@movernie
Hello everyone!
Today is a special day for Air Canada as it unveils its brand new Maple Leaf Lounge at the San Francisco International Airport (SFO) located in Terminal 2, which is located very close to the gates of many Air Canada flights.
This is a special moment for Air Canada as this marks a new Maple Leaf Lounge post pandemic. Passengers can now visit and experience what the Maple Leaf Lounge has to offer before boarding their next flights.
I am truly honor that Air Canada invited me to attend this celebration event as they flew me from Toronto to San Francisco to witness this special occasion. This is such a cool Press Trip! Thank you Air Canada!
Air Canada has booked me to stay at the Grand Hyatt San Francisco Hotel which is located right beside the SFO airport. There is an Air Train station that connects to the hotel so I didn’t even have to go outside.
As I took the escalator up, the Air Train station has maps to help people know how to navigate this huge airport.
Apparently, there are 2 Air Train lines, a blue line and a red line. We were recommended to take the red line. After a few stops, approximately 7 mins ride later, I have arrived at Terminal 2.
We went to the departure area where the Air Canada counters were located. Friendly staff greeted us as we checked-in. After that, we were handed a wristband, a badge with my full name on it. (Special shoutout to the on-site staff holding up the “Air Canada – Private Event” signage so that we can locate easily where to check-in). Merci beaucoup!
Then, we walked to the Air Canada counter to retrieve our boarding passes.
Then in groups of 8-10 people, an Air Canada staff guided us to the special security check point. Just like any passenger who needs to pass the security point, we took off our shoes, electronic devices, phones and belongings to be scanned through those typical security machines to ensure the airport is as safe as possible.
Once we got the clearance, an Air Canada staff greeted us and guided us to the Maple Leaf Lounge entrance. The lounge entrance is located near the security check point. As we walked into the corridor, there were 2 elevators to bring us up.
Once the elevator arrived, there is a nice walkway towards the Maple Leaf Lounge. I really enjoyed this walk as I could see all the planes on the tarmac along the big glass windows.
Finally, we have reached the entrance. There are e-gates at this point for point of entry. You can either use the e-gates to scan your QR codes or e-boarding pass. Or you can use the hardcopy boarding pass to get through. Once the gates are opened, we were greeted by the concierge.
Since today is a special celebration event, we were greeted with glasses of bubbly! That’s the best way to roll into a nice private event!
As I walked through further into the lounge, I naturally said “WOW!”. This lounge is big! It has a long spacious seating area overlooking the tarmac which is perfect for plane watching.
All these seats have ample number of power outlets for you to charge your phone and other electronic devices.
Anyhow, without further adieu, let me show you what this all-new Maple Leaf Lounge has to offer at the San Francisco International Airport (Terminal 2)!
On the right, there are private offices that you can close the glass doors for privacy and it’s perfect for Zoom business meetings. There are printers beside it in case you need to print out copies of documents.
As I moved along, there are 2 big glass rooms with flat screen TVs, sofas, chairs, coffee tables that look like a tree trunk, these are somewhat private rooms for people who wants a little bit more privacy and quietness. These 2 glass rooms remind me a bit of those Karaoke rooms, Let’s sing along! Just kidding. LOL
Then, there comes the Men and Women’s washrooms. Luv the black floors and counters and as they are quite elegant and modern.
As I walked further along the spacious lounge, there are more seating areas with tables for people to dine and drink. There is a nice artwork on one side of the white wall with the iconic San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge. I really like that “locals” touch!
Finally, I see food! Yes, the food station serving hors d’oeuvre such as sandwiches, deli meat, veggies, salads, cooked hot food that brings local flare such as fresh seafood in one of the dishes that serves giant scallops and shrimps! OMG! So fresh and tasty.
There are also pop stations, juice stations, coffee machines that use Lavazza coffee beans.
And there is more! There is a big bar counter area as the bartenders serving up some specialty cocktails that are ONLY available at this particular Maple Leaf Lounge at SFO. Signature cocktails such as the “Golden Gate” and “Fleur de Sakura”. They were both of my favourite.
I even got to try the Toki on the rocks, a Japanese Whiskey. I luv Japanese whiskey!
Wow! More seating area with sofas, comfy benches, does this lounge ever ends? LOL
I saw a writing choreographer who was on hand to style our name onto the postcards. Very cool!
And here comes the MOST SPECIAL section of the entire Maple Leaf Lounge! The 1st ever outdoor terrace in a Maple Leaf Lounge is here at this SFO location. Before the launch of this lounge, Air Canada does not have any lounge that has an outdoor terrace.
This outdoor terrace is my favourite area. There are lawn chairs, comfy sofas and chairs, fire place, and the very photogenic art mural showing the Air Canada logo and the iconic San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge.
This terrace is surrounded by tall bay windows that you can watch planes moving along the tarmac. The beauty about this is that….you couldn’t hear much noise as these are made of audio proof windows.
I also really enjoyed the unique shape of the air control centre that complement perfectly with the art mural of the backdrop here at the terrace.
DJ spinning music at the terrace giving a very chill vibe!
Once most of the guests had arrived, the Air Canada executives did some opening remarks, thanking the guests for coming and then followed by the traditional ribbon cutting ceremony.
I have to say….this SFO Maple Leaf Lounge looks and feels better than the Toronto one, I don’t get jelly often but I am jelly of those who gets to experience the Maple Leaf Lounge here at SFO. Lucky you!
It was also very nice to meet new friends and seeing familiar faces at this special private celebration event.
If you are visiting SFO, make sure you utilize the Maple Leaf Lounge. But of course, make sure you are eligible to access this brand new Maple Leaf Lounge.
Click here to check if you are eligible to access any of the Maple Leaf Lounges.
Now, there are total of 4 Maple Leaf Lounges that are located on American home soil.
- Los Angeles
- New York
- New York – Newark
- San Francisco
Congratulations to Air Canada on this milestone and wishing them the growing success of launching more lounges in the near future to other parts of the world.
The return flights from Toronto to San Francisco and this special Maple Leaf private event was provided by Air Canada. However, as always, the opinions expressed in this post is entirely my own.
