Another grubby QANTAS lounge experience...

[c_andrew_lucas]

Melbourne Lounge, Monday 7am. Feels more like an overcrowded MacDonalds on a long weekend Sunday afternoon...

Tables not cleaned, had to do my own cleaning to find somewhere to sit down. Food very ordinary, and all hot foot had run out. Having been a lounge member for over thirty years, QF's service has set a new low bar. It's easy to make a bumper profit when you reduce the quality of the product. Let's see what happens to the airline's market share in the next three years.

 

[jase05]

The QF Pub or the J lounge?
Disappointing to hear as MEL J lounge is usually ok although I’m not through there at that time of morning usually

 

[BAM1748]

The QF Pub or the J lounge?
Disappointing to hear as MEL J lounge is usually ok although I’m not through there at that time of morning usually

Yes, I normally don't like when they are cleaning around the place so quickly, they remove my Chivas before I've finished.

 

[MelbFlyer]

I've been to the Melbourne International Business Lounge and it's pretty average tbh - no windows and limited food options.

I've got an upcoming flight in October to HK on QF in business, so again I'll have access to it - it will be around 11am to midday so I'm assuming that it will be very busy.

 

[Mattg]

You haven't mentioned which lounge you're in, but I was in the MEL domestic QF business lounge yesterday morning and my experience was the opposite. The staff were so eager to clear away rubbish etc. that they twice tried to take my unfinished coffee

I do appreciate that Monday morning is probably a lot busier than Sunday morning.

 

[FlyingFiona]

I was last in the MEL QF J lounge in May and was appalled at the state of it. I was flying QR and chose this over the Marhaba because I don't rate that as a J lounge, but regretted that choice given the state the QF lounge was in (mid-week, early evening). Not only was it grubby with dishes all over the place, the buffet options were poor and not at all labelled. So the vegetarians who were next to me ate lettuce leaves and cheese not knowing whether the hot dish was vego or not and it wasn't easy to track someone down to ask. It wasn't even slightly appealing looking so I ate lettuce and cheese too!

Edit: Oh I forgot the worse of it. The toilets . They were DISGUSTING. Overflowing bins so bad that paper towels were strewn all over the place. Empty toilet roll holders. Water/soap suds/general grot all around the basins. And as I entered a cleaner just left...having finished whatever she was in there to do!

 

[RealtimeY]

I was flying QR and chose this over the Maharaba because I don't rate that as a J lounge, but regretted that choice given the state the QF lounge was in (mid-week, early evening).

Given the chance again, would you suggest going straight to Marhaba lounge, or still check out QF J?

 

[FlyingFiona]

Given the chance again, would you suggest going straight to Marhaba lounge, or still check out QF J?

I was going to say I'd still give the QF lounge a shot until I remembered the state of the toilets. In fact, I now recall that I was going to write and complain because it was THAT bad. So on reflection yes, I'd go to the M lounge. The food in there when I visited a year ago was standard fare but there was a wider and more appealing range of options than QF, there are also lots of windows and it's on the first floor so it was nice to sit and look out. It's small though and filled up very quickly and just has the atmosphere of a waiting room which I really disliked. But if you can find yourself a nice little spot that you're comfortable in then it's not so bad. If the QF lounge had been clean I'd overlook the poor range of food on offer. But it wasn't, in a very big way.

 

[RichardMEL]

Three different lounges have now been mentioned in this thread and they are all different.

Specially if one says "Business Lounge" - one is significantly better than the other (Domestic v International). I can only recall one poster here who thinks the international J lounge (aka "Dungeon") is a good lounge

so think folks need to be more specific when commenting on which exact lounge they are referring to (of course, flying QR, for example, implies international)

 

[NM]

Yes, I normally don't like when they are cleaning around the place so quickly, they remove my Chivas before I've finished.

Hopefully not at 7am on a Monday. That would be completely unacceptable travesty of justice (on the part of the lounge staff ). All the more reason to ensure the glass remains in hand and traveling between armrest and facial input cavity .

Now, asking for a friend or course, I would appreciate understanding the process to obtain such pre-departure prescription of flying phobia medication at the QF Lounge ... unless, of course, its an international departure lounge, which implies its 5pm somewhere in the world .

 

[AustraliaPoochie]

Must be a Q for the MEL QFi J/F lounge, as no alco in the QFd lounges till 12noon.
Yes, hold it in your hand till the absolute last drop.

 

[freqflyer77]

The majority of the Qantas Lounges in Australia are a disgrace. I don't understand how they have let the Sydney/Melbourne lounges get so dilapidated in what should be their 'prime' locations for not only Australians but also International travellers to help advertise the brand.

 

[SeatBackForward]

The majority of the Qantas Lounges in Australia are a disgrace. I don't understand how they have let the Sydney/Melbourne lounges get so dilapidated in what should be their 'prime' locations for not only Australians but also International travellers to help advertise the brand.

Consumer apathy. We're terrible for it in Australia. Hence why a lot of businesses in Australia get away with higher prices and lower quality, ad we just whinge but accept it and pay up...Our supermarkets are a great example of this.

 

[Peasant]

I have pretty good experiences overall in the domestic J lounges I frequent most - MEL and PER.

But I do find the Sydney J lounge is nearly always disgusting - be it chairs, the floor or the toilets. It’s always a mess.

 

[kangarooflyer88]

Specially if one says "Business Lounge" - one is significantly better than the other (Domestic v International). I can only recall one poster here who thinks the international J lounge (aka "Dungeon") is a good lounge

It really depends on what you are after in a lounge. The selection of food and booze ain't bad and it is fairly spacious. The main concern of course is the fact that it is a dungeon and having now been to most lounges at the international terminal of MEL, I would argue that the Marhaba lounge is better than the QF lounge for the simple fact that you have windows you can look out of with natural daylight and of course some plane cough to keep one entertained as they wait for their flight to board.

The majority of the Qantas Lounges in Australia are a disgrace. I don't understand how they have let the Sydney/Melbourne lounges get so dilapidated in what should be their 'prime' locations for not only Australians but also International travellers to help advertise the brand.

The state of Qantas lounges varies greatly depending on the airport. I suspect many who have visited the QF domestic lounges at SYD versus those at MEL and BNE can tell a noticeable difference in quality. The catering isn't too bad (for those who disagree, please have a look at domestic lounges in North America) but the facilities do need to be improved, especially the shower facility. Speaking of showers, what I will point out is that QF is unique in that their domestic lounges have showers. If you look elsewhere in the world that's a rarity. Speaking of the SYD domestic lounges specifically, it has gotten so bad that I will choose the QF Pub over the Business lounge for the simple fact that I get better views of planes taking off and landing. Where Qantas does a better job than other airlines globally is the presence of lounges. For instance, just yesterday I was flying out of Coff's Harbour and to my delight there was a Qantas Regional Lounge available for use. Not the biggest lounge by any stretch and certainly the amenities were limited to soft drinks, espresso, wine and beer but not bad considering how small the airport is.

Consumer apathy. We're terrible for it in Australia. Hence why a lot of businesses in Australia get away with higher prices and lower quality, ad we just whinge but accept it and pay up...Our supermarkets are a great example of this.

A main factor I reckon is most Aussies haven't travelled internationally (and no I'm not talking about Bali or Santa Banana) and for the few that have haven't had the lounge experiences elsewhere. When you see how ANA has their lounge set up in Narita, or the expansive KLM lounge at Schipol non-Schengen your perspective on lounges changes. I would go as far as to say the KLM Crown lounge at Schipol is easily better than any QFi J lounge I've been to, and on par with the Flounge in certain respects. For instance, the beds, lockers and terrace experience are all things unmatched over here.

I have pretty good experiences overall in the domestic J lounges I frequent most - MEL and PER.

Heck even the pubs at MEL and PER are better than the QF J lounge at SYD.

But I do find the Sydney J lounge is nearly always disgusting - be it chairs, the floor or the toilets. It’s always a mess.

A big part of this is the simple fact that the lounge hasn't been renovated since the Nixon administration. Also if you think the SYD lounge is bad, take a look at Hobart! Indeed when we held a vote earlier this year on the worst domestic QF lounge in Australia SYD was in the top spot with HBA following closely behind.

 

[RooFlyer]

. I don't understand how they have let the Sydney/Melbourne lounges get so dilapidated in what should be their 'prime' locations

The Qantas lemmings just keep going back for more. Sitting smugly amongst tables with piles of leftovers, spilt drinks, grubby floors. They are the elite!

So why wouldn’t management think that they don’t really need to do much?

Notwithstanding, I think the virgin lounges is in Sydney and Melbourne are pretty ordinary too.

 

[justinbrett]

I certainly wouldn't pay for domestic lounge access

But I must frequent during slow times - usually fighting with staff to not take my food & drinks away before I've finished with them. And they keep insisting on wiping my table whilst I'm sitting there, I take that as an insult that I'm a messy eater.

Not just the J lounges, I do occasionally go to the BNE QP when they have better food on offer.

 

[Himeno]

Our supermarkets are a great example of this.

Customer "I'm never coming back"
Staff "See you next week"

 

[Himeno]

But I must frequent during slow times - usually fighting with staff to not take my food & drinks away before I've finished with them. And they keep insisting on wiping my table whilst I'm sitting there, I take that as an insult that I'm a messy eater.

How often does that sort of thing happen?

I've never had a lounge staff member try to take food/drink away when I'm not done. When they have come past to clean up, they've always asked if I'm done before moving to take it.

 

[bam71]

I was last in the MEL QF J lounge in May and was appalled at the state of it. I was flying QR and chose this over the Marhaba because I don't rate that as a J lounge, but regretted that choice given the state the QF lounge was in (mid-week, early evening). Not only was it grubby with dishes all over the place, the buffet options were poor and not at all labelled. So the vegetarians who were next to me ate lettuce leaves and cheese not knowing whether the hot dish was vego or not and it wasn't easy to track someone down to ask. It wasn't even slightly appealing looking so I ate lettuce and cheese too!

Edit: Oh I forgot the worse of it. The toilets . They were DISGUSTING. Overflowing bins so bad that paper towels were strewn all over the place. Empty toilet roll holders. Water/soap suds/general grot all around the basins. And as I entered a cleaner just left...having finished whatever she was in there to do!

We used the Marhaba lounge on Saturday coming up to DPS in GA J. I was concerned about it, but once in I was really surprised. Food options were great, champagne was good, everything clean and tidy including the toilets. I’ll have no problems with using it again.