hot showers in Heathrow Terminal 3?

It is a wonderful luxury to get off a long flight and take a hot shower. That's one of the perks of flying in Club World on British Airways — beyond the completely horizontal sleeper seats that enabled me to get five good hours of sleep last night. And I was looking forward to the treat of enjoying a hot shower after 10 hours on a plane from SFO to London.

As our connecting flight to Lisbon departs from Heathrow Terminal 3, we caught the bus that takes transiting passengers from T-5 to T-3. Long lines for the bus are a thing of the past, and in five minutes we were on a coach that meandered through Heathrow, taking us directly to the airside entrance to T-3.

And that's where this tale of woe begins.

1. There are no "Fast Track" security lines in T-3. First and Club World passengers stand in the same security line as everyone else.
2. BA's Terrace Lounge in T-3 is in the midst of upgrading. The showers and spa won't open until the end of October.
3. We inquired at the American Admiral's Club to which we enjoyed complimentary entry as Club World passengers on BA. The showers in their business class lounge were under construction — and the showers in the First Class lounge (to which we did not have access) had no hot water.
4. The Servisair Lounge (open to Priority Pass or Diners Club members) has no showers.

The lesson to take away from this adventure? If you're flying into T-5, want a hot shower, and have at least 2 hours between flights, use the BA Arrivals Lounge before transiting to another terminal.

Heathrow Terminal 3 (search here on Google)

copyright (c) 2009 by David J. Ourisman. All rights reserved. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.
.