Perth Airport the place to be for Lounge Lizards
Panoramic views of the airfield and Perth city skyline will be the showstopper for visitors to a new premium departures lounge at Perth Airport to be developed with partner Aspire Lounges.
The lounge will transform the airport's former control centre and a part of the observation deck into a dedicated space for passengers to unwind before embarking on their journey. It will be located on level 3 of T1 International, connected to the international departures area and close to boarding gates.
Perth Airport will work with industry giant Swissport who already operate Aspire lounges around the world in places like Heathrow, Chicago, Amsterdam, Johannesburg, Nairobi, and Zurich.
Perth Airport CEO Kevin Brown said the new lounge is part of a wave of investment to take the airport into the future, providing the amenity and efficiency to deliver passengers a seamless, quality travel experience.
"These pay per use lounges are becoming more popular at international airports both interstate and around the world," Mr Brown said.
"They provide passengers, regardless of what air ticket they have, a dedicated space to relax, refresh and recharge before a long flight.
"International travellers from Perth Airport have never had this option but the wait will be more than worth it. We believe this will be the best lounge of its type in Australia.
"What better way to start a journey than by sitting in the comfort of the lounge, gazing out on to the airfield watching the planes come and go, and enjoying top quality food and drinks.
"The Aspire lounge will be another piece of the puzzle falling into place as we build an upgraded international terminal and bring all flight services into the T1 precinct by 2025."
Swissport Australia & NZ Vice President Airport Services Craig Shaw said through Aspire, more travellers will have the perfect start to their travel experience.
"Swissport is delighted to be opening Australia's first Aspire lounge at Perth Airport, and we plan to give travellers through Perth something really special," Mr Shaw said.
"Guests will enjoy unique and exciting food and drink options, with small, local suppliers bringing a taste of Western Australia.
"The design of our lounge environment will also be inspired by the region, reflected through beautiful finishes and artwork.
"We are constantly evolving our product to lessen our impact on the environment and are always striving to bring unique yet truly useful innovations to our lounges.
"We are looking forward to expanding our partnership with Perth Airport, having provided aviation ground handling and airport bussing services on behalf of the airport and several airlines for many years."
The lounge is due to be ready in mid-2020. Passengers will be able to pre-book their lounge tickets online for $55 + GST per visit for a three hour stay.
There will also be a range of loyalty or airline affiliations, to be announced in early 2020, which will grant some passengers free access.