One of the best parts of travelling is chilling out the lounge before take off. One of the most accessible lounges is the chain of Plaza Premium Lounges worldwide. A lot of travel credit cards offer the perk of free lounge passes associated with your credit card. I personally use the BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard which offers 4 free lounge passes annually. On my recent travels, I got to experience the newly renovated Plaza Premium Lounge Vancouver. The US Departures lounge had been closed for sometime, but it is now open again and ready to serve. Having only been to the International lounges, I was surprised at how small this lounge was. Although it is small, it is well appointed and clean.
Since I went by at 6 AM, they were not serving alcohol at this time. However, the lounge pass entitles you to four free non premium alcoholic beverages. For non alcoholic options there is drip coffee, a variety of teas, juice and water. Unfortunately, they no longer have bottled beverages.
For food options there was a selection of the following for breakfast:
- French Toast
- Scrambled eggs
- Sausages
- Hashbrowns
- Selection of pastries, white and whole wheat bread
- Two cereal options
- Two salad options (pasta and green salad)
- Selection of desserts (mousse cakes, cupcakes and mini bundt cakes).
Although it was a small selection, the food was prepared well, hot and fresh. The staff were constantly refilling the warming trays and keeping the spaces clean.
The lounge is located across from Gate E88, and overlooks the arrivals hall below. It has space for about 132 guests. The lounge has its own washroom, a computer station, newspaper and magazines as well as free WiFi.
Is The Plaza Premium Lounge Vancouver Worth a Try?
Yes! Overall, the Plaza Premium Lounge is not a bad place to relax before boarding if you have complimentary passes. However, at $55.73 for a two hour stay, I would say it’s not necessarily worth it (at least in the morning). For the selection, you can get a lot more options from the YVR’s new food options including Joe and the Juice, Banh Shop, Root98, Sal Y Limon and more.
Plaza Premium Lounge (US Departures)
Website: https://www.plazapremiumlounge.com/