Admirals Club, Santiago, Chile

During a recent visit to Santiago, Chile I was able to visit both oneWorld lounges. American tries to encourage its passengers to use its Admirals Club at Santiago Chile. I assume this costs them less but it also means that their customers are experiencing a lounge that honestly belongs in the 1990’s. In fact I seem to remember that the code for the WiFi hasn’t changed since the last time I was there over 5 years ago.

Whilst there was a good range of booze, the choice of food was very limited – soup, some sandwiches and cakes.

Located on the lower level of the terminal it is accessed either by a set of stairs or a painfully slow lift. The staff are friendly enough but it’s a bit soulless and slightly depressing.

LATAM Lounge, Santiago, Chile

Tip: Access to the Lounge is in the middle of the Duty Free area and easily missed. Ask for directions if you are not coming from the LATAM check-in area.

By contrast the LATAM lounge is modern and worthy of comparison to some of the better lounges in the rest of the world. Located adjacent to LATAMs private check-in area, it is accessed via a very elegant entrance with a massive sliding glass door.

The staff who check you access decide which side you go to, presumably based on status. They also gave me the hint that upstairs usually remained quieter than downstairs, which proved the case. The WiFi was fast and I managed to download some work before my flight.

The lounge is made up of lots of different areas – a work area, TV room, quiet area. There is a good range of hot and cold snacks and they even had small portions of gnocchi. Who doesn’t love a lounge with gnocchi?

Alcohol was free pour and there was a good range. The atmosphere was pleasant with people finding where they naturally felt comfortable. The staff kept the areas clean and tidy. I stayed until it was time to board, and as SCL is small airport the walk was only about ten minutes to my flight to Dallas.