The Qantas First Class Lounge is probably one of the best lounges I have visited over the past few years. Having been only open for six weeks the service was vibrant and the food fresh.
I wanted to take advantage of my recent Platinum status and had four nights to fill on the way home from Zurich via Singapore. Jetstar Asia has a hub in Singapore and provides a great way to access the lounge, without the first class price tag. Using Miltons Wikipedia trick we chose to visit Penang as we wanted to tick the famous Eastern and Oriental Hotel Penang off our bucket list.
In this post:
The Lounge
The lounge has been thoughtfully designed by David Caon in collaboration with architect Kelvin Ho of Akin Atelier. David Caon was also responsible for the design of the Qantas plane seating, including the A380 business class that we recently reviewed.
The lounge is around 1,000sqm and can accomodate 245 guests. Functionally it is divided into two areas, dining and lounging. There is also a cocktail bar, bathroom and shower suites and a VIP quite room (that we were not invited into). My estimate is that it is 70% dining.
It is thoughtfully designed for individuals and couples. Clearly they have done their research on the types of customers who fly with them. There are clever single seats with power that provides privacy and a good place to work or read. Lots of leather, timber and Carrara marble gives it a first class feel.
There is an open kitchen located at the end of the lounge where you can see the kitchen staff hard at work. The kitchen has the buzzy feel of a Neil Perry restaurant in Sydney, You know your meal will be made to order.
How to access the Qantas First Class Lounge Singapore
Access is available for OneWorld first class passengers or anyone with Qantas Platinum or OneWorld Emerald flying on a OneWorld airline, including Jetstar. The lounge opens at 2:30pm and closes at midnight, the lounge closes once QF1 departs.
We were flying Jetstar Asia which made us eligible. We arrived at around 3:45pm and the lounge had only one other customer. As more customers arrived, so did the staff.
The Jetstar sites claims you can check in 3 hours early. We were closer to four and had no problem. This gave us around 3.5 hours in the lounge. You need to choose your Jetstar flight carefully to make sure departure coincides with lounge opening.
Food
The food is what makes this lounge a cut above. I visited over eight lounges on this trip and none were even close to the Qantas lounge.
As soon as we entered the lounge we were taken to the dining area. Once we were seated we were immediately given some olives to start with.
Our orders were taken for entree and mains. Julie choose the salt and pepper squid, a Neil Perry Classic and I chose the Asian influenced tea smoked duck with pickled cabbage. I tried both and they were great, beautifully presented and flavoursome For mains Julie ordered the signature laksa with crayfish while I had the grilled barramundi with charred lettuce. This time she kept it all for herself. We had room for desert and and had torta di Verona and coconut and mango sorbet. Unlike the mains these tasted like they had been prepared earlier, particularly the torta.
Champagne flowed freely and we enjoyed the Joseph Perrier Brut NV Champagne. After dinner we haded to the the lounge area. I choose a Campari Spritz followed by a Negroni. The Negroni was very good, perhaps influenced by the Qantas Rockpool Four Pillars Gin.
Service
The service is fresh and friendly. We were the first into the lounge and the staff escorted us directly to the dining area. In the dining area we the staff were attentive without being overbearing.
While you can order food in the dining area you can also order at any of the lounges. What makes this lounge different is there is no self-serve. The staff are always cruising the lounge to refresh your drinks or take your order.
We spoke to the staff and they are employed by the Accor group to provide service to Qantas. This is also on their badges.
Where is the Lounge Located?
The lounge is located in Terminal 1, the same terminal that Qantas and Jetstar uses. Once you clear customers you turn right follow the signs up the escalators to the lounge. It is one of the easiest airport lounges to find.
Children’s Area and View
In our lounge reviews we often note if they have a view or lounge access. They had neither which is a good thing.
Showers and Bathrooms
The showers and bathrooms are beautifully designed, with the walls made of large chip terrazzo. The showers included a large porthole giving them a more generous feel. Razors, toothbrushes and combs are available. The lighting in the bathroom suite can be adjusted to suit your mood. One feature found in the rest of the lounge are skylights that allow in natural light.
There was no queue on the day we visited with a buzzer system available for peak periods.
Hand Wash and moisturiser are provided by Lagaia Unlimited from Australia. They are a new Qantas partner for first class amenity packs and lounges. I enjoyed using them.
Wifi
Wifi is free and requires a single click. No passwords, no sms’s. Exactly what you want from a first class lounge. Seamless.
Power and USB
Most seats had power which makes so much sense.
Summary
This is one of the best lounges around, well thought out, discreet and seamless. Make sure you allocate enough time for everything it has on offer.
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