United Polaris Lounge

We spent a total of about 12 hours in the United Polaris Lounge at Chicago O’Hare; roughly six hours during our layover on the way to Europe and another six hours on the return while waiting for a connection and overall it made the airport experience significantly more enjoyable. The lounge itself is very large, with plenty of seating spread throughout, so it never felt crowded or difficult to find a place to sit, even during busy times. The design is sleek, modern, and very clean, with an overall elegant feel that makes it easy to relax for an extended stay. Food options were solid. They rotate items every few hours, which helps if you’re there for a long time, and there’s also a sit‑down restaurant within the lounge that serves legitimately decent food. The buffet offerings included things like shrimp orzo, coconut curry, chicken, eggs, cheeses, meats, soups, salads, and cookies. There’s also a wide selection of beverages and a full bar. One surprisingly great feature was the number of bathrooms, which meant we never had to wait, even during peak times. The staff throughout the lounge were friendly, attentive, and consistently helpful, which added to the overall experience. All in all, this is a very strong lounge and easily one of the better airport lounge experiences we’ve had. If you have access to the Polaris Lounge at ORD, it’s absolutely worth taking advantage of and makes long layovers far more comfortable.

Stopped by the Polaris Lounge at ORD, and honestly, the experience was a bit underwhelming. The first challenge was simply finding the place as its location isn’t intuitive at all, and the signage doesn’t make it any easier. Once inside, the lounge itself is spacious, with two large sections where food is served, but the food selection wasn’t impressive compared to other lounges I’ve visited. What they had was fine, just limited and not on the same level as other premium lounges. I was also disappointed to find that this location doesn’t offer showers, especially since other ORD lounges do and it makes a big difference on long travel days. Seating was comfortable enough, but nothing that stood out as exceptional. Service was polite but not particularly proactive, and the overall atmosphere felt more functional than relaxing. For a premium lounge, it missed several marks that usually make the experience feel elevated. Overall, it works for a quick stop, but it didn’t deliver the premium feeling I expected. Efficient: No First-Time Friendliness: No Would I Return: No JY review

The United Polaris Lounge at O’Hare is a seriously comfy spot to relax before a long flight. The food and drinks are good — reasonable quality dining with a pretty solid buffet and cocktails that don’t disappoint. The lounge is spacious with lots of seating options and private phone rooms. The staff’s service is friendly and professional, making it feel a bit like fine dining before you even board. It can get crowded at peak times but overall it’s a top-notch experience. One of my most favorite lounges in the US.

Flying business to Paris, so was able to come see the lounge now that it has been expanded/renovated. A very and classy experience with great service by the staff. Plenty of clean bathrooms. Plenty of common and private seating areas. Tasteful decor. Sleep rooms. Showers. Buffet as well as seated dining room with 3-course menu. Food was all great! Multiple drink/snack stations, multiple bars. View is over the tarmac and runway areas. Lovely experience!

Among the best lounges I’ve visited. The Polaris Lounge is outstanding – from the excellent à la carte restaurant and superb bars with great wine choices to the stylish interior and exceptionally friendly staff. A true premium experience from start to finish, and something I genuinely look forward to every time I travel through Chicago.

Very nice a lounge, not crowded, comfortable seatings, good food and beverage selections. It even offered a la carte dining.

Level 1 is the shower rooms and resting area. It can get busy during peak time. I was lucky that I only waited 15 mins. Level 2 are the dining area and bar. Go get a beeper for the dinning room, then you can head to the bar to get a drink while waiting for your turn to enter the dinning room. The dinning room close at 9.30pm and if you don’t get in by 8.30pm, then basically you will need to settle with the food outside. Anyway the food outside dinning room is good except that they have very limited variety.

We loved the O’Hare Polaris restaurant that offers a three course meal (appetizer, entree, and dessert). The food quality and the service were excellent. The buffet was suboptimal and with limited options, so I highly recommend trying to get a seat at the restaurant.

Who doesnt love an elevated lounge experience? What makes Polaris lounges so special is the specialty restaurant they have on site where you literally order from. I had the truffle risotto which was better than I anticipated and a delicious salad. Walking around the buffet area, they had a great variety of options to choose from but a bigger dessert/sweets selection would be nice. Also, having an experienced mixologist working is ideal. Them not being able to make a kir royale was a bit insane to me. Since it's all for business class passengers, the lounge is rarely crowded so you can space out and be comfy. Although it did get busier nearing our departure. All in all, good experience and I'll visit again when Im in Chicago.

Luckily my connecting flight arrived early and I had long layover, and so I was able to enjoy all of the amenities in this lounge. First stop was the bar for some nice cocktails. We also put our name on the list for the restaurant. Since this lounge is being renovated and expanded, there are not that many dining tables available. This lounge gets very crowded by afternoon and so I am glad they working on expanding it. With our meal I enjoyed another olde fashioned and my wife had a sparkling rose. We each tried the celery soup and we had the Polaris burger. Everything was delicious. The staff in the restaurant and bar were great, but very overworked. Please be patient with them. After our meal we visited the Therabody relaxation suites. They were clean and we had a fantastic nap. The zero gravity loungers are fantastic! The staff also showed us the shower suites. Soon it was time to board our flight and we were relaxed and ready to go. I always try to dine in the lounge and then decline the meal onboard. The in flight meals on United are very hit or miss.

Hunger Games at the airport lounge. Eliminate other passengers as you stalk and must fight for a place to sit down. Good news. Food is wonderful. Bar is friendly, attentive, and ready to provide your favourite beverage. Bad news. HOT and CROWDED!!! Can't wait to get on the plane for a for a true luxury experience in Lufthansa business class. PS Remodeling is NOT an excuse to shortchange passengers with a premium ticket on an intercontinental flight. United needs to stop taking management and cost-cutting courses at Boeing.

Small lounge, most of the seats are occupied. Nice buffet selection, bar. There's a dining section with tables. Private bathrooms. Showers. Not a bad place to chill for an hour.

Chicago O'hare is a pretty nice airport actually. I recently had the opportunity to take advantage of the Polaris lounge here and it was so nice! It does get kind of crowded though so just make sure you're ready for that. We had a few hours to spend here, so we started by relaxing at a table and having some items from the buffet. I actually really liked the chicken and vegetable dishes with rice and it was really filling. But we wanted to try the restaurant, so we put our names down and like 30 minutes later we were called to be seated. While the items at the restaurant are a little more upscale and it's nice to be served, I think I would be just fine eating from the buffet. We also took advantage of the showers. It was very relaxing. I think I was most impressed by the bathrooms. Haha.... it sounds silly, but I've been to Polaris lounges before and the shower and food and restaurant situation are all great, but I like O'Hare's individual bathrooms. There's just like a long hallway of single stall bathrooms and theyre so clean and nice. Polaris is kind of the only way to travel internationally, so bes of luck trying to get upgraded in time to get to this lounge!

This is my second time in the Ohare Polaris lounge and had the opportunity to utilise the shower facilities and seated dining this time around. Having a place to shower after a red eye is fantastic and the shower facilities are nice. Noticed there are day beds here also so if you have a long layover there is a place to take a nap. Had breakfast and ordered the breakfast tostada. It was surprisingly good and would definitely get this again. I came to the lounge right when it opened and the dining room wasn't open right away. Getting someone to help me took some time and the process was a bit confusing.

Full bar, sleeper beds, vast amount of lounge chairs and charger ports, personally made meals from an order menu and a buffet style if you prefer. This place is quiet, and not very crowded. If you ever get the chance to fly business I highly recommend coming. Not only is it included in that price (for all star alliance business class flights) it helps justify the cost if it's your first time. Staff are friendly and open to helping you any way they can.

This is QUITE the lounge. It's only open to those flying international Polaris, so in theory it shouldn't be crowded and chaotic. That said, it was pretty packed - I had a hard time finding a place to sit. Here's what you need to know: *Shower rooms, if you want them *Relax rooms if you need a nap *A big bar with top shelf options. Glass of champagne? Why not? *A buffet area with 1/2 dozen hot options plus plenty of salad, cheese and charcuterie. I tried a small bit of pasta and thought it was really good. Here's the bonus - they have a full service sit down restaurant that's included! I had been told the wait was an hour but it only ended up being 25 minutes. My cacio é pepe risotto was honestly spectacular and the bread pudding was pretty good too. Every employee was really nice and the place was very clean despite the crowds. If you are flying Polaris out of ORD you definitely should make some time to check this lounge out.

Pros: The dining area was the star of the show. The pan seared rainbow trout was delicious -- comparable to a quality restaurant. The service at the dining area (their restaurant) was professional, courteous and friendly. The bar was well stocked. The bathrooms were clean and well maintained and shower service was available. Cons: the buffet was terrible -- everything had been cleaned out and we had to remind them to refill.The milk in the tea/coffee area had run out and again we needed to remind them to refill. They were very courteous and immediately got to it, but attention to detail was missing. Also, the dining area (a la carte restaurant) had a nontrivial wait for seating. Basically, the lounge needs to be bigger -- it gets quite full during rush hours.

Came here after a layover from Heathrow. The restrooms were very clean and the food dejection was superb.

Not among the best of the Polaris lounges. The layout is odd. Restaurant is tiny. There was a waitlist for seating. Of course, it is still better than the standard United Club.

The Polaris lounge is a wonderful perk when traveling in business/first. I really enjoy that they have multiple and a variety of seating areas including you can sit at the bar, in little cubicle type seating or some more open family seating. They have a decent food buffet area and a couple of drink stations for coffee and tea. The best splurge is the seated restaurant area which has a full menu of items - and hint - you can order as much as you want. The portions are smaller so go for the soup or the appetizers and then an entree and splurge with desserts or multiple desserts. Finally the shower stations are so welcomed especially after flying in from a long international flight. The staff (including the robot) were friendly and efficient

We are here at the beginning of Easter and perhaps we lucked out but it wasn't crazy busy (but busy). The club has showers, sleeping areas, a restaurant and a buffet. It also has a large bar with a TV where we are watching the masters. The volume is good, not whisper but not loud. Recommend!

The United Polaris lounge in Chicago is located in Terminal 1, Concourse C next to gate C18. Don't get confused because there is a United Club lounge next to gate C16. These are separate lounges. The United Polaris lounges are only available to international business-class or first-class travelers on United or Star Alliance partners.

Polaris lounges are some of my favorite lounges to visit when traveling (and a huge part of reason to upgrade when traveling internationally) Clean & stocked showers. The sit down dining area is my favorite feature that sets it apart!

I am always happy with the Polaris Lounges. They are always welcoming and friendly. The snacks are amazing and the ability to order food is a added touch. We had delicious burgers and ice cream. It's practically a destination. Once you go you will definitely want to go back. I think it's worth the price as traveling is stressful. Do yourself a favor and try it.

Fabulous lounge. Great staff and there is actually a private restraint which was fantastic. Well worth a visit when you're traveling and if you have access. One of the nicer lounges I've been to in the US in quite some time.

The United Polaris Lounge in Chicago is definitely a step up from all the other United lounges that I have visited. The check in staff was extremely friendly, some of the staff at other lounges act more like entrance bouncers to nightclubs looking for a way to keep you out. The lounge was clean, staff quickly picked up dirty dishes, and the buffet was spotless. The food choices were the best I have seen at any United Polaris lounges with multiple options with relatively tasty food. The bar tender was friendly, quick, and did not up charge me for drinks that are normally free. Only issue I had is that they closed at 9:00 pm which seems really early for a large airport, most international airline's lounges are open 24 hours or at least as late as the airport is open.

I have used this lounge many years now and in general it is a huge step up for United but this is considered their flagship lounge. Overall it has the usual amenities expected from a higher tier lounge globally but a few things that continue to disappoint me - 1) private dining staff and service is extremely ridiculous, they need to ensure proper management of this area 2) shortage of several food items in buffet is expected as large volume of folks come in with just few members helping to replenish 3) the overall management of the drinks area needs more servers

Lots of promises. Not a lot of delivery. "We have private seating where you can relax and prepare for your flight" - nah, you'll be lucky to find somewhere to sit as we built a lounge with way less space than was needed for the number of passengers, and you'll all be crammed in to that small space so you're completely surrounded by people everywhere. "Take a shower or use a day pod to prepare for your flight" - nope, sorry sir the showers are all in use and there's nine passengers on the waiting list. Well that's fine then. They can get what they paid for but I'm quite happy to not get any of that. I don't mind paying top whack for a glorified United club, while other customers get a far superior experience. I don't mind paying for someone else to have a nice time.

I am surprised by the overall 3.5 star rating of this lounge. Overall our stay here has been one of the best lounge experiences we have had. Below is a summary; Made to order cocktails, think craft cocktails- The Paper Plane was fantastic Great Wine Selection - think Duckhorn Pinot Hot and Cold Buffet spread with soups, salads, nibbles, cheese, hot chicken entree, desert etc. A la Carte Dining Option- they didn't have the rib eye today and there was a wait to get seated so we opted out (the only negative) Good service all around Clean restrooms and separate showers if you need one. Amongst the seceral lounges I been to in Asia, Europe and North America, this rates as one of the much better ones.

I seldom mention personnel in my reviews, but what a horrible experience at ORD airport Terminal 1 C because of a Ms. Concaldo who works at this lounge. She is a terrible representative for the United Polaris brand and I had a thoroughly unpleasant experience checking in here. I was connecting from a 10 hour international flight booked through United airlines, flying United Polaris (international business class on a Boeing 787) that was connecting in ORD, and am also a United Club member. She was stern, cold, demeaning, insulting and rude, with no consideration that I had just got off a 10 hour flight. She basically barked at me and said that United made a mistake calling my United international business class booking "Polaris", even though that's what United calls their full flat seats in "Business class" on the 787 Dreamliner. "It's a mistake, that's not Polaris" she said, and refused me entry as she actually face palmed me and pointed at the door. So I hope you see this, United Airlines corp. Better stop calling it Polaris business class on the 787 if it has a stopover in Chicago. Ms. Concaldo said it's all a big mistake by you. It said Polaris on my booking, UA flight 844 United Boeing 787 en route via Sao Paolo connecting in ORD. There are nicer ways to explain things about your very confusing lounge policy and a kinder way to treat United customers and Club members. The other service reps were more helpful and understanding. American Airlines allows international business class booked through American Airlines that are arriving in the USA with a business class connection to use their premium lounges. United does not let stopovers use the Polaris lounge, especially if part of the leg is a Star Alliance partner that was booked through United. Take this into consideration when booking a ticket, even if it says "Polaris" when you book it.

I have been to many lounges all over the world! I was extremely impressed with this lounge! The food was wonderful, desserts- wonderful, drinks - wonderful! Everyone working here was so nice! There is hot food, soup, sandwiches, cheeses and meats, salads- full bar, coffee, espresso, etc. Loved it. There are also showers available for when your flight is 3 hours late!! Lol!!

This lounge may be considered as one of the best in the continental US! And it is also a newer one at Chicago O'Hare Airport. It consists of not just the actual lounge area, but it is also enriched with many other services including buffet & full service food, over-sized toilets, comfortable sized shower rooms, private individual cubicles, and napping rooms. Comparing to other lounges in this airport, this lounge had far less people in much larger area so your time spend at this lounge will be a very pleasant & comfortable one. Only open to United Polaris customers, but I hope you will have a chance to experience this brilliant & impressive lounge before your flight!

Airports are loud, crowded, and stressful. If you can get a pass and relax in a United Lounge, it's well worth it, especially when you have a long layover. There are large comfortable seats, ample outlets, dining tables, and clean bathrooms. I also appreciate the variety of complementary food items, weather and coffee. They also have a full bar if you want to enjoy a cocktail.

Polaris lounge is a new thing. SFO is not ready yet. This is my first experience. I refuse to use regular United Club because as we all know, it blows. This is one step up. I had some salmon, which was good. Teriyaki flavor. The seaweed bean sprouts is pretty yummy. There are lots of soup and pasta options. Gumbo was good if you like sausage and seafood. I like the variety and just like the Points Guy pointed out, the single cocoon like seating where the marble table slides out is a good option if you want some peace and quiet while working on your project it give you the right set up. The place is located between C17 and C18, it's only for international business class and first class so you don't actually see many Americans depending on the day which is interesting. I have not tried the shower. I do like their flavored water. I think the place is way bigger than the usual Centurion Lounge. Given the food quality is better than the other usual United Club lounge, I'm thinking this is a good upgrade. Well rested and ready for my first class flight bounded for Sao Paulo.

Pretty cool lounge! First lounge with full service dining that I have been to! I was told they recently opened this lounge (maybe from a renovation?). There is a great espresso machine in the back! The buffet food is OK, but the full service dining food is better.

A truly divine experience. The restaurant is great and the buffet is also above board. Great bartenders that really know their stuff. I had a fantastic pre-departure French 75 that I still dream about. There are also showers and nap rooms if you're there for a layover. Really the best part of my first-class trip to London.

This is a nice and quiet place so you can get a snack, drink and complete some work before your flight. Always better than a regular waiting area.

One of the perks in paying that extra money for business class seats on United. The Polaris Lounge was outstanding. A full hot buffet. A free bar. Comfy seating. All excellent. We didn't really appreciate the full service comforts here until we used the business class lounge for Lufthansa Air Line on our return flight. Their buffet bar was three types of potato chips! Candy in glass jars that people were digging their hands into. A couple of varieties of alcohol: vodka, gin. What a disappointment that was.

Only Polaris lounge open as of today. When I learned I needed to be in Europe, I made sure my flight is routed via ORD. Open to Polaris customers only, service and amenities are superb. They have 4 napping area, nice size shower room, oversized toilet room, individual cubicle style sitting area, gourmet food, great selection of drinks, to name a few. Since this was my first time, I requested for a tour of this lounge. Too bad I am only here for one hour. I could stay here much longer if I could. If you have Polaris ticket, be sure to come early and enjoy what this Polaris lounge has to offer!

Last year I went to Chicago to visit a friend. The trip wasn't all that exciting so I was ready to go home. I got dropped off at the airport early and I am so HAPPY that this lounge was open during Covid (September 2020) I was able to charge my phone, get a snack and a drink. Now I do wish the food options were better but all in all I just wanted to be alone and listen to music. I would go back if I ever go back to Chicago but I honestly doubt it.

I'm a United 1K member which means I spend a lot of time in airports... So I've seen my share of lounges. The Polaris lounge is easily the best United lounge I've been to and in the top 5 of airport lounges I've visited (domestically that is.) The first thing that caught my attention was the size of lounge. The space is ridiculously large when you consider that only travelers with an international first class seat can enter (because really, at any point how many ppl do you have who will spring for those tickets?!) It's got your normal waiting/dining area, but then they add 2 things I haven't seen: a legit restaurant (with menu, servers and everything-all included) and a sleeping room. And no the beds aren't anything crazy, but it was quiet and you can rest up. The second thing I liked was the cleanliness. Trying not to be picky because when you deal with all manner of travelers, cleanliness varies. But I wanted to give them props for the appearance of the bathrooms, showers and overall space. Very clean; and going back to the size, the shower rooms were bigger than other lounge showers I've seen. Third - the food and service was legit. I dined in the restaurant and a guy named Shawn was super attentive. I tried their mahi tostadas, fries and cupcake. Paired that with a few glasses of Casamigos tequila (yes you can sip it) and I was in heaven. Candidly everyone in that space was on point (except for the front desk staff... They weren't as friendly as I would expect) and all the food was good. I got to the airport early just so I can spend at least 3 hrs in the Polaris lounge and I can't wait to do it again. Well worth it

This was a wonderful way to start our trip when having a layover in Chicago. Your tickets are checked outside and again inside as they give you an update on your next flight. The lounge has 2-3 concierge available to assisy you. The lounge has several tables as well as small nooks with a few chairs and everywhere offers outlets to charge your device(s) There is a bar with beer, wine and cocktails galore. Tips are appreciated but everything is included as part of your ticket (whether business or first) There are tables dedicated to full service dining (as opposed to a buffet with many options for food and drinks). My wife and I tried the tuna tataki salad which was very good. It had 6-8 pieces of tuna along with some microgreens and other vegetables. Definitely an appetizer more than a full salad but you can order whatever you want. My wife had the tortellini with Brown sage butter and I had the burger with fried egg cooked medium rare. Both were spot on and they did not overcook the burger. The fries it came with were made to order and salted perfectly (Not too much but not bland either) The lounge has individual bathrooms which are so much nicer than traditional airport restrooms. You can also go to an area with showers and separate daybeds if you want to refresh before heading on to your next destination. The staff was very friendly and made me wish I could fly Polaris every time.

This is the American lounge of the future! I travel the globe a lot and get to see how various airlines run their lounges. To be fair, I also know I can't expect the same perks as subsidized countries. This one is way up there with the subsidized airline lounges in the things I care about. I don't need the miles of empty space Dubai or Doha has. Atmosphere: I really liked the bold decor and lighting. The private seating is nice. I like the individual bathrooms. Nice touches. Food: I thoroughly enjoyed the sit down meal options. That was high quality food. The burger and the steak slices were plenty good and the service was very friendly. Beds: I will try the bed next time but my layover was short. My only wish was that they were open past 9pm. Can't wait for the Houston one. I'll be living in it.

Excellent food, drink and service. United does a phenomenal job in their Polaris lounges. It makes long haul travel a real pleasure. We hope to return soon. Five stars all around

Five stars. Nothing less. From the second I walked in I was greeted with a smile. The lounge is absolutely beautiful and extremely comfortable. I was there in the morning and mostly had the breakfast options and everything I had was fresh and tasted great. They had so many different options out to choose from and they were constantly refreshing and restocking. You could easily spend a few hours in this place and not even realize it. In my opinion it rivals some of the Asian carriers lounges. Well done on this one United. Now if only I can fly Polaris more often....

Honestly I don't think you will find a better airport lounge anywhere. Amazing food, craft beers, premium spirits, nice wine selection. Staff is very nice and on top of things. Clean and comfortable with loads of bathrooms. If you have a long delay which is typical here I highly recommend you spend it here. There is a menu on top of the buffet which I did not know about but looks amazing from what I have seen. I could literally live here for weeks if they let me

United is trying to step up the premium cabin experience with their Polaris lounges, and it shows! With a central location near most flights with the Polaris business class, the Polaris lounge is the perfect place to relax before departure. It has a great layout with plenty of seating with ample outlets and table space. The location overlooking the gates is also a pretty cool bonus with planes literally right outside the window (but it was still nice and quiet inside). There are great food options with a buffet style dining and a menu you can order from. Overall service is excellent, with plenty of staff. It can get crowded when many international flights are about to leave, but there was always plenty of seating while I was there. While I find it hard for most airline lounges in the US to compete with international lounges or centurion lounges, Polaris Lounges are a great step in the right direction.

If you're traveling for business to international destinations, depending on your class of service and/or mileage plus status, you may qualify to go this lounge. I'm not sure if it's because ORD is United's hub, but this lounge is outstanding. The UA agents will greet you with a smile, help you with information, even rebooking if needed, and overall treat you like a queen. The food and drinks staff is also friendly and attentive. The food has several good (and vegetarian) choices in the self service buffet as well as the sit down order tables. The big bar serves very nice selection of bubbly (my favorite), wine, beer, even cocktails. The lounge is modern with selection of seating areas, including single seater if you need to work. Overall, this is the favorite lounge I've been to thus far.

Since reopening since Covid the service leaves quite a bit to be desired. It is definitely not up to what United is hoping to achieve with Polaris especially in the waited dining room area. The only redemption is the waiter who offered champagne after I was ignored until summoning the wait staff. If you are trying to accomplish first class services, then train your staff.

I love the improvements Unites has made in the lounge. The staff is friendly and there is plenty of seating with a variety of options (soft seats to tables and even a quiet area). The food is really great. It's mostly snacks and bite sized apps, but there were healthy options and a fully stocked bar. I was impressed with the cocktails and the variety of drinks offered I think the best surprise was how ubiquitous the charging stations were for your electronics. Plenty of plugs and USB ports at every seat. I highly recommend stopping in when you have time. I'm actually looking forward to my next trip

I recently used Chicago's United Polaris Lounge on a trip to Asia during a 4 hour layover. Of all the lounges I've used around the world, this was one of my favorites! Despite not having any super rare extras like spa services, the Polaris Lounge checked all the boxes for me and even exceeded my relatively high expectations. I'm a frequent airport lounge user, and whether I've been in transit for 24 hours or 4 hours, I always find a shower to be a great way to relax. The Polaris Lounge's shower suites were beautiful, just like luxury hotel bathrooms. The attendant was very kind and eager to provide any complimentary extras I might need, saying it was his goal to make my stay a "home away from home experience". I wish my home bathroom was as plush as this one was! Another top tier feature were the relaxation rooms. Each mini room consisted of a daybed and small table, and the room was kept dark and quiet. While usage was technically limited to an hour, the attendant said that I could use the room as long as no one else was wanting it. I didn't want to full-on sleep and ended up staying just 30 minutes, but knowing there was an option to cure the torturous "I am totally asleep on my feet right now and none of the lounge chairs will allow me to nap" blues seemed like a huge bonus for weary international travelers. I also enjoyed the sit-down restaurant option in the lounge, which is another feature that sets good lounges apart from great lounges. I had a grilled shrimp salad and a few of the featured cocktails, all of which were excellent in both taste and presentation. I probably would've paid $40 for my food and drinks in a nice restaurant, but instead just paid a $5 tip. The buffet food was also good and the alcohol selection was great; my husband enjoyed trying the multiple single malt scotch options while I stuck to the wine. There were various options for seating, and since the lounge was not very busy during my time there, all of the areas felt quiet and relaxing. I wish there was a Polaris lounge in my home airport! This lounge was good enough to sway my choice of airline for future international trips. It was really THAT good.

I've been traveling United business for around 10 years now. Their lounges, for lack of a better more fancy word, just suck. Lounges overseas like in Europe Asia are far better. There was simply no comparison. So when United came out with this Polaris concept I was excited. But that excitement soon fizzled out. I think everyone raving about this lounge has not been to a lounge in Singapore, Hong Kong or Mumbai. These lounges set the bar for a business class lounge in my opinion. We came to the Polaris lounge for the first time today. It was nice but I can see right through the fancy decor and found many issues. 1) biggest problem for me was their bathrooms. They were amazing but each bathroom was a dedicated room. With only around 15 rooms (men and women combined) there was a line. Weird thing was you don't know where to stand as there is no set place to wait. So many people, like me, just waited outside one of the rooms. So if you end up waiting outside someone doing "the deed" you are waiting 10-15 minutes to use the toilet where you need only 30 seconds. So the regular lounge takes the points for this issue. 2) the "restaurant" is simply a dedicated area within the lounge with very limited seating. Food took 20 minutes to get and was dry. Not the best like other people mention in their reviews. We had chicken sandwiches and our chicken was super dry. Fries were cold. Cheese tortellini was also dry and cold. Saving grace was the shrimp with grits. They were pretty good. 3) as for the buffet the items, I found that were harder to get in the quantity you want because they were portioned out in individual serving containers like small pans, plates, etc. which made it clunky to bring everything to the table. in the regular lounge you get 2-3 less items to choose from but it's easier to load your plate up with what you want. All in one plate. When trying to get in and out quick this is a major factor. I also felt the items in the buffet were more flavorful than the restaurant items. today the Polaris lounge was busy which probably led to the busy bathroom. I feel the seats were actually more comfortable in the regular lounge. So besides the extra choices for food I personally feel the regular lounge is better. I applaud United for trying but it seems the Polaris concept still needs some work. Thanks for reading.

If you ever get a chance to fly Polaris Class through O-Hare make sure you have enough time to check out the lounge in Chicago. There's a buffet with some decent snacks (or you can sit down in the restaurant and order). The drinks are well-made (no well liquor here) at the bar by a friendly barkeep. Wi-fi is very fast and the seating is quite comfortable.

Polaris lounge could be great, if you were allowed in with your business class ticket. Purchased a business class ticket round trip on United. The overseas flight back to was not on a United plane, so you are not allowed in. Makes no sense who's plane you ride on, it is a United ticket. As long time 1K member, it does not mean much. Then told to go to the United lounge, which is full and no seats or standing room, leaving you in the grand hall. Pay a lot of money to fly business, and treated like a first time flyer. I believe it is time to move back to Delta, service is better, lounges are better, and partner airlines are better.

Spot on. Extremely clean, expansive square footage, and superb amenities. Lots of private restrooms, offers showers and very friendly service. The in-house restaurant is a classy place to order table service food and refreshments. I would definitely recommend.

This is one of the nicest United Clubs I've been in while traveling domestically so I won't compare this to any international clubs they just aren't on the same playing field so a comparison would be like comparing apples to oranges. I would love to have given them the fifth star but the day I arrived it was very crowded and noisy so although it was a nice place to step out of the busy concourse the experience could have been so much more. The accommodation are nice the chairs are comfortable and they have a ample number of outlets to charge your phone or work on your laptop. The food selection here is a bit better than most United Clubs besides the normal cheese, crackers, carrots and chip and nut mixes, they were offering fresh vegetable garden soup, marinated olives and peppers and a variety of dips including humus. Plenty of refreshments including well drinks and domestic beers, top shelf liquor, wines and crafted beers come with a charge. No a bad place to spend a few hours waiting on a flight. I definitely recommend if you can spend the few bucks to get in you do.

Hands down one of the best lounges I have visited. I am anti-United on so many levels but on our trip to Amsterdam was forced into flying United due to their flight path. I hate to say it...but I may be converted now. I especially appreciated that the lounge wasn't packed like so many others. Upon arriving we sat at a luxurious bar to order some cocktails, all recipes developed by impressive mixologists. And they did not disappoint, top shelf liquor. We also ordered for the ala carte menu, a great variety of options without being overwhelming. We started off with the meatball appetizer, satisfying and delicious. My husband ordered the burger (predictable) and I ordered the ribeye at the recommendation of Fernando. Both of our mains hit the spot and kicked off a great start to our trip. To wrap it all up we ordered the Chocolate Trio...okay I confess, I ordered the chocolate trio, my husband didn't want dessert. But it was perfectly indulgent without being heavy. International flight approved diet. We moved to the cushy lounge seats and pasted the time until boarding. Although I have to admit it was hard to leave. The only thing that keep me moving was wondering what the Polaris experience would be like on board. I can hardly believe I'm typing this...but bravo to United on creating an exceptional lounge. Finally taking a step in the right direction, I can only hope it will trickle down through all the ranks and classes of service.