New Newcastle Aspire Lounge marks a world first in airport hospitality
Aspire Executive Lounges and Newcastle Airport have opened their brand-new lounge, following a multi-million refurbishment and expansion to the lounge footprint, offering a significant increase to capacity for passengers wishing to relax and make use of the facilities during the busy summer period.
As part of its strategy to bring innovation and an enhanced customer experience, Newcastle will be the first lounge to offer three lounge products to passengers.
Alongside the core Aspire offering will be two new options, Luxe by Aspire and The Suite by Aspire. Luxe by Aspire benefits from exclusive self-service food and beverage options and bespoke private and open working spaces aimed particularly for the business traveler. The Suite by Aspire provides dedicated staff providing meet and greet and a fully hosted table service akin to a high-end restaurant and serving freshly prepared meals. All three tiers will benefit from a wide range of delicious food and beverages as well as convenient charging facilities, high speed internet, digital newspapers and magazines, plus HD television and flight screens.
Newcastle Aspire Lounge
David Collyer, Global Vice President of Executive Lounges, says: “We’re delighted to bring this new product to Newcastle. This new approach is the result of extensive research and a deep understanding of what our customers truly want from their lounge experience.
“Lounges have seen a huge increase in demand from passengers wanting an elegant space to relax and dine, whether for business or pleasure. The addition of Luxe and The Suite will mark a real step-change in delivering the premium service our guests are looking for.”
He adds: “Our vision is to translate the premium hotel experience into the executive lounge experience. Aspire is the first in the aviation sector to join the prestigious Institute of Hospitality and UK Hospitality, and we are fully committed to becoming the world’s leading airport hospitality brand.”
Dean Ward, Director of Commercial at Newcastle International Airport, says: “We are committed to giving our passengers the best possible Airport experience and work closely with our business partners to ensure that we continue to provide the products and services that are passengers are looking for.
“The new Aspire Lounge is stunning and will provide passengers with a luxurious environment to enjoy prior to boarding their flight. The lounge is just one of several, multi-million pound improvement projects that we have been working hard on over the past 12 months, which we are very much looking forward to passengers seeing on their next visit!”
With over 30 years of experience, Aspire Executive Lounges is Europe’s largest brand in the airport lounges sector. In 2023, Swissport welcomed more than five million customers worldwide at over 69 lounges in 20 countries. The airport hospitality brand recently opened new lounges at Amsterdam Schipol, Dublin and Helsinki-Vantaa Airport in Finland.
Aspire Executive Lounges also recently created a new lounge concept in partnership with the airline alliance oneworld. The first oneworld branded lounge was launched at Incheon Airport in Seoul, Korea, in December 2023. Aspire Executive Lounges is owned by Swissport International AG, the global leader in aviation services, serving airlines at 286 airports in 44 countries across 6 continents.
In 2023, Swissport International AG provided best-in-class airport ground services for some 232 million airline passengers (2022: 186 million) and handled roughly 4.7 million tons of air freight (2022: 4.8 million) at 115 air cargo centers worldwide. Several of its warehouses have been certified for pharmaceutical logistics by IATA’s CEIV Pharma and by the British MHRA. At the end of December 2023, the world’s leader in airport ground services and air cargo handling, with currently around 60,000 employees, was active at 286 airports in 44 countries on six continents.
The article New Newcastle Aspire Lounge marks a world first in airport hospitality first appeared in TravelDailyNews International.