The Air France/KLM lounge at Bangkok, Thailand’s Suvarnabhumi airport reopened on October, 19, 2017 following a renovation. I reviewed this lounge last year before it was remodeled. I stopped here recently before a flight on a Korean Air 777-300 in one of its wonderful Prestige Class Apex Suites
I have been visiting this lounge off and on since the mid 2000s when it was first a Northwest Airlines World Club then a Delta SkyClub. As part of a major cutback in service from its own hub at Tokyo Narita, Delta stopped flying to Thailand in October 2016. That’s when Air France/KLM began operating the lounge.
Hours, Access and Location
The Air France/KLM lounge never closes. It is open 24 hours every day. The lounge is located on the departure level of Concourse F before reaching the gates. The maximum stay for Priority Pass users is three hours.
Air France/KLM is the only SkyTeam airline with a lounge at BKK. In addition to Priority Pass customers, this lounge serves all premium cabin SkyTeam passengers and passengers with SkyTeam Elite Plus status.
The lounge is one long rectangular room. Once inside, the primary seating is to the left, the dining area is in front and the food service area to the right. Bathrooms and showers are at the far right past the food service area.
Seating
The renovation increased the area of the lounge by 20% to 660 square meters. It can accommodate 142 customers. I have never seen this lounge crowded although it probably happens from time to time.
BKK has over 20 lounges. Eleven are open to Priority Pass members. If this lounge ever gets too crowded, finding alternative accommodations should be no problem.
Prior to the renovation in 2017, the furniture had not been changed since Delta departed. The new look is much improved. The seating area is divided into smaller secluded alcoves.
Seating is comfortable and attractive. There is no shortage of electrical outlets.
Business Center
Computer terminals are located at the far left (as one enters).
Massage Chairs
Massage chairs are becoming a standard feature in Asian business-class lounges. This lounge had them even before the renovation. These are new chairs though. I didn’t use them but they look like they could provide a decent massage for anyone needing one last massage before leaving Thailand.
Dining Area
The dining area is in the middle of the lounge. It consists of booths and tables and is also much improved in appearance and comfort.
Food and Beverages
Air France/KLM increased the quality and variety of food and beverages when it began operating the lounge. The food remained essentially the same after the renovation although the number of items seems to be greater. That is good because the food and beverages here are much better than what is available in Air France/KLM Priority Pass or business-class lounges in the U. S. and Europe.
In addition to a choice of wonderful entrees and side dishes, the large buffet includes just about everything under the sun including, sandwiches, desserts, fruit, soup, snacks, salads, pizza, and pastries. The menu changes every three months.
No one should leave this lounge hungry. If anything, the problem will be eating too much.
That issue could easily apply to beverages also. Alcoholic beverages are also above average in number and quality for a Priority Pass lounge. If there are a few hours before your flight, well….
Water, juice, coffee, tea and soft drinks are also available.
Showers and Bathrooms
The biggest improvement in the lounge is the showers and bathrooms. I considered the old showers unusable because they were in poor repair. They looked like one would need a shower after taking a shower, if you get my drift. The bathrooms weren’t much better. This is what the showers look like now.
There are five showers. That should be more than enough to satisfy demand. The new showers and bathrooms are by no means luxurious but they are clean and new. Towels, shaving supplies, and dental kits are provided on request.
Other Services
Other services include good WiFi (get the code at check in), newspapers and magazines in several languages, TV, and flight monitors.
Update: AF/KLM made some minor changes in mid 2019 to the dining area layout. The changes are not improvments.
Overall Impression
The Air France/KLM lounge at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport is a very good Priority Pass lounge. Of the scores of Priority Pass lounges I’ve visited over the years, I’d rank this lounge behind only the Dnata lounge at Singapore Terminal 1 and the Turkish Airlines lounge at Washington Dulles. The Asiana Business Class Lounges at Seoul/Incheon (ICN) are also great Priority Pass lounges but flying Asiana is required for access.
Click the link at the beginning of this post and look at the review I did last year. You will see how much better the lounge looks now. I’ve been in many AF/KLM business class or Priority Pass lounges in Paris, Amsterdam and all over the world. The AF/KLM lounge at Bangkok is the best I’ve seen as far as food, beverages and seating.
Salsaworldtraveler'sblog 