Red-hot rooming, writing, reading, relaxing and roaming in rainy Thailand.

[Human]

My Bangkok Airways flight ended up being delayed by about half an hour, and then the luggage took about half an hour again to emerge on the carousel at BKK. None of which was a big deal, given my five-hour layover. The Bangkok Airways flight was a typical short Economy class flight.




Interestingly there was a divider after Row 8 ... but no Business Class -- just more Economy seats in the front.


Once I'd collected my luggage and found my way to International Departures, BKK threw me a few pleasant surprises.

Pleasant Surprise #1: I meandered over to the Jetstar check-in counters, arriving there just over 4 hours before the flight. I was fully expecting that check-in wouldn’t open until 3 hours before the flight – meaning that I’d somehow need to find an hour to kill landside. But no, check-in opened exactly 4 hours before the flight. I had to wait about 10 minutes in the Business Class queue, but I was through check-in, security and passport control considerably earlier than I expectd to be.


Pleasant Surprise #2: At check-in, the Jetstar agent invited me to visit the Air France Lounge. Since when has Jetstar Business class come with lounge access? But as I was heading towards the AF Lounge, I got another idea, which led to …

 

[Human]

Pleasant Surprise #3: There’s two brand new Plaza Premium Lounges open at BKK. My AmEx Platinum gets me free entry to the “normal” Plaza Premium Lounge. But there’s also a new First lounge, which advertises entry at 2400 Baht (just over AUD 100) for two hours. I wasn’t inclined to pay that much, given that I already had access to other lounges. But I wondered … maybe my AmEx Platinum card would give me discounted entry into the First lounge?


I rocked up to the Plaza Premium entry, showed my Platinum card and asked whether I could have discounted entry to the First Lounge. She immediately said that I could access the First Lounge for THB 800 – about A$33! I didn’t hesitate.

I walked into the First Lounge. It was almost empty. In fact for the two-and-a-bit hours I was there, I was the only person using the Lounge for about half of that time.




There was a small selection of buffet food available, but most of the menu was a la carte. Service, as you can imagine, was extremely attentive and proactive.




And the food and drink! Oh My Goodness! I couldn’t help it – I went to town in the First Lounge in a way that I don’t think I’ve ever gone to town in an airport lounge before. But heck, I was about to fly on a Jetstar redeye. Cut me some slack!

I had something called Khao Soi – a deliciously spicy, laksa-like soup.


The coughtail is called a “Holiday Mood”. No idea what’s in it, but it was great. (I should mention at this point that the lounge has a fully-serviced bar).


For dessert(s), I had a “Thai Tea-ramisu” and baklava…


And a Thai iced tea.


To show that I am a Good Boy, I finished with some fruit.


Afterwards I waddled over and had a shower. The attendant here proactively came up to me and said that showers were about to get busy and there might be a queue if I waited any longer, so he suggested I have one now. That’s service!


Is the Plaza Premium First Lounge worth paying THB 2400 for? On reflection, maybe yes, if you don’t have access to another quality lounge. I’ve spent enough time at BKK now to know that there are some very good lounges there. But there are also some absolute shockers.

If you have an AmEx Platinum, the equation becomes much easier: for THB 800, this is a no-brainer. If you already have access to another high quality lounge at BKK (I’m looking at you, Qatar Lounge), then it’s probably not worth it. For everybody else: do yourself a favour.

I’ve been to four First Class lounges around the world (and the Oneworld Emerald Lounge at JFK) – this is absolutely up there with the very best of them and it surpasses some of them. But there are two downsides – first, there’s no sleep/bedroom areas, which the very best First lounges now seem to have. And second, the toilets and showers are shared with the normal Plaza Premium Lounge. And they're nice, but they’re not quite of the size and quality you’d expect in a First Class lounge. So I’ll give this lounge a straight A rather than an A Plus. But it’s arguably the best lounge at BKK.

And, it goes without saying, a lovely little indulgence before a Jetstar redeye!