London Arrival Lounge - Connecting BA Flight Question

[sydneyboi]

Hi Team
Please can I have some advise
I'm flying to Europe with QF J to Hong Kong then BA J to London then into Europe with BA
with the BA arrivals lounge, do I have to clear customs and Immigration even though the UK is not really my first stop ? as from reading the arrivals lounge that BA have is located on first floor before check in and security.
Thank you all

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Hi Team
Please can I have some advise
I'm flying to Europe with QF J to Hong Kong then BA J to London then into Europe with BA
with the BA arrivals lounge, do I have to clear customs and Immigration even though the UK is not really my first stop ? as from reading the arrivals lounge that BA have is located on first floor before check in and security.
Thank you all

If the lounge is land-side you'll need to enter the UK by crossing the border, so you'll be subject to all the checks, and security on your way back into the terminal for your onward flight.

The question is do you really need to do all that? There'll be a departures lounge air-side you can use before your next flight which will have showers and most of the same facilities.

 

[GoldCanyon340]

The BA arrivals lounge is landside at T5 and can be difficult to locate the first time you visit. However, will you need to visit if you are just transiting? If you have just a few hours at LHR then I wouldn't bother going landside as you'd have to come back through security for your next flight. Remember too that if you don't have a UK/EU passport then it can take FOREVER to get through immigration at busy times; I've had a 60-minute wait there before and that was in the "fast track" for premium passengers.

Also, where is your final destination? Bear in mind BA has departures from both T5, where your HKG flight will arrive, but also from T3.

The main advantage for going landside and visiting the arrivals lounge is that you should get immediate access to a shower suite. The two daily HKG arrivals are among the first and you'd be surprised how quickly 90+ showers can get allocated once all the J/F/BA Gold passengers get there. The breakfast spread is really good too.

If you do visit the arrivals lounge then you get there by going up one floor in the central elevators from the arrivals hall. REMEMBER TO KEEP THE STUB OF YOUR BOARDING PASS as the door staff use this to grant entry.

 

[sydneyboi]

Thank you so much for the information - my europe connecting flight is also from Terminal 5
I will just forget about the arrivals lounge and use the lounge airside to save all the hassle .
Thank you again

 

[wannabeinvestmentbanker]

If you are on an Australian passport as advised above just stay airside. Please do not have high expectations for BA Galleries (the toilets and showers remind me of a hospital)

However, if you do have UK/EU or are a UK registered traveller (which as a side note is the best investment of my life so far), I know a lot of people who actually exit using these smart gates then use the F wing to get back in if OWE or above as the transit area can get quite congested early morning when the heavens open with the arrival of BA32.