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Virgin Australia is moving in Perth! From next Sunday, 22 November, Virgin domestic flights will depart from a brand new domestic pier attached to Terminal 1. This is an extension of Perth’s current international terminal.
Our member scottz95 recently got a glimpse of the new terminal ahead of the official opening. This member has generously taken the time to review the new facilities, and has provided a number of great photos.
Overall, it looks to be a major improvement and promises to offer a better experience for Virgin Australia customers in Perth.
The terminal is leaps and bounds better than the previous T4 setup. It feels open and spacious with plenty of lighting and great runway and tarmac views depending on where you chose to sit at the gates. Is there a few improvements that could be made, yes but will those things be a huge problem to the passenger experience if they are not resolved, probably not with the exception of the software on the kiosks having a couple of hiccups.
The whole airport experience appears to have been enhanced. Check-in kiosks and self-service bag drop machines, similar to those currently used by Qantas in many domestic airports, will make the check-in process more efficient.
The Kiosk Check-in system is identical to Qantas in the look and feel except the screens are larger and the software has been given a lick of paint in the colour and theme of online check-in from VA. There was an odd bug in that you couldn’t pick your seats on screen either which struck me as odd too.
As well as new shops and restaurants, the new terminal offers a brand new Virgin Australia lounge for passengers flying Business or holding elite Velocity status. Unfortunately our member was not allowed to take any photos of the new lounge, but it sounds like another welcome improvement over Virgin’s current offering. As with the rest of the terminal, the lounge should offer some great views for plane-spotters as well as barista-made coffee and a wide range of snacks and drinks.
The Virgin Lounge as mentioned is just off of the security checkpoint… to give you an idea, you scan your boarding pass or Velocity card before the sliding doors will open up so hopefully this reduces the number of confused passengers trying to enter. However there will be staff at the desk just incase, if like me, the readers don’t respond to your Velocity card/Boarding pass so well. The lounge from the outside looks quite small but it does appear they have worked in the VA Leaf skylight pattern. Another point is the Coffee bar that’s positioned further down the lounge closer to the tarmac views. I personally can’t wait for that to become available.
As the new terminal is attached to Perth’s international terminal, the move will also make international connections for Virgin passengers significantly easier.
Discover the new terminal HERE.
