With my flight to Munich departing at 5:15PM, I dropped off my rental car just before 3PM and made my way to LAX’s Tom Bradley International Terminal. The Lufthansa First Class check-in line actually had two other passengers waiting when I arrived.
During check-in, the agent asked me if I needed to be escorted to the lounge or the plane.
Me: “What exactly does that entail?”
Agent: “Well, we’ll walk you through security and drop you off in the lounge. In the case of the plane, we’ll pick you up from the lounge when the flight is ready to board.”
As TBIT is serviced by non-US flagged carriers, TSA Precheck hasn’t been setup yet, so I decided that being walked past security could save a bit of time. It worked out well in that I was able to enter the north checkpoint after they had stopped accepting new passengers for screening. It worked out poorly, as the agent didn’t want to steer us to a checkpoint with just a metal detector, so I ended up having to opt-out and enjoy a Freedom Grope.
Star Alliance runs a shared lounge at TBIT with a separate first class section.
When I arrived, the first class section was empty.
Shortly after I arrived, an attendant stopped by with a dining menu. As I was going to eat on my flight, I turned it down and began to look around.
The first class section has a small dedicated selection of food and drinks of its own and passengers can head over to the main Star Alliance Gold lounge next door.
Since Hong Kong, I’ve become fascinated by the power outlets available near the seating areas of lounges.
While the first class is somewhat secluded (and has views of absolutely nothing), the main lounge overlooks the main airside hall.
The lounge has an outside terrace that looks northeast towards the east part of runways 24L/24R and the terminal buildings. The weather of Los Angeles in December was too much for lounge goers, even with several fireplaces and heaters setup. For the hour (near sunset), it was a bit disappointing that the terrace didn’t face west.
The main lounge had its own selection of food, along with a few hot dishes.
As part of the decorations for the lounge, there were a number of quotes prominently displayed on the walls. I kept feeling like they were telling me something about Los Angeles…
Soon though, it was time for my flight to Munich and headed to my gate.
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