Manchester opens new T3 lounge
The new lounge has capacity for up to 120 passengers at one time and follows the success of similar lounges in Terminals 1 and 2 at Manchester, which have counted Sir Alex Ferguson and Roberto Mancini amongst 200,000 recent guests.
Beth Brewster, retail director for Manchester Airports Group (MAG), said: "The opening of the new lounge in Terminal 3 completes the set and will give our passengers the opportunity to enjoy a welcoming and comfortable atmosphere, whichever terminal they are flying from. Our existing escape lounges are extremely popular with passengers, so investing in a new lounge in T3 was a natural progression. Our aim is to create a memorable experience for both our business and leisure passengers with a great ambiance, service and a wide range of complimentary locally sourced food and drink, and to help our customers start their trip in style."
A temporary escape lounge has been trialled in T3 since the end of 2012 and its popularity has led to the development of a permanent facility, which will be located on the upper level of Terminal 3 departures, overlooking the airport’s airfield and runway.
The new escape lounge marks the continuation of an investment of over £2 million in the redesign of the departure lounge in T3 since 2011, including the last piece in the Biza puzzle with its new store following the success of Terminal's 1 and 2. Work has included modernisation of flight information screens, clearer wayfinding signage plus the creation of four brand new shops and an Italian Restaurant.
Terminal 3 was opened in 1989 by Diana, Princess of Wales as 'Terminal 1 Domestic' before being re-designated as Terminal 3 in May 1998. It is now primarily a base for Ryanair and Flybe operations – including Flybe’s Regional Hub, which sees 26 domestic arrival and departure destinations coordinated to provide regional connections, hubbing via Manchester. Other airlines which operate out of T3 include Air France, American Airlines, British Airways, BMI Regional, Brussels Airlines and KLM.
Manchester Airport is the global gateway to the North of England, currently handling 19.8 million passengers using over 60 airlines flying direct to around 200 destinations. Seventeen new summer services including easyJet to Moscow, Stavanger with Norwegian and Warsaw with Ryanair are expected to push 2013 passenger numbers back over the 20 million mark.
