounge is best at Gatwick" but "which lounge is best at my terminal." That changes the recommendation a lot.

*Information here is summarized from publicly available sources, including the official London Gatwick airport website, Plaza Premium, No1 Lounges, British Airways, Priority Pass, and operator pages. Lounge access policies, hours, and amenities can change without notice. Always verify on the operator's official site before you fly. Images are illustrative and may differ from actual lounges.

Which Terminal Are You Flying From?

Most low-cost and leisure carriers operate from the North Terminal, including British Airways short-haul European flights, TUI, and Norse Atlantic. The South Terminal handles easyJet's main base, British Airways long-haul (Caribbean, North America, Africa), Vueling, Wizz Air, and Ryanair. easyJet's terminal split has shifted a few times over the past decade, so always check your boarding pass rather than going off habit. Browse all LGW lounges on AirportLounge.com for the live directory and floor-plan notes.

The terminal mix matters because the pre-security inter-terminal transit train is open, but you cannot use it once you have cleared security. If you arrive on a connecting flight that lands at the wrong terminal for your lounge, you would need to re-clear security on the other side. For most travelers that is not worth doing for a lounge visit.

North Terminal Lounges

Plaza Premium Lounge (North Terminal)

The Plaza Premium space at the North Terminal is the one I send most travelers to first. It sits airside on the upper level, opens at 4 a.m., runs through the early evening, and is built around a wall of windows facing the apron. The hot food rotates throughout the day, the bar is staffed rather than self-pour for most of the day, and the seating mix gives you a quiet zone away from the entrance if you want to actually work or sleep. Access is included with Priority Pass, LoungeKey, DragonPass, and pre-paid bookings on the operator's site. The official page is at plazapremiumlounge.com.

No1 Lounge (North)

No1 Lounge North is the busier, more sociable option on this side of the airport. Hours run roughly 4 a.m. to 10 p.m., the food and drink are complimentary, and there are private meeting rooms and shower suites if you came off a red-eye. Pre-booked online entry usually starts in the £30 to £45 band. Walk-in rates are higher, and on summer mornings the lounge can hit capacity by 6 a.m. The official Gatwick page lives at gatwickairport.com. Priority Pass holders can use this lounge but must reserve in advance during peak windows.

Clubrooms (North)

Clubrooms is the upmarket sister lounge to No1, with table service rather than buffet, a smaller capacity, and a quieter feel. The trade-off is the price tag, which sits closer to £55 to £65 pre-booked. Priority Pass and LoungeKey sometimes work here, sometimes do not, depending on the time of day and the operator's contract. Always check the live access map before you arrive.

My Lounge (North)

My Lounge is the value pick. The breakfast spread is genuinely good for the price, the self-pour drinks bar is a fun gimmick that actually works, and the room layout gives you somewhere to land for a few hours if your flight is at a decent hour. If you have a Priority Pass with a strong allowance, this is the easiest lounge to walk into without a reservation, especially before 7 a.m.

South Terminal Lounges

British Airways Club Lounge (South)

The South Terminal anchor for premium passengers is the British Airways Club Lounge. BA refreshed the lounge in 2025 and dropped the Galleries branding, so it is now simply the Club Lounge. The space serves all BA flights from Gatwick and is open roughly 5 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Access is included for Club Europe and Club World ticket holders, BA Premier customers, BA Executive Club Gold and Silver members, and Oneworld Emerald and Sapphire passengers flying BA or a Oneworld carrier from LGW. The lounge layout includes a buffet zone, a quieter mezzanine with a BrewDog beer loft, five shower suites, and floor-to-ceiling windows over the apron. The official rules are on britishairways.com.

BA also runs a separate First Class Lounge on the South side. It is the smaller, quieter space that sits behind the main Club Lounge entrance. Access is restricted to First passengers (which only apply to a few BA long-haul aircraft tail-numbers) and Concorde Room cardholders. Most travelers will be in the Club Lounge unless they are on one of those specific premium tickets.

No1 Lounge (South)

The No1 South lounge is a near-twin of the North version, with the same food and drink program, similar pre-booked pricing, and a slightly smaller footprint. If you are flying easyJet long-haul, BA short-haul out of South, or any Wizz Air or Ryanair flight, this is your most reliable Priority Pass option on this side of the airport.

Clubrooms (South)

The South Clubrooms lounge runs the same model as its North sibling, namely table service, lower capacity, higher price. It is a good choice if you want a calmer pre-flight hour and your card includes coverage. Priority Pass holders can sometimes book here through the network, but the access window is narrower than at the No1 lounges. Confirm the policy at the Priority Pass app before you arrive.

Club Aspire (South)

Club Aspire has been rebranding to My Lounge across UK airports, and Gatwick South is part of that transition. As of mid-2026, you may see either name on the door. Either way, this is the value pick on the South side, with a similar breakfast and drinks setup as My Lounge North. Priority Pass coverage is generally good. Hours are roughly 4 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Which Credit Cards Open Gatwick Lounges

US-issued cards with Priority Pass open most of the contract lounges at LGW. The Chase Sapphire Reserve, the American Express Platinum Card, and the Capital One Venture X all carry Priority Pass at the time of writing, with varying guest allowances. UK-issued cards more often carry LoungeKey or DragonPass, which give a similar set of options at Gatwick. The American Express Platinum Card UK gives Centurion-style access to a curated set of partner lounges plus Priority Pass, which is the broadest single-card coverage at Gatwick. Browse the full list of premium credit cards with lounge access to compare.

One caveat. Many UK Priority Pass-style memberships now require a pre-booking during peak summer mornings at the No1 and Clubrooms lounges. If you turn up between 5 a.m. and 8 a.m. without a reservation, you may be told the lounge is at capacity. Make the booking the night before through the Priority Pass app or LoungeKey portal. It costs nothing extra and saves the awkward turn-around.

Pre-Booking and Walk-In Pricing

Walk-in rates at Gatwick rose again in early 2026. A pay-per-entry slot at My Lounge or Club Aspire booked online runs around £28 to £35. The same lounge at the door is closer to £45. No1 and Plaza Premium pre-booked online sit at roughly £35 to £45, with walk-in pricing in the £55 range. Clubrooms is the most expensive at £55 to £65 pre-booked, climbing past £75 if you walk up. Across the board, the booking window matters. Lounges sell out for early summer departures faster than for late-evening flights.

If you have a Priority Pass with limited free visits, a quick math check helps. A standalone Priority Pass membership with 10 visits per year costs about $329 in 2026. That works out to roughly $33 a visit. A pre-booked My Lounge entry is cheaper. So if Gatwick is your only lounge airport in a given year, the pre-booked walk-in route can win. If you fly through several lounge-rich airports, the membership pays for itself quickly.

The Northern Runway and What It Means for 2026

The big infrastructure story at Gatwick is the Northern Runway. The UK government issued a Development Consent Order in September 2025 that allows the existing northern strip, which currently functions as a taxiway, to be brought into routine dual-runway use. A correction order followed in early 2026. Operational use is expected by the turn of the decade, and the airport's published plan calls for capacity to roughly double over time. The official project page lives at gatwickairport.com.

For lounge users, the practical impact in 2026 is mostly about congestion, not new lounges. Construction has begun on apron and taxiway works, but no major terminal-side lounge expansions are confirmed for this year. Expect the existing lounges to keep refreshing finishes, with My Lounge continuing to absorb former Club Aspire spaces. If you are flying through Gatwick later in the decade, the longer-term capacity expansion is more likely to bring new lounge brands or larger footprints than to change the access rules on the existing ones.

A Practical Walk-Through for Your Next LGW Departure

If you are flying out of the North Terminal in 2026, my first stop is Plaza Premium for the windows and the calmer atmosphere, with No1 North as the backup if Plaza is full. From the South Terminal, the Club Lounge is the obvious choice if you have BA business class or status. Otherwise, the No1 South is the safest Priority Pass play, with Club Aspire or My Lounge as the value pick when you just need a hot breakfast and a seat. Avoid showing up unbooked between 5 a.m. and 8 a.m. on a Saturday in June, July, or August. That is when the network groans the loudest.

Compare LGW with other London airports in our London Heathrow Lounge Guide, and if you are connecting onward in Europe, see the Best Airport Lounges in Europe 2026. For the broader card strategy, the Priority Pass vs LoungeKey vs DragonPass guide breaks down which network gives you the most coverage in the UK.

Browse all LGW lounges on AirportLounge.com

Information is reviewed periodically. Always verify access policies, terminal assignments, and operator hours on the official site before travel. Lounge networks update contracts frequently, especially in the UK, where capacity rules and pre-booking requirements have changed several times in the past two years.