- Mr Plane Guy
- May 27
- 7 min read
Updated: 6 days ago
No1 Lounge Birmingham Airport Review: The Most Stressful Airport Lounge I’ve Ever Visited!
By Mr Plane Guy, Plane Honest Travel & Loyalty Insights
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click and buy, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. It helps support the blog and funds my ongoing airport lounge “research.”
I’ve reviewed a LOT of airport lounges over the years. Luxury lounges. Airline lounges. Tiny regional lounges. Priority Pass lounges all over Europe.
Some brilliant. Some forgettable.
But the No1 Lounges at Birmingham Airport may genuinely be one of the most stressful airport lounge experiences I’ve ever had. And honestly?
The lounge wasn’t even the worst part.
Birmingham Airport Felt Completely Overwhelmed
Before I’d even reached the lounge, the entire airport experience already felt chaotic.
The mini Air-Rail Link shuttle to the terminal was jam-packed. Think London Underground rush hour… except everybody had cabin bags, screaming kids and Ryanair boarding passes.
Then came security. Absolute carnage.
The queue felt more like waiting for a rollercoaster at Alton Towers in late July than airport security.
We’re talking 45 minutes to an hour just to get through. I even had fast track, but the queue simply merged into the special assistance line anyway, which honestly felt like half the airport, there was nothing fast about it. Fifty minutes. That’s how long it took, with fast track! Despite the new rules allowing liquids over 100ml, my bag was still screened and the liquid needed additional checks anyway (so don't really take liquids over 100ml.)
No1 Lounge Birmingham Review: First Impressions
By the time I finally reached the lounge, I already needed a holiday FROM Birmingham Airport.
And sadly? The lounge didn’t improve things.
The second I walked into the No1 Lounge, I immediately noticed how unbelievably busy it was. Not “slightly crowded.” Completely rammed. Children running around everywhere. Huge queues at the bar. No seats available. People hovering over tables waiting for others to leave.The noise level was honestly exhausting. It genuinely felt like a busy city-centre Wetherspoons on a Saturday afternoon.
No1 Lounge Birmingham Airport: Location, Opening Times & Access
No1 Lounge Birmingham Airport is located inside the departures area at Birmingham Airport after security.
The lounge is open daily from:
04:00 – 21:00
Access is available through:
Priority Pass
DragonPass
lounge membership schemes
airline lounge packages
direct bookings
Guests can normally use the lounge for up to: 3 hours before departure.
Plane Tip: If you have Priority Pass, you can pre-book lounge access directly inside the Priority Pass app.
I almost always try to do this the day before travelling now, especially at busy UK airports during peak departure periods.
The Food at No1 Lounge Birmingham Airport
The food unfortunately didn’t rescue the experience either.
During my visit, the buffet included:
Mediterranean chicken stew
Nut roast
Crispy diced potatoes
Green beans in lemon olive oil
Herbed rice
Pancakes
On paper, that actually sounds fairly decent for a UK airport lounge buffet.
In reality?
The Mediterranean chicken stew looked like a congealed mess and tasted pretty bland. The green beans were cold and wet, while the butternut squash and couscous somehow managed to taste both bland and undercooked at the same time.
And honestly?
It all felt far more: busy shopping centre food court than: premium airport lounge experience.And that really summed up the overall atmosphere inside the lounge that afternoon.
Drinks At No1 Lounge Birmingham Airport
Most standard alcoholic drinks and soft drinks are included inside the lounge, which on paper sounds great. In reality?
Actually GETTING a drink became part of the survival challenge.
I attempted to grab a drink shortly after arriving. Huge mistake.
Around seven people were already waiting at the bar while others simply walked straight up and pushed in front. After a few minutes, I gave up entirely.
That kind of summed up the whole lounge experience:
stressful
chaotic
draining
At one point I actually thought:
“Please just get me onto this easyJet flight immediately.”
So yes: the drinks are technically free inside No1 Lounge Birmingham Airport.
But I gave up trying to get one!
Credit Where It’s Due: The Staff Were Trying
I do want to be fair here. The staff themselves were actually working incredibly hard.
Despite the lounge being completely overwhelmed. The issue wasn’t the staff.
The issue was capacity. There simply appeared to be FAR too many people inside this lounge.
Birmingham Airport Lounges Are Reaching Breaking Point
And honestly? This feels like a much bigger Birmingham Airport problem overall.
The airport currently feels heavily driven by passenger volume and profitability, while the passenger experience struggles to keep up. Because this wasn’t just the lounge.
The entire airport felt overwhelmed:
Queues for security
Queues for water
Queues for bars
Queues for toilets
Queues at the gates
At one point, several toilets were overflowing, with cubicle doors missing and passengers queueing everywhere.
Which Is The Best Lounge At Birmingham Airport?
Right now?
I honestly think Birmingham Airport is in an awkward transition period.
Some lounges are becoming heavily overcrowded, especially during:
weekends
school holidays
peak leisure departures
That said:
No1 Lounge offers more space but can become extremely busy
Aspire’s upcoming LUXE lounge looks VERY promising.
I recently visited the same lounge at Liverpool Airport, more about that here, honestly, This will be the BEST lounge experience at Birmingham once this opens.
Birmingham Airport Boarding Chaos
The easyJet app showed boarding closing times approaching rapidly…
…but the airport screens still hadn’t even announced the gate.
So passengers were left standing around Gate Area 1-20 wondering what exactly they were supposed to do.
Then when we are called to the gate, after the gate closure time. We had to wait in the gate area for 45 minutes, all probably while the aircraft was still somewhere over Bournemouth! Then the second boarding finally started: “Please board immediately or we may lose our pushback team.” Honestly? The whole experience felt stressful from beginning to end.
Is Priority Pass Birmingham Worth It?
This is where things get complicated. Priority Pass itself is still a fantastic concept. I still believe airport lounges can massively improve travel. But this experience highlights something important: Not all lounges are equal.
And some airport lounges become nearly unusable during:
weekends
school holidays
bank holidays
peak leisure travel periods
If you’re specifically researching:
Birmingham Airport lounges
Priority Pass Birmingham
No1 Lounge Birmingham reviews
Birmingham airport lounge discount codes
…I’d honestly avoid this lounge during busy departure periods. Like days before bank holidays and school holidays. Because relaxation simply wasn’t possible.
This Is Supposed To Be The FUN Part Of Holiday Travel
That’s the thing that really struck me. This is meant to be the exciting part.
The airport. The pre-holiday drink. The feeling of escaping everyday life.
Instead?
It felt like survival. And the scary part? This was only a Friday afternoon in May.
Summer hasn’t even properly started yet.
Final Boarding Call
Would I Return? Honestly? No, never.
This lounge completely drained every ounce of energy I had before the flight had even started.
And that should NEVER happen inside an airport lounge. Ironically, the experience actually made me appreciate quieter premium lounges more.
Because after this visit, I suddenly understood why people happily pay extra for calmer spaces like Clubrooms or smaller premium lounges.
The good news?
New Aspire and LUXE by Aspire lounges are opening at Birmingham Airport soon.
And after this experience, Birmingham desperately needs them.
I actually covered Birmingham Airport’s upcoming lounge expansion plans in more detail here:
The airport feels stretched beyond capacity.
And judging by the crowds that Friday afternoon, despite the so-called cost of living crisis, it genuinely felt like the entirety of Birmingham had decided to fly to Spain at exactly the same time.
Because honestly… use the pass to pre book Clubrooms Birmingham Airport.
Are you flying with easyJet from Birmingham Airport?
Read my full Ryanair cabin baggage guide and find out how strict Ryanair really are with bag checks
And if you’re flying regularly from Birmingham: Check my easyJet Plus Card review, is it worth £249?
Thinking about lounge access? Read my honest Priority Pass review and whether it’s actually worth the money
Discover the hidden Priority Pass benefits most travellers never use
Flying from Manchester instead? Check my full Manchester Airport lounge reviews and comparisons
Read my guide to the best UK airport lounges and which ones are genuinely worth paying for
Hello I’m Paul a travel and flight expert, I spent most of my career working in and around planes with 15 years providing top-notch service with a London-based airline. I became an expert in travel after soaring across the Atlantic up to 10 times a month!
I’m now, producing travel content, reaching millions of viewers monthly. Reporting on travel news, sharing travel tips, reviews, and deals with a sprinkle of humour and a whole lot of authenticity!
I hope you enjoyed No1 Lounge Birmingham Airport Review: The Most Stressful Airport Lounge I’ve Ever Visited! Do let me know in the comments if you have any questions about it.
Airport lounges, free upgrades, travel chaos and the occasional meltdown. Real travel, not influencer nonsense.
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