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Lounge Review: Air India Maharaja Lounge - New York (JFK) Terminal 4

Written by Matthew Justice on Dec 8, 2025
2.9 stars
Entrance to the Air India lounge, showing door and signs.

On a recent trip to New York, I took some time to visit a few lounges I have never been to. This review covers my time at the Air India Lounge at New YorkĀ Airport (JFK). TheĀ Air India Maharaja Lounge is operated by Primeclass and is open daily from 10:30 to 20:00 (8 pm).

Location and Access

The Air India (JFK) Lounge is located airside on the upper level in Terminal 4 above Gate A5, directly beside The Emirates Lounge and across from the Virgin Atlantic Club lounge.

For my visit I used my Priority Pass membership associated with my Capital One Venture X credit card. Besides Priority Pass, the lounge is partnered with Dragonpass, Lounge Key, and Star Alliance Gold. When I arrived (Saturday, around 2:30 pm), the lounge was about 40% full, and there was no wait for entry.

Lounge Amenities

The lounge had pretty standard, yet limited, amenities. Upon entry into the lounge, there is an area for (lockable) luggage storage directly behind the check-in counter. The lounge is situated inside a single room; there are no quiet areas or extra areas to unwind. They did not have any printed magazines but did offer PressReader service (which I did not test). I was able to grab a corner table with a nice window view of the ramp area and the TWA Hotel. Throughout the lounge there were Air India posters showing different cities and Indian landmarks. There was no other art or decor, and the lounge felt a little plain. There were charging plugs located in various spots around the lounge, but not in every seating area. The lounge had a TV on the wall, but it was turned off. I imagine due to the single-room design and where it was placed, watching TV would be very difficult and noisy.

View outside of the lounge of Terminal 5 and the TWA Hotel with planes and gates.
Outside view from lounge of the TWA Hotel and Terminal 5 gates. Source: Lounge Nerd

Seating and Work Areas

The lounge offered tables with seating throughout most of the lounge. There were also a few areas with comfortable seating and small tables, which are great for relaxing. There are no dedicated work zones, quiet zones, or conference tables, but there are areas that will suffice for working as well as relaxing. Along the back corner of the lounge, there are also a few tables along the windows where you can see outside while dining.

Tables and seating area. Tables and seating with large windows with views of the airport gates.

Food and Beverage

As a person who loves Indian food, I was excited to get to try a late lunch. When I arrived, they had several options, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian. They have two food serving areas; one is for cold items, and the other is a hot bar that serves various items. From the hot bar I chose the curry vegetables and (vegan) chickpea stew, with rice and a side of naan. I will say it was actually very good. For those who are spice-averse, they did not go overboard; it was a great balance. They also offered chicken fajita meat with grilled veggies. For those craving noodles, they provide pre-packaged noodle cups where you can add boiling water. On the cold bar they offered some cookies, fresh veggies, cheese, and salami. If you are looking for just a snack, they had dried fruits, nuts, and some Indian snacks, including red jelabi and ladoo.

cheese, and other snack items. food area with self-serve bar area.
curry vegetables on the hot bar. curry vegetables, nann, and white wine on table with view outdoors.

They had a decent selection of beverages; there was a tea area serving various teas with an option for honey and sugar choices. They also had an espresso machine that would create almost any common espresso beverage. All the beverages were self-serve, including a limited bar area with wine, beer, vodka, gin, rum, tequila, and whiskey. Near the alcohol bottles, there was a section with cucumber, lemon, celery, and mint to create various cocktails. There were soda, juice, and beer choices in the under-counter fridge. When I went, the only beer choices were Budweiser and Coors Light. I was sad not to see an Indian beer such as Kingfisher being served. For my meal I chose a glass of white wine, since I knew it would pair nicely with spicy food.

Espresso machine and coffee station. tea bags, honey and other items for hot tea.

Restrooms and Showers

There are two restrooms, one for men and one for women. These restrooms were very small, but still nice to not have to leave the lounge and use a terminal restroom.Ā The lounge does not offer a shower.

inside the men's restroom sink and mirror inside the men's restroom showing stall.

Internet and Noise

While I was in the lounge, the noise level was quiet. I imagine when the lounge is at capacity, the noise does get loud. I did test the Wi-Fi; since this lounge is operated by Primeclass, the network name is "Primeclass" I connected without any issues and ran two speed tests. Unfortunately, the fastest of the two was 4.6 Mbps (down) and 8.6 Mbps (up) around 2:45 pm.

Overall Rating: 2.92*

Pros: No wait for entrance, large windows with outdoor view, solid selection of beverages.
Cons: Small restrooms, no quiet or sleep area, furniture is a bit worn, no TV, very slow Wi-Fi.

  • Amenities: 3.1
  • Food: 2.5
  • Beverages: 3.2
  • Seating & Tables: 3.4
  • Service: 3.3
  • Wow-Factor: 2

* scored using Nerd Score 1.0

Closing Thoughts

I will say the highlight of this lounge was my food. It is nice to have a self-serve bar that is not found in other locations. This lounge has not been renovated in a long time, and I imagine that will happen sometime in the near future. In summary, this is not the worst or the best lounge I have visited, and as long as you are not expecting a full-service business class lounge, this is a good choice for a quick visit.