Houston's New Front Door: United Opens Terminal B North and What It Calls the Largest Airline Club in the Americas

Houston's Terminal B has been running in facilities that date back to 1969. On October 22 United opened its replacement: the Terminal B North Concourse, a three-level, 765,000-square-foot building with 22 mainline gates. Every United flight from the new concourse boards through a jet bridge. It is the centerpiece of United's $2.6 billion Terminal B Transformation Program, and with renovations also under way in the 26-gate South Concourse, United will have 48 gates in Terminal B. As Airways points out, 48 is the total for the whole terminal, not the number of gates the North Concourse adds.

The club is the headline. It covers 54,000 square feet on the mezzanine level, seats 800 and has a 1,350-square-foot outdoor terrace, and United calls it the largest airline club in the Americas. The concourse around it leans local, with Houston favorites like B&B Butchers & Restaurant, Rosie Cannonball and Pizaro's Pizza next to national chains and a Be Relax spa, and Terminal B now has a dedicated sensory room for travelers with autism and sensory sensitivities.

One catch if your trip starts in Houston: the Terminal B ticketing lobby is still closed. Airways reports that Terminal B passengers are being directed to Terminal C to check in, drop bags and clear security, and then take the Skyway to Terminal B. Our read: connecting passengers get the full upgrade right away, while local travelers still have a walk.

United says the Terminal B transformation increases the overall number of customers who can fly on peak travel dates in 2026 by 40% compared with 2023, and it has more planned for Houston: food delivery through the United app at IAH later this year, nonstop service to Cartagena that will make it the first U.S. airline on that route, and plans, subject to government approval, to restart flights to Chihuahua, Mexico, in spring 2027. Scott Kirby framed the whole project around the start of a trip: "I want our customers to start their vacation the minute they show up at the airport."