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Food and Drinks
LifestyleTravel & Leisure

Goodbye aeroplane bars, hello lounges and co-working spaces

  • Airlines including Etihad, Emirates, Qantas and Virgin Atlantic are all reimagining aeroplane bars as multipurpose lounges and co-working spaces
  • Don’t worry – you can still enjoy cocktails and conversation, but now you should also be able to get a little work done, too, if that’s your plan

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There’s still a bartender on Emirates’ top deck.
Bloomberg
It’s been decades since American Airlines had its on-board piano clubs or Continental had Polynesian Pubs aboard; now, even Emirates is pivoting away from its horseshoe-shaped bars.
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Instead, the new high-altitude drinking den is a best-of-all-worlds lounge designed like a co-working space but with flight attendants who can bring you cocktails.

And while it’s a trend that has been slow to develop – Etihad introduced the idea in 2014, with other airlines from Virgin Atlantic to Qantas recently embracing it – expect more airlines to follow suit with flexible and relaxed spaces setting the tone for your mile-high carousing.
The Loft, the new lounge space in Virgin Atlantic’s upper-class cabins. Photo: Virgin Atlantic
The Loft, the new lounge space in Virgin Atlantic’s upper-class cabins. Photo: Virgin Atlantic

Last September, Virgin Atlantic introduced a new business-class-only concept called “The Loft”, which offers various seating configurations in a common area minus a wall of booze bottles. Daniel Kerzner, the airline’s vice-president of customer journey, says in-flight spaces resembling on-the-ground cocktail bars are out-of-date: “Customers told us they wanted multipurpose spaces akin to a living room or a corner booth at a bar rather than just high stools.”

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The Loft includes two booths, a small table, and a standing counter for three, with power ports all around. A 32-inch HD screen on the back wall allows passengers to sync up their Bluetooth headphones and watch a film in tandem. From any of those areas, guests can order not just cocktails but light meals and snacks, like the airline’s “Mile High” afternoon tea. As with most of the lounge spaces being designed on planes today, the seats all have safety belts, which means travellers don’t have to stop socialising when turbulence hits.

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