The Brussels airport terminals are split into three distinct areas. There is a Schengen zone (Terminal A) and two non-Schengen zones. One (Terminal T) is used for the Brussels Air flights to Africa while the other (Terminal B) is used for all the other flights that are non-Schengen. There are lounges in all three areas, depending on the carrier and its destinations. And, like most airports, the quality of the lounge depends greatly on the airline operating it.
For my flight to Montreal we were in the B terminal and mostly were set up in the Brussels Air lounge there. The lounge is a bit dated, but not horrible, really. It does get quite crowded in the morning with all the North America departures leaving around the same time. We did manage to find a few seats together and some room to relax, but it took effort. The snack options in the morning are pastries, cereal and juices. There is also alcohol available self-serve. For me, it seemed that the most appropriate breakfast was the chocolate croissant (the one from the grocery out in the terminal was better) and a Leffe Brown. Turns out I was right; the flavors went pretty well together.
Being the inquisitive guy that I am, I also took a look at the other lounges available in the terminal. There are three others, Jet Airways, British Airways and a third party Diamond Lounge.
I didn’t visit the Diamond lounge this trip but I was there last time I passed through. It has showers and a broader selection of snacks than the Brussels Air lounge. It is also the Priority Pass lounge in the terminal for folks who have that access. Nice enough, but nothing particularly special.
The British Airways lounge at BRU was surprisingly nice and quite spacious. It happened to be empty while I was there which didn’t hurt that effect but it appeared to be about the same size as the Brussels Air lounge and they have many fewer potential passengers at any point in time. The décor was reasonably modern and the food and drink selection was comparable to the Brussels Air lounge.
The Jet Airways lounge in Brussels was quite nice. They were apparently closing up as the flights both to North America and to India had all departed (though the hours on the website suggest it is open all day) but I managed to walk through quickly before they locked the doors. It makes sense that it is so nice, given that Brussels is a hub for them and that they focus more on service in many ways than other carriers. It had the best food selection of the lounges in the terminal and also more different seating areas and space than the others.
Finally, while I didn’t visit it this trip, I figured I’d share a couple photos from the Sunrise lounge. This is the Brussels Air lounge newly built in Terminal T for serving the Africa departures and it is quite nice, on par with the Jet Airways lounge in B. Given the opportunity, it is very much worth a visit.
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