During a leisurely Monday afternoon in July, a few guests gathered in the sunlit cell-free zone near ceiling-high windows. They peered out to the arrivals and departures with the glee of a budding planespotter. One person clutched a chimichurri beef slider as beads of condensation formed on their pint nearby. The full bar serves Coors Light and Anchor Steam — although the beloved local beer’s days are numbered. 

Inside the new Maple Leaf Lounge from Air Canada at SFO. (Silas Valentino/SFGATE)
Inside the new Maple Leaf Lounge from Air Canada at SFO. (Silas Valentino/SFGATE)

A man in a light-gray hoodie pointed to the arrival of an Alaska Airlines flight and murmured something to the person by his side. He rose from his lounge seat and drifted outside to the empty patio, revisiting the far corner of the terrace, which offers the closest look at planes taking off and landing. 

The SFO control center is barely a football field to the west of the Maple Leaf Lounge balcony. The far-corner outlook might be the closest any traveler can get to mimicking the overview of the watchtower nearby. Guests gaze past the patio’s corner to note the cadence of the airport’s rhythm — swooning over the daily flight schedules where aircraft either become more vivid as they approach the gates below or fade into faint specs while soaring into the low-hanging clouds. 

“That’s a 380!” a guest named Peter tells his traveling companion Carna, observing a departing Emirates flight using one of the industry’s largest passenger aircraft. A couple of empty bloody mary glasses are perched on a nearby marshmallow-shaped side table.

The opening of the lounge confirms Air Canada’s firm investment in SFO. This summer, Air Canada (through a partnership with United Airlines) began running 21 daily flights from SFO to Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto and Montreal.

The airline previously did not have a dedicated space at the airport, and the area it now occupies, on the fourth floor, is new construction.

The Maple Leaf Lounge covers 8,168 square feet and was designed with San Francisco-based architecture firm Gensler, which is also working on SFO’s Net Zero Program in Terminal 1. It’s Air Canada’s third addition to its Maple Leaf Lounge repertoire across the United States.

The lounge is available to paid members of the airline and open to purchasers of signature class and business class tickets; elite-level members of the airline’s Aeroplan loyalty program; and Star Alliance Gold members. 

An Air Canada representative said the airline does not offer day passes, but for select flights and select times, customers can purchase the Flex, Comfort or Latitude fare for access to the Maple Leaf Lounge — if the pass is purchased 24 hours before departure. The prices for upgrades vary and are based on each individual flight segment when the purchase is made. 

The entrance to Maple Leaf Lounge is past security in SFO’s Terminal 2, on the left. There’s a large photograph displaying an aerial view of SFO from November 1964 on the wall leading to the elevator. When you arrive at the fourth floor, the lounge’s black entrance pulls you in from the other end of the hallway. There, you’re met with a sophisticated security terminal that uses facial recognition and scans your pass.  

The first thing to grab your attention inside the lounge is a custom mural from San Francisco artist Amos Goldbaum. The artist’s signature sharp lines, depicting the downtown cityscape and Marin coastline, adorn an entire wall. There’s more art outside on the terrace, where there’s an abstract interpretation of the Golden Gate Bridge fused with maple leaves from Canadian painter Shawn Evans.

A wall of wine bottles and an abstract interpretation of the Golden Gate Bridge fused with maple leaves from a Canadian painter. (Silas Valentino/SFGATE)

An iridescent wall of wine bottles separates a sunlit common area from the kitchen, which features a modest buffet. Next to the dessert plate with brownies is a stainless steel spigot, along with a sign reminding travelers to drink water before their flight. A watermelon is cut up into a cornucopia of fruit with cantaloupe and pineapple. 

Besides the sliders, which were cobbled together on a black skillet and tasted a tad dry for the afternoon, the lounge offers a seafood cioppino and adobo chicken. A crew of well-dressed employees assists in clearing plates or attending to any request. 

Carna and Peter, the two guests by the window, gathered their luggage to catch the 3:05 p.m. flight back home to Edmonton. They left the lounge utterly impressed. “This is spectacular,” Peter said. “It’s the best airport lounge I’ve ever been to.”

In a news release, Air Canada celebrated that its new SFO space is the first of its lounges to offer an outdoor terrace. The patio is an attractive feature, but any traveler familiar with SFO would know that a free and openly accessible option is available in another part of Terminal 2.

On the fourth floor, the SkyTerrace offers views of the airport’s arrivals and departures on the northern tarmac. It’s open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday through Monday. And it’s completely free.