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JFK
T1 Lounge guide

JFK Terminal 1 lounges: the full list, and why Priority Pass works here

The JFK Terminal 1 lounges are the deepest single-terminal set at the airport that a lounge membership can actually open: six lounges, five run by airlines, and every one of them in the Priority Pass network. One is landside and one opens only at night, and the terminal itself is living on borrowed time.

Lounges
6
in the Priority Pass directory
Of JFK's 7 PP lounges
6 here
the seventh closes at 1:30 PM
Landside lounge
VIP ONE
8:00 AM to midnight, 4-hour cap
Night-only door
Korean Air
9:30 PM to 12:50 AM
On this page (5 sections)

The six lounges, with published hours

The airport's own Terminal 1 page names no lounges at all, just "conveniently located lounges throughout the terminal," so the best current record is the operators' own listings. Six lounges appear, and all six sit in the Priority Pass directory:

  • Air France Lounge: 7:00 AM to midnight.
  • Lufthansa Business Lounge: no hours published in the directory.
  • Turkish Airlines Lounge: 9:00 AM to midnight.
  • Korean Air Lounge: 9:30 PM to 12:50 AM, a night window only.
  • Primeclass Lounge: 7:30 AM to 9:00 PM, with pre-booking offered.
  • VIP ONE Lounge: 8:00 AM to midnight, and landside, before security.

Four are airline lounges that also serve their own carriers' eligible passengers under rules each airline sets; Primeclass and VIP ONE are independents. Terminal 1's check-in hall hosts 26 airlines, the most of any JFK terminal, which is why its lounge row reads like a European alliance roll call. If you are not sure this is even your terminal, the airline terminal guide settles it before you plan a lounge visit.

Why Priority Pass works best at this terminal

Here is the airport-wide picture in one sentence: JFK has seven Priority Pass lounges, six of them are at Terminal 1, and the seventh, the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse at Terminal 4, closes at 1:30 PM. Everywhere else the network offers nap suites, a game lounge or a spa rather than a lounge. A membership that feels useless across the airport becomes genuinely useful in this one building.

The practical consequence runs both ways. Flying from Terminal 1, you can afford to be choosy: if one lounge is full, another is a short walk, since the terminal's own walk-time table puts every gate 1 to 5 minutes from security. Flying from any other terminal, do not plan on lounging here: JFK's terminals are separate buildings, and reaching Terminal 1 means the AirTrain plus a fresh security screening. The JFK lounges guide compares what every program gets you across all six terminals.

The landside lounge: VIP ONE

The VIP ONE Lounge is the oddity worth knowing about: it sits before security, behind check-in counters E and F, open daily 8:00 AM to midnight. Its operator caps entry at 4 hours and lists Wi-Fi, refreshments and alcoholic drinks, with digital membership cards accepted and disabled access available.

Landside cuts both ways. It is the one lounge at JFK that someone without a boarding pass can use, which makes it an answer for a long goodbye or a meeter waiting on a delayed arrival. It also means time spent there is time on the wrong side of the checkpoint, so treat the security line as still ahead of you and leave the buffer you would leave anyway.

Evening and night hours, and the door that only opens late

Terminal 1's schedule leans international and its lounge hours lean late. Air France, Turkish and VIP ONE all run to midnight, which covers the evening long-haul bank. The Korean Air Lounge goes further and opens only at night, 9:30 PM to 12:50 AM, matching Korean Air's late departures. It is the single easiest lounge at JFK to walk up to and find shut, because at any normal afternoon hour it is not open and was never going to be.

The early end of the day is thinner. The first published door is Air France at 7:00 AM, and nothing here matches the 4:15 AM openings at Terminal 8 or the 24-hour room at Terminal 4. On a dawn departure from Terminal 1, plan on the concourse, not a lounge.

A terminal on the clock

Everything on this page has a shelf life, and pretending otherwise would be the wrong kind of confidence. Terminal 1 closes when the New Terminal One opens on the site next door, and that opening keeps moving: the first phase was scheduled for June 1, 2026, missed it, was reset to October, then to November, and the developer's current target is a window from December to March, with construction reported at 90% complete. No committed opening date exists as of September 7, 2026. When the switch happens, the airlines move, and these lounges go with the building.

What that means in practice: check your boarding pass for the terminal, not your memory, and if you are reading this near or after the New Terminal One's opening, verify any lounge on this page against the operator before you plan around it. The Terminal 1 guide tracks the terminal's status, and the terminal overview follows the whole rebuild, including where each terminal's airlines are headed.

Related pages

Terminal 1
The terminal itself: 26 airlines, a short walk to every gate, and a closing date tied to the rebuild.
JFK lounges
Every lounge at the airport, and what each program actually gets you at JFK.
Which terminal is my airline?
The full airline-to-terminal list, checked against the airport directory.
Terminal 7 lounges
The other shrinking terminal, down to two lounges as it empties into Terminal 6.

Frequently asked questions

Which lounges are at JFK Terminal 1?

Six, and the airport’s own venue directory and the Priority Pass directory now agree on all six: the Air France Lounge, the Lufthansa Senator and Business Lounge, the Turkish Airlines Lounge, the Korean Air Lounge, the Primeclass Lounge, and the VIP ONE Lounge. Four are airline-run and two are independent. The airport’s Terminal 1 marketing page still names none of them, which is why older guides say no list exists.

Does Priority Pass work at JFK Terminal 1?

Better than anywhere else at the airport. Six of the eight Priority Pass lounges at JFK are at Terminal 1; the other two are at Terminal 4, and one of those closes at 1:30 PM. Priority Pass has no lounge at all at Terminal 5, Terminal 7 or Terminal 8. If your plan for JFK involves a Priority Pass, Terminal 1 is the terminal where it actually pays off.

Is there a lounge before security at JFK?

At Terminal 1, yes. The VIP ONE Lounge is landside, behind check-in counters E and F, open daily 8:00 AM to midnight, with entry capped at 4 hours per its operator. Being before security makes it the one lounge a meeter or greeter can use, and it also means you still need to budget for the security line afterward.

What are the Air France lounge hours at JFK?

Priority Pass lists the Air France Lounge at Terminal 1 as open 7:00 AM to midnight. Air France controls the lounge and its access rules, so eligibility for its own passengers follows the airline, and the hours can move with the flight schedule.

Is the Korean Air lounge at JFK always open?

No, and its hours are the one thing at this terminal two official sources disagree about. Priority Pass lists it 9:30 PM to 12:50 AM, a night window that tracks Korean Air’s late-evening JFK departures; the airport’s own directory lists 8:30 AM to 12:00 PM, a morning one. Neither is worth planning around on its own, so check with Korean Air before you count on this room, and have one of the other five in reserve.

Will the Terminal 1 lounges close?

The terminal will. Terminal 1 closes when the New Terminal One opens, its replacement being built next door on the old Terminal 2 site, and that date moved four times in 2026 alone: a June 1 opening was missed, then October, then November, and the developer now names a December-to-March window. Every lounge on this page has that same shelf life, which is why each claim carries a checked date. Verify against your boarding pass and the operator before you fly.