My Trip to Zagreb was well underway. First, I flew on British Airways from Seattle to London, but now I had a 5 hour layover. Most people are very familiar with the lounges in BA’s T5, and even One World’s T3. But I had a less common connection on Croatian Airlines. Croatian flies out of terminal 2 (apparently the Queen’s terminal). For Priority Pass holders, terminal 2 has one lounge. So I was off to the Plaza Premium Lounge in Terminal 2.
Location/Hours
The Plaza Premium Lounge is open from 5am to 11pm 7 days a week. To find the lounge follow the signs to lounge A3 in terminal 2. It is right next to the terminal transfers area. Somehow despite all the signage and its location right next to transfers, I managed to walk right past it and it took me a good 20 minutes to locate it. But really this should have never happened, it is literally one of the first things you see when you transfer terminals.
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Plaza Premium Lounge
Compared to most Priority Pass lounges I have visited, the Plaza Premium Lounge fells just that…premium. I personally loved the decorations focused on geometric design and a dark aesthetic. Lounges seem to go either very dark or very light with their finishes, and I really do prefer the dark. The dark atmosphere provides an aura of rest and relaxation to the lounge. And let’s be honest, that is really want I want to do in the lounge relax. The lighting in the Plaza Premium lounge was perfect. While it was dark throughout, there was plenty of accent lighting and brighter areas if you wanted to get some work or reading done, rather than relax. Unfortunately I was not able to get too many pictures. Given the number of people in the lounge, it was hard to get pictures without invading people’s privacy. However, despite the crowd, it was extremely relaxing.
Plaza Premium Lounge Size and Seating
The lounge itself was extremely large. Despite being crowded, I was easily able to find a seat. There were several areas to the lounge which include table top seating, couches, and nice cushy chairs. Almost every section of seating had multiple outlets to plug into. I quickly sat myself down in a cushy chair and plugged both my cell phone and laptop in and did not feel like i was hogging ther outlets.
Plaza Premium Lounge Food and Drink
The Plaza Premium lounge provides a variety of buffet style food. The buffet was one of the most impressive aspects of this lounge. Most Priority Pass Lounges offer you sufficient food for a light snack. While the Plaza Premium Lounge, provided enough food to constitute a rather filling meal. Not only was there a lot of food, but the food itself was extremely good. Especially considering I on my flight I was served some sort of mush for dinner, and a lacking breakfast. Among the dishes I tried were tortellini in cream sauce, chicken tikka masala, multiple custard desserts, and a variety of fresh bread. Again they were all fantastic.
Near the buffet was a refrigerator with a variety of canned sodas. However, if you needed something harder to get you through your layover the Plaza Premium lounge offers a full bar. All the the alcohol served at the plaza premium lounge, including liquor, are complementary. The lounge does not limit its bar to alcohol. If you are feeling the coffee itch, the bartender is also a barista. They offer a variety of coffee drinks including cappuccinos. While, I don’t drink coffee, I overheard good things about their cappuccino.
Plaza Premium Lounge’s Other Amenities
One thing I never really thought about before getting lounge access through my credit card was the value of a shower at the airport. In my plethora of travels before getting a Priority Pass, I thought I could not avoid feeling gross while traveling. I just had to figure out how to deal with travel stench. Whether it was layer upon layer of deodorant or constantly changing clothes. But lounges really opened up my eyes. The ability to shower halfway through a 24 hour day of travel, where you had to sprint through the airport before being crammed in a hot tin can for 10 hours, is heaven. There is literally nothing better. So when a lounge offers showers, I immediately get one and life is instantly better.
While the Plaza Premium Lounge shower rooms are not as nice as the Korean Airlines Lounge at LAX or Cathay Pacific First Class Lounge in T3 at LHR, it is still a shower. Every shower room is nice because it is a mother flippin shower! The lounge provided all of the basics, towel, shampoo, soap, etc. However, for any other toiletries, you were on your own. Another understated benefit of these shower rooms, is having a restroom all to yourself. If you are like me and have a weak stomach, this is another priceless benefit.
The lounge also has sleeping rooms and wellness spa with the option to get a massage at an additional charge. As I don’t pay extra for anything I did not check them out, but it is nice to have the option.
Overall
The Plaza Premium Lounge in Terminal 2 (THE QUEEN’S VERY OWN TERMINAL) is a fantastic place to spend a long layover. The Lounge creates an extremely relaxing atmosphere. While the food options will have you coming back for seconds.