Review of the Primeclass Lounge at JFK Terminal 1
The lounge entrance is in the middle of the concourse.
We recently visited the Primeclass Lounge at JFK Airport’s Terminal 1 before a flight to France and we were pleasantly surprised.
Our flight departed at 5:30 pm so we visited mid-afternoon on a Friday and the lounge was very quiet.
There are other lounges in Terminal 1 including Turkish Airlines Lounge, Air France Lounge, KAL Business Class Lounge, and the Lufthansa Business Class Lounge and VIP ONE Lounge but we hadn’t visited the Primeclass Lounge so we gave it a try.
Accessing the Primeclass Lounge at JFK Terminal 1
You walk down stairs (or elevator) to access the lounge.
You’ll have to walk a long way down the concourse but the lounge entrance is in the center of the concourse so it’s easy to spot. It is located next to gates 8 and 9.
Check-in was very smooth and we walked down the stairs to the lounge on a lower level (there is also an elevator available after the check-in gate).
We entered the lounge through my Priority Pass membership, which I have from my Chase Sapphire Reserve and Amex Platinum cards.
I was able to bring Debbie into the lounge for free. The Priority Pass app allows you to pre-book your entrance to the lounge.
A nice aspect of Priority Pass lounges is that you can access them regardless of elite status, or if you are flying in economy. If you don’t have Priority Pass you can purchase access to the lounge on LoungeBuddy for $52 per person.
The food buffet area is located along one wall.
Lounge Hours
These are the current hours but they change often so double check before your visit.
Monday : 09:00 - 23:30
Tuesday : 09:00 - 01:00
Wednesday : 09:00 - 23:30
Thursday : 09:00 - 01:00
Friday : 09:00 - 23:30
Saturday : 09:00 - 01:00
Sunday : 11:30 - 01:00
We had no problem finding a place to sit inside the lounge. We decided on a table for two next to a large window with a view of the planes at the gate.
The lounge is approximately 4,300 square feet and has seating for 95 people.
There are other seating options including seats with high walls to give you a bit more privacy. I sat in similar chairs in the Priority Pass lounge at Heathrow Airport and they are very nice.
Food and Drinks
The food was surprisingly good for a domestic Priority Pass Lounge.
The hot options included chicken with a mushroom cream sauce and ziti with tomato sauce. The day we visited the hot soup options were carrot ginger soup and chicken noodle soup. The salad offerings were more than expected and the dessert options included a delicious cheesecake.
The lounge has a range of soda, tea, coffee, etc. Each guest is allowed two complimentary alcoholic beverages.
The bathrooms are very clean and there are showers available too.
The bar area of the Primeclass Lounge.
Final thoughts
The food is decent, it offers complimentary alcoholic drinks and its staff is very pleasant and was constantly cleaning up.
While not as nice as premium lounges like Amex Centurion Club or airline-specific lounges the Primeclass Lounge in JFK’s Terminal 1 is a solid choice.
This post was researched and written by John of the Empty Nest Explorers. You can learn more about the Empty Nest Explorers here
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