EMIRATES has inaugurated its refurbished Paris Charles de Gaulle Lounge for First Class and Business Class passengers as well as Platinum and Gold members of Emirates Skywards – the airline’s frequent flyer programme.
It is the first of the airline’s existing worldwide network of lounges to be refurbished in the new interior design, originally unveiled within Emirates’ Concourse A Lounges in Dubai, UAE, earlier this year. Redesigned for a total investment of €3.8 million ($5.7 million), the lounge has also been relocated to a more central location at the airport in Paris, France. The new space, between Terminal 2A and 2C, offers improved customer access and a clear view onto the tarmac. The overall size of the lounge has also been boosted by 67 per cent offering a spacious 926 sq m that can now welcome up to 156 passengers.
The opening of the refurbished lounge was marked by a ribbon cutting ceremony attended by Mohammed Mattar, Emirates’ divisional senior vice president Airport Services and Thierry Aucoc, Emirates’ country manager for France.
“The refurbishment of this lounge is a further marker of our commitment to offering our premium class customers the best possible passenger journey with Emirates,” said Mattar.
With a design matching the environment of Emirates’ First Class and Business Class on-board suites, the new Paris Charles de Gaulle Lounge provides travellers with high quality services including; a choice of formal or relaxed seating, shower facilities, a dining area, a complimentary hot and cold gourmet buffet and an extensive beverage service, including an excellent French wine selection.
The Emirates Lounge can be availed by Emirates First Class and Business Class passengers as well as Emirates Skywards Platinum and Emirates Skywards Gold members.
The lounge offers seating for 156 customers with an area of 926 sq m with runway views is furnished with Italian marble floors, Gold Rolex clocks, leather armchairs and mahogany furniture, in line with the worldwide Emirates quality standards.
It offers guests an extensive open buffet of gourmet dishes from both France and around the world, as well as a complimentary full-bar service. Travellers can make use of a fully-equipped business centre with Wi-Fi connection, TV and reading areas, shower facilities and a prayer room.
The 35 existing lounges of the Emirates network will be refurbished according to the new design in a phased plan over the next 18 to 24 months.
Mattar added: “Selecting our lounge in Paris as the first destination to receive the new look was an easy choice. Our capacity to Paris has increased significantly this year, with the instalment of a second daily A380 and our commitment to the city has also grown, with the renewal of our sponsorship with Paris Saint Germain for a further five years and our recent sponsorship of the French Open Tennis.”
For this year’s Roland Garros tournament in Paris, Emirates’ has positioned an innovative A380 aerial camera up to 45 m above the grounds of Roland Garros in collaboration with the French Open Tennis Federation.
The camera has been designed to travel along a secure 350 m cable throughout the tournament grounds. It weighs 60 kilogrammes is two metres and 80 cms long and took nearly two months to build. Made from fiberglass and polyurethane foam the aircraft is a near perfect replica of the Emirates A380 that currently flies twice daily to Paris.
Emirates currently operates 32 weekly flights to France, including 20 weekly flights to Paris Charles de Gaulle, a daily flight to Nice and five weekly services to Lyon.