United Airlines Polaris lounge in Chicago
United Airlines
United Airlines‘ top-tier airport lounge reopened in Chicago on Tuesday, featuring a 50% larger space and Crate & Barrel furnishings as carriers’ battle for higher-spending customers becomes more crucial.
The 25,000-square-foot-Polaris lounge is in Terminal 1 at United’s home hub, Chicago O’Hare International Airport. It has seating for 350 passengers, six additional bathrooms, a second “speakeasy-style” bar and 50 seats for sit-down dining.
United opened its first Polaris airport lounge in 2016 along with its new long-haul, business-class cabin of the same name. The lounge is reserved for customers flying internationally in the Polaris cabin, and its debut created a two-tiered lounge system with the airline’s more common United Clubs. That tiered model was also adopted by American Airlines and last year, Delta Air Lines.
United Airlines’ “speakeasy” bar at its new Chicago Polaris Lounge.
United Airlines
Airlines have been revamping their lounges to accommodate more and more customers who qualify for entry with popular credit cards, elite frequent flyer status or just by buying more expensive tickets. Carriers have said that premium-class travel has remained resilient while bookings in the back of the plane have come up light this year.
United is also expanding its Polaris lounge at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, which will open in June, Aaron McMillan, United’s managing director of hospitality programs, told CNBC. It is also is doing some “early design work” for a possible Polaris lounge at its hub in Denver.
McMillan said the carrier did see “some some tight spots during the day where the lounge was near capacity” in Chicago last summer, though plans to grow the lounges have gone back years.
In addition to expanding its main United Club lounges, the airline has also opened grab-and-go lounges in Denver and Houston to help with overcrowding at larger facilities and to offer a product to time-pressed travelers.
