Welcome to my airport lounge review at Madrid airport!
This lounge visit is made possible thanks to the upgrade offered by Air Europa before my flight from Bilbao to Madrid and I decided to go ahead as I wanted to stretch my legs in the cabin on the 2nd leg (Madrid to London Gatwick) and also to take advantage of the lounge access where I can clear my work in a more private environment. To top it off, this would be my first European airport lounge visit, did I get a good first impression? Do read on to find out.
Do note that Madrid-Barajas Airport has 8 different VIP lounges at Madrid Airport:
Terminal 1
Altitude Lounge
Cibeles VIP Lounge (This lounge review)
Terminal 2
Puerta de Alcala VIP lounge
Terminal 3
Puerta de Sol VIP lounge
Terminal 4
Plaza Mayor VIP lounge
Retiro VIP lounge
Terminal 4 Satallite
Neptuno VIP lounge
Gran Via VIP lounge
For more information of these lounges, you can check out over here.
Welcome to Cibeles VIP lounge!
I was there about 4 hours before departure and I was told to come back in an hour time, so I did just that.
This picture depricts a trio of aircraft doing a fashion style movement on the taxiway of an airport.
The lounge's interior
There is plenty of sitting area in this lounge.
I settled down at the seats besides the wall and managed to get 2 hours of work done.
There are some magazines to browse but most of us these days use the Wifi to either do our work, surf the internet or play online games on our mobile devices.
There are seats by the window and plenty of food and beverage to enjoy in this buffet style arrangement.
A good variety of hot and cold food was offered and the lounge staff came around regularly to check to make sure there was sufficient food.
This part of the lounge is more popular with travellers as most of the seats were occupied.
I really like the atmosphere of this lounge with a lot of natural light and what makes it better is we get to enjoy a good view of the apron that means planespotting and photography is very much possible at this lounge.
Before I settled down for work, I picked up a plate of cupcakes and sandwiches and a glass of juice.
A good selection of sandwiches to choose from.
Cold beverages and yogurt
l avoid these tables with tall chairs as there is not much privacy.
In terms of variety of good, I give this a rating of 9/10.
With many options available, sometimes it takes a while to decide what I want.
There are more food options at this part of the lounge.
So far I have been impressed with the lounge.
Another view of the lounge
This is the view I get to enjoy from one of the windows.
This is Air China's Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, bound for Beijing.
Of course, beverages are served in this part of the lounge, this is the main reason why passengers under 18 years old must be accompanied by an adult and of course they are not allowed to consume any of these.
This coffee machine offers a user-friendly experience of photos of the hot beverages it offers.
This was one of the rounds of snack I had during my work time.
There is a smoking area located outside the lounge.
The outdoor area allows the guests to enjoy their drinks and meals.
I was able to enjoy some planespotting action in this beautiful sunny weather.
Unfortunately the sunlight faced directly at my direction so I didn't hang around there for long.
This way to use the toilet.
Showers are available at this lounge.
It's also a wheelchair friendly lounge and that's great to know!
Non alcoholic beverages
Flight information board
Time to go! I had a good time at the lounge.
Let's go to London Gatwick! (To be continued)
Coming up next: Flying Air Europa's 737 MAX 8 to LGW!
My ratings
Location: 4/5
Staff Service: 4/5
Lounge Interior: 5/5
Selection of Food & Beverages: 5/5
Food quality: 4/5
WiFi Connection: 5/5
Shower: Nil (Unfortunately, I didn't get to use)
Seating area: 5/5
Facilities: 4/5
Overall rating: 36/40
Percentage: 90%
Conclusion
I have to admit I knew nothing about this lounge as I wanted to find out myself how the lounge is like as it exceeded my expectation as I was able to enjoy the few hours there and completed my work in a comfortable environment. This has to be one of the better lounges as it is large enough to accommodate about 5-6 international flights perhaps and I understand why they enforce the 3 hours before flight depature rule as it can get or would be crowded if everyone is allowed in to spend many hours and the biggest problem would be for other passengers finding a place to sit, making the lounge experience less premium.
I certainly recommend this lounge as I find it a good place to hang out, avoiding the crowds and also get to enjoy the Wifi for work or pleasure and enjoy a good meal before departure.
Hope you enjoy my version of Aena Sala Cibeles Lounge @ Madrid Airport (MAD)!
For my previous blog post: My trip report on Air Europa Part 1: Boeing 737-800 (BIO to MAD Economy Class, click here.
For the next trip report: My trip report on Air Europa Part 2: Boeing 737 MAX 8 (MAD to LGW) Business Class, coming up soon.
Like as always, see you in my next blog post!
Have a great one!
Cheers,
Charles Ryan
