Air France is known for its La Premiere first class, which offers the world’s best first class ground experience, and also one of the world’s best inflight experiences. Central to the carrier’s amazing ground experience is the La Premiere Lounge. Well, there are some changes coming to the lounge, and it’ll require a bit of patience, though should be great news in the long run.
Air France La Premiere Lounge undergoing a renovation
Air France has announced that its La Premiere Lounge will be undergoing a renovation starting February 2, 2026, which is expected to take several months. Per an announcement on the carrier’s website:
From February 2, 2026, for flights departing from Paris after 2 PM (except on Sundays*), the La Première lounge will be closed for renovation. During this period, our teams will welcome you at the specially refurbished La Première vestibule. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
So it seems that the idea is that the lounge will remain open over peak hours, from the mornings until 2PM, and then work will take place in the afternoons, nights, and into the early hours of the morning. I would expect that it won’t quite be business as usual even during peak hours, since there will presumably be some longer term projects that can’t be completed each day.
After 2PM (except on Sundays), passengers flying in La Premiere will be accommodated at the arrivals and departures vestibule, which is basically where check-in is. The catch is that this is located in the Schengen area, so those La Premiere passengers who don’t have a visa for the Schengen area will have to be accommodated elsewhere.
This isn’t a big space, but then again, it’s not like there are many La Premiere passengers in the evenings anyway.
I’m excited to see what the La Premiere Lounge changes entail!
I’m delighted to see that Air France is investing in the La Premiere ground experience even more, and I can’t wait to see what the airline comes up with.
What makes the La Premiere ground experience so special isn’t necessarily any “frills,” but rather how seamless it is. It’s equivalent to private aviation, and perhaps even better, by most metrics. From the second you arrive at the airport until the second you get on the plane, it just couldn’t be smoother. Heck, on arrival, you can even clear passport control from the car that picks you up at the plane.
Air France’s food in the La Premiere Lounge is also stellar, the best you’ll find in any airport lounge, in my opinion.
All that being said, at this point the La Premiere Lounge could definitely use a bit of an aesthetics update, as it does feel a little outdated compared to the rest of the experience. I imagine that the arrivals and departures vestibule, plus the La Premiere Suites, give us a good sense of what the updated interiors could look like.
I’m also curious if we see any new amenities added, beyond those that already exist. Currently the lounge has a single spa suite, and also has a relaxation area, though it definitely could use a bit more privacy.
We’ll mark this as “developing” for now, and I look forward to seeing what Air France comes up with.
Bottom line
The Air France La Premiere Lounge will be undergoing a renovation over the coming months, starting in early February. We can expect the lounge to remain open in the mornings and early afternoons, while it’ll be closed the rest of the day, so that work can be performed.
Air France has opened new facilities for first class passengers in recent times, including the new arrivals and departures area, plus the new (paid) suites. I imagine that gives us a good sense of the updated aesthetic. The big question is what amenities could be added.
What are you expecting from the updates to the La Premiere Lounge?
