Schengen area question

IM

Will be coming back from Lisbon in a couple of weeks, flying with TAP, after a special occasion trip - and they let you pay to access their lounges even if you are flying economy/don't have status.

Given that the airport lounge is closed for refurbishment, I'm thinking it might be worth it.

The question is that there are two - one in the Schengen area, one in the non-Schengen area.

I know the UK is outside the Schengen area (and, of course, the EU) but I'm not clear what that means at airports when you're passed security. Which do I need to be selecting?

la531983

IM said:

Will be coming back from Lisbon in a couple of weeks, flying with TAP, after a special occasion trip - and they let you pay to access their lounges even if you are flying economy/don't have status.

Given that the airport lounge is closed for refurbishment, I'm thinking it might be worth it.

The question is that there are two - one in the Schengen area, one in the non-Schengen area.

I know the UK is outside the Schengen area (and, of course, the EU) but I'm not clear what that means at airports when you're passed security. Which do I need to be selecting?

Havent been to Lisbon but if its anything like Krakow, which has a Schengen and a Non-Schengen lounge, you enter departures into the Schengen area along with everyone else and only once you pass through a passport check would you enter into the non-Schengen area. So in theory you would be able to go in either/or, although the airline operating the lounge may put some form of restriction on (would have to ask them).

Personally I would be using the non-Schengen one, because you dont know how long the queue would be to get to the gate in the non-Schengen part of the airport, so knock this off as soon as you get into the departures area and you wouldnt have to worry about how long to give yourself.

DullGreyGuy

It's as suggested above, that you pass through the Schengen zone to get to the non-schengen. 

The non-schengen zone lounge is new but much smaller than than the original lounge. The view from HfP, whilst having not actually been to the new lounge, is that it is likely to be the better of the two even if you ignore the fact that its newer because its where all the long haul flights will be from and people buying business class tickets for long haul flights have higher expectations than those on short haul. This is backed up with their experience from other airports with a similar config 

CKhalvashi

Depending on the connection time, the non-Schengen lounge may or may not be busier. Typically if there's a large bank of flights departing to outside Schengen, you're likely to be better on the Schengen lounge. If you're travelling on a European wave, the opposite will likely be the case.

If you're in the Schengen lounge, make sure you allow adequate time for immigration formalities on exit.

When it comes to lounges (for which I have free access to many), as long as I can get a coffee and some work done, it's not too much problem. The non-Schengen may be a little 'better', and I haven't been to LIS for a number of years.