There are some airport locations that offer private and exclusive lounges that limit access to the most elite travellers. Other locations try to maximize lounge revenue by catering to all possible clients and passengers. The T1 Lounge Dublin Airport happens to fall into the latter category and offers a decent, but busy travel experience. Read on to see how our visit to the T1 Lounge Dublin – Terminal One fell into the busy traveller category.

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This post is one chapter on our trip to Portugal, the United Kingdom (England and Norther Ireland) and Ireland. This trip was redeemed through American Airlines Advantage and enhanced through Marriott Bonvoy Elite Status. For more information on how this trip was booked, please see our trip introduction here. For other parts of the trip, please see this index.

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Review: Terminal One T1 Lounge Dublin International Airport – Terminal One, Ireland

After spending the night in Dublin at the Aloft Dublin City, we were up at 6:15 AM for a 7 AM breakfast. We were out the door of the hotel at 7:15 AM for a self drive to the airport. We topped off the car with diesel and returned the car to Hertz, where we had no drop fee from the city location to the airport location was incurred. The Volvo had treated us well and comfortably for the week’s journey and we had logged over 995 km’s on the rental. The roving return agent was able to print off our receipt quickly and we were on the first bus to the terminal without any delay.

Checking into British Airways Business Class:

The Dublin Airport is an institutional place with a minimum of frills or extravagance. We were headed off on British Airways Club Europe Business Class Dublin – London Heathrow today. We found our check in rank for British Airways. We walked up to the Club Europe check in desk where the agent indicated that she was closed and to wait for service by the bag drop area. There wasn’t really a bag drop area as two other lines were left for the other economy passengers. I felt bad cutting in front of families with kids but BA didn’t leave us with much choice since there were no other check in agents. The agents must have felt under the gun with the people that were lining up as it was one of the faster check in’s that I had. We were directed over to the fast track queues and were through security fairly quickly after some close scrutiny of my shaving cream (laughing).

Surprisingly, our issued boarding cards to Vancouver had my AAdvantage Platinum Pro status on it, courtesy of the expired status match trial that was offered in spring 2019.

We located the Fast Track security line, which was pretty empty today. The Dublin Airport Authority offers pay per use Fast Track for 7.99€ in the event you needed this. The cost of the fast track was included on our British Airways Ticket.

Locating the T1 Lounge Dublin:

After clearing security, it was chaos on the secure side with many families and passengers and some really limited space. We eventually found the T1 Lounge.

It’s not very tranquil getting to the lounge; the entry is sandwiched in between the security screening check points, resulting in a bit of crowding mayhem around the lounge entrance way.

We located the small elevator and rode up one floor. The lounge also has a thin stair access to the right of the elevator for those that are travelling light and prefer not to wait for the lift.

Accessing the T1 Lounge:

There are a number of ways to access the T1 Lounge Dublin:

The lounge is accessible through a number of carriers as one of the only lounges at Dublin International Airport Terminal One. If you are travelling in Business Class in a number of Star Alliance, One World or Skyteam Alliances, you’re likely to have access included with your ticket.

The lounge is also a member of Priority Pass. If you hold a number of premium credit cards, including the American Express Platinum Card, you’re able to get access.

The lounge is also a member of Lounge Key and Lounge Pass memberships. If you hold one of these memberships, you’re likely to have access privileges consistent with your membership level.

The lounge is also a member of Diners Club International. Travellers that hold a Diners Club International Card will have access consistent with the terms of their program.

The lounge is also available for lounge access purchase through the Dublin International Airport web page (along with Grant Thorton Fast Track security access which is also available for separate purchase). A two hour visit is 20€ per person.

We were granted access thanks to the class of service on our British Airways Club Europe Business Class Dublin – London Heathrow tickets.

Inside the T1 Lounge Dublin:

We were admitted to the lounge after showing our boarding cards. At our mid day visit time, it was a bit of a zoo in the T1 Lounge.

The T1 Lounge Dublin is spread across the area immediately above the security screening check point. The lounge is split approximately into half seating and half food and beverage station. Most of the lounge seating is located to the immediate left after reception. The lounge seating is a combination of lounge chairs with some occasional counter seating. We were eventually able to find some seats.

Food and Beverage:

In terms of food and beverage, the lounge offered the usual light snacks. The volume of the food turned over quite quickly during our visit. It was a bonus that they had ice cream on offer as well, which is unusual for a lounge. I think the last time I had ice cream offered in a lounge was when I found some Haagen Dazs in the United Club in Hong Kong, back when it was a United Red Carpet Club.

We didn’t stay all to long before departing on our British Airways Club Europe Dublin – London Heathrow flight.

The Bottom Line: The T1 Lounge Dubln

In summary, the T1 Lounge in Dublin Terminal One was a reasonable stop for a place to sit while you wait for your flight. My main impressions were that the lounge was super busy during our visit, which is consistent with the sheer number of people that have access to the facility. It’s a nice lounge but not a reason to leave the hotel early in order to experience it.

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If you have visited the T1 Lounge Dublin, did you find it worth your time ?

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