Aspire opens first Irish airport lounge

Aspire has opened its first airport lounge in the Republic of Ireland and the group’s 31st facility worldwide, with a new 80-capacity lounge at Cork airport.

Facilities include dedicated zones for business, dining and relaxing, tableside charging, and complimentary food, drinks and newspapers.

The food menu features “Best of Irish” choices including Clonakilty black and white pudding, Irish stew, Cashel blue cheese, Irish soda bread and Ballymaloe relishes, while the drinks menus includes local St Patrick’s Gin, Jameson Irish Whiskey, Murphy’s Irish Stout, Tipperary Irish Water and Barry’s Tea.

The lounge also offers a “Guaranteed Delay Cover”, meaning guests can remain in the lounge until their flight is ready to board in cases of delays.

Entry costs €24.99 when pre-booked at executivelounges.com/aspire, or €28 for walk-ins, and the lounge is also open to Priority Pass, Diners Club and Dragon Pass cardholders.

The lounge is located past Duty free, turning right towards the end of the terminal building, past the Food Court and WHSmith outlet, and round the corner at the end of the block of shops and restaurants after Craft Lane.

The Aspire Lounge, Cork Airport joins an existing facility at George Best Belfast City airport in Northern Ireland, as well as locations at Amsterdam, Birmingham, Bristol, Calgary, Copenhagen, Edinburgh, Gatwick, Heathrow, Helsinki, Humberside, Inverness, Liverpool, Luton, Manchester, Nairobi, Newcastle, Sofia and Zurich.

Commenting on the opening Cork Airport Managing Director Niall MacCarthy said: “We are delighted Swissport has opened its first Irish Aspire Lounge here at Cork Airport. This gives everyone travelling through the airport, whether it’s for business or leisure, the chance to relax or work in comfort, and enjoy some great food and drink sourced from our region.

“More than 2.4 million passengers will travel through Cork Airport this year and it is important for us to be able to provide the best possible customer service, giving all our guests the opportunity for a productive and first class start to their journey every time.”