Continuation and almost end of my Bangkok airport lounge tour with the Turkish Airlines lounge. I am regularly impressed by the lounges of the Turkish airline in its Istanbul hub but this is the first time I will try one of its lounges outside its bases.
You will find all the articles related to this trip in Australia at the bottom of the page.
Location of the lounge
The Turkish Airlines lounge is located in the pier D of the airport, quite close to the E, near the Singapore Airlines lounge.
Who has access to the lounge?
It is available to passengers traveling in business class on Turkish Airlines or any Star Alliance member airline.
It is also open to Elite and Elite Plus members of the Miles&Smile frequent flyer program as well as Star Alliance Gold status holders regardless of their class of travel.
It is also available to Priority Pass cardholders.
Lounge layout
The lounge consists mainly of a single room at the end of which is the buffet.
The same thing after rush hour when the lounge has emptied a bit.
There is a somewhat isolated work space.
There is also a real bar located just before the buffet area.
My overall impression is more than mixed.
Aesthetically the lounge is not hideous but not excessively pretty either. On the other hand, I arrived in the middle of the rush hour and this generated a more than negative impression: people were packed, it was more than noisy and I had a lot of trouble finding a seat. Moving around was also complicated. But empty or full I keep the impression of something rather messy.
It got better when it emptied but the impression remained.
But the point of a lounge is to be comfortable when people are there, not when they are not. And given the wide eligibility of this lounge and even if Turkish Airlines operates “only” two flights per day to Bangkok it is not well sized.
Catering
A buffet is located at the end of the lounge.
In terms of cold offer we find prepared salads, sandwiches, fruits, cakes
Little variety.
The hot offer is correct but not particularly appetizing
A cook prepares pizzas and some dishes on request. I would have hoped for the delicious pides found in Turkey and at the Turkish Airlines lounge in Istanbul but no…
The offer of drinks is quite classic with all the usual softs.
There are of course hot drinks.
The offer of alcoholic beverages is quite comprehensive and is available at the bar. The concept is nice but it restricts the service capacity.
Facilities
The lounge offers toilet and shower facilities.
The atmosphere
As I said I found the experience quite unpleasant as the lounge was so crowded and noisy, moreover chairs and tables are quite tight and there is little room to move around.
It got better afterwards but the impression remained. Maybe my feeling would have been different if I had come at another time but by definition we judge a lounge by its capacity to welcome customers when there are many people and therefore flights.
Bottom line
A lounge that does the job but disappoints when you know what Turkish Airlines can do in this area and when you compare to other lounges available in Bangkok for passengers eligible for this lounge.
All articles about this trip to Australia
Articles similaires
Review : Turkish Airlines Domestic CIP lounge at Istanbul, business, domestic flights,
