Air New Zealand has unveiled its new flagship lounge at Auckland International Airport, featuring an ultra-modern design and tailored seating zones to meet the changing needs of business travellers. At more than 2,000sqm, the new lounge is significantly larger than its predecessor and can comfortably seat more than 375 customers.

The lounge is located in a different area of the terminal from the current lounge. It overlooks the runway and features a covered outdoor terrace and fireplace offering a year-round outdoor area with views of the runway. The Auckland International Lounge was designed by award-winning architectural firm Gensler, which also partnered with Air New Zealand on the new Sydney International Lounge and the Star Alliance International Lounge in Los Angeles Airport.

“With a growing network and customer base, the number of high value customers using our lounge has grown and one of the most common pieces of feedback we receive on our Auckland International Lounge is around space,” Air New Zealand CEO Christopher Luxon. “This new lounge is significantly larger than the previous space and can accommodate around 40 percent more customers. Also recognising that our customers travel for different reasons and have different needs, we’ve created a mix of separate zones to offer the upmost comfort and convenience for those looking to relax, refresh or get some work done before they fly.”

Additional features of the new lounge include 24 different styles of seating, allowing customers to create the lounge experience that works best for them; a new food theatre with cuisine cooked to order at meal times by the lounge’s resident chef as well as a buffet offering which customers can help themselves to at any time; a central bar area offering barista-made coffee that customers can pre-order directly from the Air New Zealand mobile app, as well as premium New Zealand wines and signature cocktails; a business zone with a range of seating and tables with electronic charging, Wi-Fi and printing facilities; enhanced connectivity with more than 300 power points and USB outlets; and New Zealand-centric design.

“The challenge was to design a lounge that reflected the Air New Zealand brand, responded to the unique sense of place, and elevated the customer experience,” says Gensler principal architect David Loyola. “We are optimistic we have achieved these goals and it’s very exciting to see the project completed.”

The opening of the new Auckland International Lounge is another milestone in a four year multi-million dollar programme to redevelop Air New Zealand’s lounge network and follows the completion of the new Sydney International Lounge and the Auckland Regional Lounge. More lounge developments are planned for a number of domestic and international ports over the next few years. www.airnewzealand.com