Review: the Executive Lounge at Norwich Airport

This is our review of the Executive Lounge at Norwich Airport.

This article is part of our series of reviews of airport lounges across the UK.  You see all of the reviews here.  We are now down to the really tricky final few lounges ….. it has taken us a long time to find someone passing through Norwich!

Reader Ian sent us some photos and this overview of the Norwich Airport lounge on a recent flight.

Over to Ian:

“Norwich is a modestly sized airport, although it is bigger than you would think – it carries a lot of traffic for the southern parts of the North Sea oil and gas industry as well as the growing renewables operation.  You can fly to Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Exeter, Manchester and Newcastle.  Long haul, you can fly to almost anywhere in the world via KLM’s Amsterdam hub, and tour operator TUI also runs a number of seasonal routes.

The airport introduced a “development fee” in 2007 to help fund further development of the airport’s infrastructure, passenger facilities and route network.  All passengers are required to pay the £10 fee, although children under 15 are free.  You must pay the fee online or at the payment machines before security.  Only the ticket desk and online accept American Express.

Fast track security can be added for an additional £3.  Generally I wouldn’t bother as queues are usually short and security efficient.  The only time I would consider buying access is if a large flight, such as a TUI one, is checking in.

I had priority access with my lounge access today and found that I couldn’t use the normal lane.  There was only one other person in front of me.

After clearing security there is a small duty free section, although I didn’t find prices to be much cheaper than the high street.

You then enter the departure area which has standard seating, a small WH Smith to the right and a ‘Traditional British pub’ on the left called Navigator which serves food all day, and a Costa Coffee.

The lounge

The Executive Lounge at Norwich Airport is situated next to Costa Coffee.  It is a very small lounge, with around 17 seats / desks, overlooking the tarmac. Whilst it can be quite busy in the mornings it appears to free up after the 08:40 flight to Aberdeen.

Here is the official PR picture:

….. which, to its credit, is pretty close to the real thing:

Just inside the entrance there is a small selection of newspapers, as well as a variety of charging cables, a printer and Wi-Fi.

There are no toilet or shower facilities within the lounge. Toilets are situated outside diagonally across beside WH Smith where there is also a small business area.

Food and drink

A range of teas, coffees and assorted soft drinks are available in the lounge. A limited selection of alcohol is served by the hosts, with a maximum of two drinks per guest.

There is virtually no hot food. Before 10am, breakfast is available which includes a selection of pasties, croissants, white and brown bread, crumpets and a small selection of fruit, biscuits and nutri-bars.  Condiments include butter, margarine, marmalade, Nutella and Marmite.

From 10am the website indicates that a selection of cold meats and cheeses, soup and bread rolls, cake and tray bake selections plus a variety of bar snacks are served. Since I was on a morning flight I did not stay long enough to see the changeover.

The lounge also makes provision for gluten free guests.

Conclusion

The Executive Lounge at Norwich Airport is an acceptable place to spend some time if you have complimentary access. Whether it is worth the £20 entry fee is a different matter.  For that money you could get better food and drink at the Navigator pub which has decent seating and is not too busy first thing in the morning.

Acccess to the Executive Lounge at Norwich Airport is given to anyone travelling in KLM business class, or those with SkyTeam Elite Plus status or higher. Loganair Flex + customers and Flybe customers travelling to Aberdeen on a flex, zonal or 4-4-3 pass also have access.

You can also get access with the major lounge passes including Priority Pass (which comes free with American Express Platinum, or you can buy one separately), DragonPass, Lounge Club (two free entry vouchers with American Express Preferred Rewards Gold), Lounge Key, Lounge Pass and Diners Club International. Under 12’s are not permitted.”

Thanks Ian.  You can book the lounge for cash via the Lounge Pass website here.

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How to get FREE airport lounge access via UK credit cards (January 2024)

Here are the four options to get FREE airport lounge access via a UK credit card.

The Platinum Card from American Express comes with two free Priority Pass cards, one for you and one for a supplementary cardholder. Each card admits two so a family of four gets in free. You get access to all 1,300 lounges in the Priority Pass network – search it here.

You also get access to Plaza Premium, Delta Air Lines and Eurostar lounges.  Our American Express Platinum review is here. You can apply here.

If you have a small business, consider American Express Business Platinum instead.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold is FREE for the first year. It comes with a Priority Pass card loaded with four free visits to any Priority Pass lounge – see the list here.

Additional lounge visits are charged at £24.  You get four more free visits for every year you keep the card.  

There is no annual fee for Amex Gold in Year 1 and you get a 20,000 points sign-up bonus.  Full details are in our American Express Preferred Rewards Gold review here.

HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard gets you get a free Priority Pass card, allowing you access to the Priority Pass network.  Guests are charged at £24 although it may be cheaper to pay £60 for a supplementary credit card for your partner.

The card has a fee of £195 and there are strict financial requirements to become a HSBC Premier customer.  Full details are in my HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard review.

PS. You can find all of HfP’s UK airport lounge reviews – and we’ve been to most of them – indexed here.