Updated September 4, 2019: The Priority Pass lounge, I Mosaici, has been closed. The current best Priority Pass lounge at FCO, Rome, is the Plaza Premium Lounge.
Sometimes airport lounges are an especially nice surprise. And sometimes they even exceed your expectations. I know that doesn’t happen often enough, but when it does, it makes for a story worth sharing! And how I even got to the lounge I’m writing about – well, that’s a good story as well.
Since it had been a while since I’d transited in Rome at Fiumicino airport (FCO), I did a bit of research on my lounge options. Seemed there were two to consider and both got awful reviews. My expectations were low, so I figured at the very least, I’d take a look at the better of the two, have a cappuccino, and then shake my head in disappointment and head out of the lounge.
When I checked in at FCO for my long haul segment in First Class, the Lufthansa agent told me to head upstairs to the lounge. My short segment from Rome to Frankfurt had some issues and was only in economy. I didn’t fuss about this because it was only a short flight. She explained it was an Alitalia lounge, and the one Lufthansa used as well. Lounge was easy enough to find, but when I gave the woman at the front desk, who was actually an Etihad employee, my boarding pass, she said I couldn’t use the lounge. I was flying a short segment in economy from Rome to Frankfurt. She was polite about it and so was I. I told her the Lufthansa agent had said I’d have access, so could she please call the Lufthansa desk and see what was going on.
In the meantime, a man and his two grown daughters came into the lounge thinking they had access from an American Express Gold Delta SkyMiles Credit Card, and they were also turned away. After arguing for a few minutes, he was pretty upset and left. I’m telling you this because it comes back into play in a little while.
The Alitalia lounge attendant calls and speaks with my Lufthansa woman, and though I’m not fluent in Italian, I can pretty much tell what’s going on. She puts me on the phone and my Lufthansa agent apologizes and tells me that the policies between the two airlines do not agree and it’s an Alitalia lounge so if they don’t want to grant me access, there’s not much she can do. She tells me to wait by the desk while she makes some calls and she’ll call me back. I thank her and say I’ll wait. I had more than a two hour layover, so I really did want lounge access to get work done and have a bite to eat.
Then it dawns on me. I recalled that the other lounge that was reviewed, and even came out worse than the Alitalia lounge, was a Priority Pass Lounge. I asked the Etihad woman if there was a Priority Pass Lounge nearby. She said, “Yes, down the hall and on the left.” I thanked her and told her I was going there and if the Lufthansa woman called back, to please tell her that news.
After I exited the lounge, lo and behold the man and his two daughters were there, still figuring out what they were going to do. Turns out they had a four-hour layover. I didn’t introduce myself. All I said to them was, “Follow me, I have another lounge plan in mind.” So with my cousin, and these three in tow, I walked to the Priority Pass lounge.
The lounge was empty, and as I walked up to the desk a really sweet, nice young woman came up to help me. I verified that this was the Priority Pass lounge, gave her my card, and very quietly asked her how many guests I could bring in with me. I always check because all the Priority Pass lounge cards come with different benefits. She said, “We don’t worry about guests here! How many do you have?” I pointed to my 4 guests. She smiled and welcomed us all in. Let’s just say the family of three was delighted and grateful and it was great to be able to help them out and watch them enjoy the lounge.
As I looked around, and even before I really looked closely at what the lounge had to offer, I had a good feeling about this place. For your reference, it’s in Terminal 3 near the D gates. I think we all have our own list of what makes a lounge either a winner or loser in our minds. Turns out this one is a big time winner. Even more so, given the very limited choices at FCO and particularly in this terminal. By this time, it was about 11:30 AM. I noticed that the lounge has plenty of natural light. It has big windows and even with the cloth shades pulled closed, the lighting was great. Next, I look for seating and seating arrangements. There were plenty of couches, tables with chairs, and a separate area for lounging, too. There was even a big room for office meetings.
Granted, most people look at the food offerings first, I tend to notice them after looking for seats. This lounge actually had good food, which may have been the biggest surprise, given how bad the previous lounge reviews were. People really hated the food in those reviews. However, on the day I was here, they had green salad with way more in it than lettuce and tomatoes, a hot risotto dish, a penne pasta dish, and an interesting assortment of Italian style sandwiches, both vegetarian and with meats. They also put out a few trays of both sweet and plain croissants, as well as other rolls and bread.
There’s a full bar and the bartender, who was also the barista, made a mean cappuccino. The bartender was very funny and friendly. I also liked that he came around and helped the lounge staff clean the tables and see if you wanted anything else to eat and drink. All the staff was helpful and pleasant. Another lounge perk was that there was a shower! I can only vouch for the women’s room shower, but I’d assume the men had one too. In a lounge like this, to have a shower really surprised me.
The lounge itself was plenty big and the furniture was spread out in a way that didn’t make you feel like you were crowded or had no privacy to talk. As much as I like the American Express Centurion lounges, I always feel I can hear everyone else’s conversations because of the way they crowd everyone in. Not so in this Priority Pass lounge. So I don’t know if this lounge has been renovated or what, but I was totally shocked and VERY pleasantly surprised to find this to be such a great lounge. I didn’t feel like anything was missing, and that’s unusual in most lounges.
Within the first few minutes of being there, I thought that it was actually a blessing in disguise that the Alitalia lounge hadn’t worked out. I not only had a great experience here, but it gave me something to write about and recommend to anyone passing through FCO!
Have you been to this lounge lately? Are there other Priority Pass lounges that are as good as this one? Which lounge surprised you in a good way? Let me know!
Err…. is there any photos to share?
Hi Cipta, and thanks for your request. Unfortunately, the ones I took didn’t come out well, so here is the link for the lounge. The photos are much better than mine! Hope it helps. https://www.prioritypass.com/it/Lounges/Europe/Italy/Rome/Rome-Fiumicino.
FYi when I click on that link it says “Lounge is currently unavailable”. There are 3 others available, but apparently not this one.
THE LOUNGE IS SHUT DOWN AND CLOSED!
Thanks for the review of the lounge. Just so your readers don’t try to access this lounge, it no longer exists and is closed. You will notice that the link you gave above and the priority pass website no longer has this lounge in it. The smaller and much more crowded Priority Pass accessible lounge by D3 (across from the Alitalia lounge) still exists and is just fine. Its a little crowded and the food/beverages are OK. is still there.
I thought I would post this comment as I spent 15 minutes wandering around the D7 area searching for this lounge.
As well, Priority Pass lists the lounge as T3 Shenzen area part of the airport, you can easily access it from any of the T1 European flights gates A,B,C as well. My gate A11 was a 4 minute walk.
Thanks so much Greg, for keeping us current on this lounge information and taking the time to write your update. Sure enough, the only thing constant in life is change :)
Shelli, since several of us have posted that the lounge is closed, perhaps you should add a comment at the top of the article alerting people about it. We went to the Plaza Premium Lounge instead during our recent visit. It was fairly easy to find at the top of the escalator, and it was quite nice.
Great suggestion, thank you. Just updated the post!
Sounds like an excellent place! Will bookmark it, though I don’t have any immediate plans to travel to Italy. I also think it’s great that you helped that family out. It’s nice to read about people doing kind things for their fellow human beings in today’s high stress travel environment. Would rather read about this than about people fighting on planes, getting dragged off planes, getting removed from planes, etc. :)
Thanks for stopping by YoLaViajera! I appreciate your sentiment about helping other people out. I try to treat people in a way that helps their stress, especially when traveling. Thanks for your kind words :)
Shelli, you seem very enthusiastic and kind, so I want to make sure you know there’s no snark against you meant here – just an honest question. Isn’t it a form of stealing to falsely guest three strangers into the lounge free of charge? It is to me, and “just because I can” doesn’t mitigate it. These lounges have either an entrance fee or day pass etc., and these three people didn’t pay it, so it’s revenue lost by the lounge operator. Your thoughts?
I appreciate your question, colleen. I do pay for the premium credit card which allows unlimited guests in my party. It’s true that they weren’t in my travel party, so on that point I understand your feeling. I guess I didn’t see that part of the equation though, because I was just trying to help out some stressed travelers. Interesting food for thought, though. Thanks for your comment.
Thank you for sharing – it’s always great to hear about a positive unexpected experience. I have also been in a position of being denied access to a lounge and a kind stranger helped me. Bravo to you for helping the family!
Thanks for stopping by, Denise. And thank you for your kind words.
We went to all three lounges in FCO a couple weeks ago. The one you went to is definitely the best. However, they didn’t have the hot food options when we went there :(
All three, wow, you must have had a long layover :) Glad the one I recommend is the best. No hot food options, sorry to hear that!
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and being kind to others! We are traveling to Italy in January 2019. We are flying in through Venice and out via Rome. I do not know the terminals. Is your favorite Rome priority pass lounge in the international flights area? Thank you.
Sounds like a wonderful trip, Jolene. If you haven’t been before, you’ll love Italy! Yes, we were flying out on United, so the Priority Pass lounge I visited was in the international terminal. Thanks for reading!
We were flying on Alitalia out of Terminal 1. I purchased “Premium Economy” tickets which while nowhere near as expensive as “Business Class” (first class), they cost approximately $2300 more than economy so I assumed that I would be able to go to the Alitalia lounge. I was wrong. They would not let me in. It’s no wonder that Alitalia is bankrupt. First of all, they should call “Premium Economy” just “Premium Class” and first class should not be called “Business Class”. Secondly, they should let “Premium Economy” passengers into the lounge. Since they turned me away, we went to the Priority Pass “Plaza Premium Lounge” which was also probably fortunate that we were turned away from the Alitalia lounge. The Plaza Premium Lounge was 1000 times nicer than the Priority Pass lounge in New York at JFK. The Plaza Premium Lounge includes almost a full restaurant with two bartenders at a large bar. I had a turkey sandwich and a made to order individual pizza which was excellent.
Glad you had the same great experience that I did in FCO at the PP lounge. Thanks for letting us know!
I am not an expert but based on my recent investigations into Premium Economy tickets I’ve yet to find one that includes lounge access. They may be out there, but I have not found one. I also was surprised that it’s not included. I read that Alitalia will sell you access at a discounted price, but if you have Priority Pass obviously there’s no reason to pay anything.
In any event, glad to hear the Plaza lounge at FCO was nice since I will be there in about a month (flying PE on Alitalia, coincidentally) and will have a few hours before my flight (3pm flight after departing a cruise ship).
Thanks for reading, mb99. Have a great trip, wherever you’re cruise takes you!
With Shelli’s positive comment, I tried this priority pass lounge near gate D3 at terminal 3. But to my disappointment, it has actually no shower facility and the lady at the reception was not as welcoming as described, but in fact with a poker face on my queries to her. So it just depends on your luck tp get any quality service!
Oh no, Jp, sorry to hear this. Strange about the shower. I was last there a year ago. It is true, as you suggest, that people do make a difference and it sounds like your receptionist wasn’t on her best game. Thanks for letting us know.
I know a lot of lounges (have Priority Pass) and tried this one on 3 July 2018. It was horrible!
Temperature was hot.
Lounge was crowded, no possibility to sit together (2 persons)
Food was awful
Only one cleaning mate, didn’t manage it to keep the lounge clean (what I understand), therefore used dishes everywhere, disgusting toilets (by the way: no shower facilities, although indicated)
passive, almost rude receptionist
never again.
Sounds like the lounge has gone downhill since I was there last year. Sorry to hear that. Thanks for letting us know, Richard. If you have any lounges to recommend at FCO, do tell us which ones.
Hey Shelli,
Its really nice to read your story. I am travelling next week and my flight has a really long layover at night there. I am curious if the lounge has a closing time at night and will they kick me out beyond that time?
Thanks for reading, Latika. It’s my understanding that the Plaza Premium Lounge is open 24 hours a day but the rules do say there is a three hour limit on stays in the lounge. Whether or not they enforce that, I don’t know. Have a great trip and hopefully the lounge at FCO will work out for you.
We are leaving out of Rome FCO Terminal 1. How difficult would it be to go back and forth from Terminal 1 and the Priority Pass lounge in Terminal 3?
Good question, Stan. Tricky to predict. Here’s a link about FCO that might help. http://www.travelnerd.com/airports/rome-airport-fiumicino-FCO/terminal-map Enjoy Italy!!!
Hi Shelli, great article. Just wanna check, the lounge in question is a Mosaic lounge? According to the Priority Pass website, seems like this lounge is no longer there. The website listed two Passenger lounges and one Plaza Premium lounge. Are you aware of the change? I would like to go with to the one that you described because that is the only Priority Pass lounge with a shower that can be accessed by passengers departing from gate D, but it is not listed in the website.
HI Michelle, Thanks for the question. I did some checking. The lounge I’m talking about is indeed a Mosaic lounge that as I understand it allows PP customers to enter. It was closed this past summer for renovation. I can’t seem to find any recent info beyond the renovation closure. Sorry this doesn’t help much but hopefully it’s no open and you’ll be able to use it.
The confusion may be that there are THREE Priority lounges in FCO. I think TWO are Schlengen / EU, one of which is open 2 hours, and one is non-Schengen (E.G., US). Just came out of Rome onUnited to US so went to the Non-Schlengen opposite E43 – the E gates are way out over the sky bridge, but this is where the United gates are. On a Wednesday at 8 am, Not too crowded, food OK, no sign of a shower but didnt look. I’m guessing that Shelli was at the one at the D gates.
Thanks for this recent info, Rick. I appreciate you taking the time to post it. I think it’s also confusing because some lounges are not called Priority Lounges but do let PP cardholders in.
Hi everyone, I’m in Rome Fiumicino at the Passenger Lounge Terminal 3 and I’m not happy at all. It’s my first experience here, waiters and staff are loud, wines and Prosecco are in the fridge instead of an ice basket, scramble eggs and sausages (breakfast) were cold, sandwiches are not filled properly, windows are dirty…. not happy at all! I took some photos if you let me post it.
Umberto, Wow, sounds like a real fail on the part of the lounge. I hear your frustration. I hope you took some time to let the lounge management know how off things are. I appreciate you updating us.