Roundup
Air France has closed the sauna in its Paris Hall L lounge, and the reason is that nobody used it
The sauna at the Terminal 2E Hall L lounge shut in September 2025 for low usage. The Clarins treatments and showers stay. A short note on which lounge wellness amenities earn their floor space.
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Air France Lounge (2E, Hall L)
CDG · Terminal 2E · Paris
4.9/5 overallSauna gone. Clarins 20-minute treatments, ten showers and rest areas remain. Still the best business lounge at CDG.
Opened 2007, renovated 2018. Rated 4.9/5 across 14 measures. 10 showers. Business class passengers: no guests.
Get in with: Air France Lounge, SkyTeam Elite Plus Lounge Access
Air France La Première Lounge
CDG · Terminal 2E · Paris
4.8/5 overallThe first class lounge, redesigned in 2026, keeps its spa. Low demand is less of a problem when the cabin is tiny.
Over 1,000 sqm after its redesign, with an enlarged table-service dining room (Alain Ducasse menu), six nap rooms with day beds, a Sisley spa with two treatment rooms and a private call booth.
Finnair Platinum Wing
HEL · Non-Schengen Area · Helsinki
4.3/5 overallHas a sauna that people actually use, because it is in Finland.
Finnish sauna, private shower suites, an à la carte menu and a champagne and cocktail bar.
Get in with: oneworld Sapphire/Emerald Lounge Access
Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse
LHR · Terminal 3 · London
4.6/5 overallComplimentary spa treatments that fill up early. Short, free, bookable: the formula that works.
Virgin Atlantic's flagship Clubhouse in Heathrow Terminal 3 is the airline's home lounge. Upper Class passengers can enter directly from the Upper Class Wing, which has its own check-in and security.
Get in with: Clubhouse
Qantas First Lounge
SYD · Terminal 1 (International) · Sydney
4.7/5 overallThe spa treatments are the thing regulars book first on arrival. Turn up late and the slots are gone.
Opened 2007. Rated 4.7/5 across 14 measures. 12 showers. Qantas first passengers and Platinum/Platinum One; oneworld Emerald: 1 guest.
Get in with: oneworld Sapphire/Emerald Lounge Access
News and analysis · Sources checked October 6, 2026.
The sauna in the Air France Lounge in Terminal 2E, Hall L at Paris Charles de Gaulle is gone. Air France told Live and Let's Fly in August that it closed the men's and women's sauna in September 2025 because of low usage and a push to standardize what its CDG lounges offer. The airline also rejected a lounge manager's suggestion to the same writer that passenger misbehavior was the real cause. InsideFlyer noted that Air France's corporate site was still advertising the sauna almost a year after it closed.
The sauna was the showpiece of a 550-square-meter wellness area when the lounge reopened in 2018. What remains is the part people actually queued for: free 20-minute Clarins treatments, ten showers, and the rest zone. The first class La Première lounge keeps its spa.
What gets used, and what does not#
The pattern across lounges is consistent. A short, free, bookable treatment with a therapist gets taken up fast. Virgin Atlantic's Heathrow Clubhouse and the Qantas First Lounge in Sydney are both known for spa slots that disappear within minutes of the lounge filling up. Showers are used constantly. A sauna, which needs twenty minutes you do not have, a change of clothes, and a second shower afterwards, sits empty unless the culture around it is strong. Finnair's Platinum Wing in Helsinki can run a sauna because Finns use saunas; Paris could not.
Our take#
Air France is right to close it, and it should have updated its website at the same time. The lesson for every lounge designer who wants a wellness wing: spend the money on therapists and showers, not on rooms that photograph well and sit at 90 degrees for nobody.
Putting this into practice#
For a closure list, I'd use the airport directory to identify currently open alternatives. I would start with the terminal and the time available after security. That turns a directory into a realistic shortlist. A lounge can be excellent and still be a poor choice for this departure if reaching it uses most of the waiting time. The location notes above should do as much work as the overall score.
The access check comes next. I'd identify the exact card, membership, status or ticket being used and read the conditions for that route into the lounge. A lounge appearing on a card's map is a starting point for that check. It is not a reason to assume every fare, guest or departure will qualify in the same way.
I would decide what I want from the stop before comparing amenities. For a meal, the food available during the actual visit matters. For work, I'd look for a suitable seat and power. For a short connection, simply finding a comfortable place near the gate may be the better result. There is little value in an amenity I cannot use.
Related reading#
Cite this article
Lounge Frog Editorial. “Air France has closed the sauna in its Paris Hall L lounge, and the reason is that nobody used it.” Lounge Frog. Published 2026-10-06. Updated 2026-10-14. https://www.loungefrog.com/news/air-france-cdg-lounge-sauna-closed-wellness-amenities
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Quick answers
Which lounge networks get you into these lounges?
oneworld Sapphire/Emerald Lounge Access opens 2 of the 5; Air France Lounge opens 1 of the 5; SkyTeam Elite Plus Lounge Access opens 1 of the 5. Each lounge's page lists every program and card that admits you.
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