THE STAR ALLIANCE LOUNGE

WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU'RE DELAYED

To get from Barcelona to Lisbon was going to take two flights. In concept it didn't seem too daunting but in the real world things don't always turn out as planned. First we were going to have to go from Barcelona back to Rome. We had purchased our original fights to and from the United States to Rome with points through TAP Portugal Airlines. Flying TAP meant we wouldn't have a direct flight but traveling TAP also meant that we could take advantage of their stop over option. The airline allows you to stop in Portugal for an indefinite amount of time between legs of your flight. Since the flight we paid for was to Rome and since we were now in Barcelona and since we were taking advantage of the stopover option we needed to fly back to Rome to get on the first leg of our flight back to the U.S. Our flight from Barcelona to Rome was on a different airline and was to leave Barcelona at 9:40 in the morning arriving in Rome at 11:30am.  Our connecting flight in Rome going to Lisbon was scheduled to leave at 5:05 in the evening. It meant we would have a substantial layover. We calculated that adding the time necessary to pick up our luggage, transport it to another airline that might be in a different terminal, recheck our bags, and clear security for a second time might take up a good portion of that time. The extra time was our safety net. It was a necessary evil. We might have to sit around the airport for an hour or two but we were resigned to that fact. We were set, right?
Everything with the first flight and transfers went as planned. We got to the airport on time. We got our bags checked in. We found our baggage return area. We got to the correct terminal for our TAP flight and checked our bags to Lisbon. At the same time I found our flight listing on the departure board Rick's phone buzzed with a new text message. Delayed. 5:05 had been moved to 6:05. We've been there before. We had an instant plan tucked in our back pockets from similar delays in European airports.

TAP is a Star Alliance member airline. If you're traveling on an airline that is a Star Alliance member you can gain access to their lounge. If you are flying first class or business class you have free access to the lounge. If like us you're only flying economy plus you can still pay to get into the lounge. Since we were now looking at around six hours of sitting in one of the airport waiting areas we decided the cost of entry into the lounge far outweighed the discomfort of hard airport seats in the holding pen. We anted up for what would have been the equivalent of a cheap hotel.

Now nothing was going to bother us and the pain of a delay would only be a nuisance. The lounge in Rome came with quiet areas where we could kick back and rest uninterrupted.

There were areas set up for working if you found yourself with enough layover time to pound your computer or write that novel you've been promising to do.

The lounge was beautifully appointed with an amazing food bar and coolers filled with soft drinks, water and beer. All of this is included in the fee we paid. A luxury hotel like setting, all the food you could eat, all the specialty drinks and alcohol you could swallow, free wifi and a waiter that would come around every fifteen minutes to clean up after you was by far worth the price of admission!.

As time went by and it was announced that our flight would be delayed an additional two hours we emailed our hotel in Lisbon to let them know they should notify our driver to make him aware of the delay. Then we headed for the pizzas and bruschetta.

We had way surpassed the cocktail hour so Rick started in on his vodka and seltzers and I stuck to some white wine. The bartender got to know us way too well. He started regaling us with stories about how all his boyfriends were Brazilian. That was an eye opener.

Travel can be as difficult or as fun as you want to make it. The quote on the wall by S. Augustinus is how we like to look at travel. "The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page."

At 9:05 in the evening we finally boarded our plane to Lisbon. With the hour we got back by traveling west we were in Lisbon by 10:30 and in bed at our hotel before midnight well fed and hydrated thanks to the  Star Alliance Lounge in Rome.