First look: Qantas opens new Auckland lounge
The long-awaited lounge includes a private dining area for Platinum frequent flyers.
By David Flynn, December 17 2025
After a long wait, Qantas’ all-new Qantas Auckland International Lounge is now open, giving travellers substantially larger and more premium space – especially on the stopover of Qantas’ Sydney-New York flights.
The luxe-themed Auckland lounge has been shaped by David Caon, Akin Atelier and Architectus, and with Caon and Akin having brought the superb Qantas Singapore First Lounge to life, visitors to Auckland will certainly see similarities in the design, materials and aesthetics.
Qantas' new Auckland lounge.
By merging the separate footprints of the former Auckland business and first class lounges into a single ‘premium lounge’, as well as pushing into adjacent space at the airport, total capacity has been boosted by 60%, from 244 to some 370 seats.
Qantas' new Auckland lounge.
And as with the Qantas lounges at Singapore, there’s a noticeable skew towards dining due to the rush hour of the stopover for the QF3 and QF4 flights between Sydney and New York.
Most seats are adjacent to AC and USB-C charging points, with fifteen shower suites where travellers can freshen up before their flight.
New Zealand’s produce and local wine take the spotlight in a dining area offering a cold and cold buffet...
... with lounge-made gelato (with the national favourite flavour of hokey pokey) and a cocktail bar serving up top-shelf drinks and barista-made coffee.
Qantas' new Auckland lounge.
Platinum à la carte premium dining
In the middle of the lounge is a dedicated à la carte dining area for Platinum and Platinum One frequent flyers, and their Oneworld Emerald equivalents, along with members of the invitation-only Chairman’s Lounge.
Upon entering the lounge, those high flyers and their guests will be handed a printed invitation to this premium 60-seat dining area.
Here they’ll be able to tuck into a seasonal menu featuring dishes such as crumbed fish and chips, and Qantas First favourites such as salt and pepper squid and the signature pavlova.
However, this special treatment won’t extend to proper Champagne – everyone will be served the same NZ sparkling, which is Villa Maria.
Space for working and relaxing
“The new Auckland lounge celebrates the best of New Zealand and has been thoughtfully designed for how our customers want to use the space, whether that's working, relaxing over a meal, or freshening up during transit,” says Qantas International CEO Cam Wallace.
Family-friendly touches include a Joey Club kid’s room and two baby change rooms.
A quiet space tucked away just beyond the entrance to the lounge – but oddly not sign-posted – includes a long table for meetings and a private booth for phone calls or working without interuption.
The design story
The design of the Qantas Auckland Lounge brings the outside in, with living green walls throughout, travertine tiles and terrazzo tabletops creating a natural, relaxed atmosphere.
Bespoke furniture features seating upholstered in premium New Zealand wool and leather and a four-metre artwork by artist Gabrielle Penfold capturing Devonport’s iconic North Head.
Qantas' new Auckland lounge.
And as with so many other domestic and international Qantas lounges, the design combines a sense of place through local influences with hallmark Qantas elements.
In the case of the Auckland lounge, the natural landscape of New Zealand comes to the fore.
Qantas' new Auckland lounge.
“Bringing the Auckland Lounge to life has been an incredible journey,” reflects David Caon.
“We approached every element with careful attention to detail, pairing materials long associated with the airline’s palette with those introduced specifically to reflect the local region.”
“Signature elements such as porthole windows and sweeping curved walls have been elevated with handmade glass and abundant natural greenery.”
Qantas' new Auckland lounge.
“The custom-designed furniture throughout the lounge brings a sense of craftsmanship, creating a unique character that stays true to Qantas’ signature design.”
For what it’s worth, Qantas says it plans to continue the Sydney-Auckland-New York route after its non-stop ‘Project Sunrise’ Sydney-New York flights take wing in 2027.
And from early 2027 these special Airbus A350-1000 jets are expected to fly from Sydney and Melbourne to Auckland and back for training pilots and cabin crew on the new jet.
Etihad - Etihad Guest
19 Jun 2019
Total posts 27
It looks really good. I am surprised but happy with the dining area for platinum and platinum ones. Can't wait to use the lounge in a few weeks.
19 May 2023
Total posts 3
This looks rather pleasant, actually, well done QF.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
16 Jan 2018
Total posts 62
Looks great! When Qantas gets it right, they do get it right.
Hope the service matches the (seemingly) delightful hard product.
20 Dec 2017
Total posts 25
QF4 remains one of the world's worst-timed ultra long haul flights. This has to change after Sunrise starts. You land in AKL at about 2am in the morning equivalent Sydney/Melbourne time, have to walk around or try not to eat for 90 minutes and then get back on after interrupting your sleep for another three hours before a breakfast landing in Sydney. QF thinks people are able to function normally and "go to the office" for a full day's work after arriving they should think again. A late departure from JFK and a later arrival into Sydney will mean much more sleep, must less jetlag for AUS travellers. If you want a good rest in the meantime, take any AA flight to Dallas and then either QF8 to SYD or QF22 to MEL and arrive around the same time as QF4 but without the unwelcome mid-journey, mid-sleep interruption.
08 Feb 2018
Total posts 184
Fair comment but I doubt many are expecting to function for a full day after a westbound long-haul redeye. On the other hand I rather like waking up quite early, having a stretch in AKL and then a short hop to arrive in Sydney for second breakfast. Tired by 5pm of course but that's not unusual after such a flight. Also remember landing at ~2am sydney time is 10am New York time so body clocks will be waking up anyway.
I also think Qantas schedule is based on getting as many of the long hauls in as early as possible, ready to turn around and head back out from mid-morning on. The more aircraft back at home base the more options they have if one goes unserviceable. I reckon this means that the planned direct JFK-SYD will still be timed as such, leave JFK in order to arrive in SYD between 6-8am.
20 Dec 2017
Total posts 25
I get that its timing is for operation reasons. From a customer perspective though, I wanted to point out that if you wish to maximise your sleep you should choose any other Qantas flight from north America , or any flight on any US/Canadian carrier, as no other westbound flight presents this problem. Most who book the QF4 have no clue they’ll be woken up at 2am Sydney/Mel time before the awkward AKL return stopover. QF3, on the other hand, remains awesome if greater NY is your destination.
09 Jun 2017
Total posts 32
Looks great. It's just so common now that so many lounges don't have windows. For a plane buff - very frustrating
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
16 Jan 2016
Total posts 10
Wonder if the new lounge is available for Plat members on arrival if only going to AUK as we only travel with carry on
QF
02 Nov 2012
Total posts 51
Unlikely to be available for inbound passengers not transiting to another international flight, the inbound and outbound passenger streams have been separated for many years.
28 May 2024
Total posts 1
Can confirm - departing AKL today. The service most certainly matches the hard product. The connection to the colour and natural beauty of New Zealand is evident in this lounge. A triumph!
I too share the frustration of lounges without windows overlooking the airfield but airports are what they are, you can only do so much with what you have without knocking down the whole place and rebuilding.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
25 Oct 2019
Total posts 25
There is most certainly real champagne In the premium dining area (Laurent Perrier). Please stop posting incorrect information.
24 Oct 2010
Total posts 2582
Just any FYI, when we attended the media preview last week we specifically asked about Champagne and were told by Qantas exactly what we have reported here, which included the lounge manager grabbing a bottle of the Kiwi sparkling to bring over for the photo, so that was 100% accurate at the time.
The LP only appeared yesterday when the lounge opened to the public, and it's of course very welcome, but this could also be a seasonal special or an opening treat. We'll see how the Champagne situation changes in the coming weeks. In the meantime, we intend to update this article to include the LP later today (time permitting).
03 May 2013
Total posts 711
Beautiful and long overdue.
Hi Guest, join in the discussion on First look: Qantas opens new Auckland lounge