Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Gold Terminal 3 Singapore Lounge

The brand new Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Gold Star Alliance Terminal 3 lounge is a delight, certainly compared to the previous iteration.

Although in effect still one large room, it now has plenty of seats for all the passengers from the multiple numbers of economy passengers on Singapore Airlines with a Gold Krisflyer card, and come to that the other Star Alliance airlines who also use the lounge.

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Gold Star Alliance Changi T3 lounge review

The new KrisFlyer Gold Lounge in Terminal 3 at Singapore Changi Airport is a refreshing new design, and a distinct upgrade over the depressing lounge that went before.

With plenty of seats, it is bright and airy, with great tarmac views, separate areas for dining, lounging and even some work desks. A real shocker is that there are in lounge showers and toilets, which there never were before.

Firstly - are you sure you want to visit the KrisFlyer Gold lounge, and not the Singapore Airlines SilverKris Lounge T3? In Singapore terminology, a SilverKris will always trump a Gold. SilverKris is for Business, whereas the KrisFlyer Gold lounge in Singapore Airport Terminal 3 is designed for economy class passengers with a Gold KrisFlyer or Gold Star Alliance card, who cannot use the Silverkris lounge. Note that this is the reverse terminology to Frankfurt and Lufthansa, where Golds get better service.

Once you get past this, the good news is that the lounge is pretty much brand new, and it has the rare delight of lounges in Singapore, of having windows! That is an unusual distinction.

To find the KrisFlyer Gold Star Alliance Lounge T3, either head up by the escalator by the Silver Kris lounge, and wiggle right, and along the corridor by the DFS lounge. Or walk along further, and take the stairs by the food court and then walk back.

At the lounge entrance there is a semi-circular welcoming area, rather like Greek temple, surrounded by orchids, and a large reception desk.

The new KrisFlyer Gold Lounge has capacity for 350 passengers, which is more than double the previous iteration, as it has taken over the lounge next door, bringing up the floor space from 500 sqm to 1,100 sqm.

Most seats are the classic Singapore Airlines muted beige and gray seats, along with a blue area by the front door. They are comfortable to read a paper in, but not so good if you want a sleep for several hours before getting on a plane. At night there are therefore bodies lying on the floor, looking for all the world like a dropout centre for backpackers.

There are bronze structures rising from the middle of the lounge. These are specially-crafted lights, which design is meant to mimic the flight paths of aircraft departing Singapore for destinations in Europe and Oceania. And very pretty they look too.

As you walk in, right next to the entrance, are two dark marble high tables with high chair seating, and having wireless charging pads are built into the table top. It is rare to see anyone sitting here. Here there are also two FIDS screens with information on departures.

To the left of the entrance is a quiet seating area with pairs of blue armchairs and matching side tables. Again, few people seem to sit here, mainly as there is a lot of passing traffic, so it can actually be quiet than the main lounge.

Then you enter the main part of the lounge, with soaring ceilings and vast floor to ceiling windows. It is very different from it's dark and stuffy neighbour in Terminal 2.

Alas despite, or probably because of the crowding problems with the old lounge, Singapore have crammed in as many seats as it can possibly fit. Seating is dense, with either armchairs running the length of the window or blue sofas with small round tables attached.

Opposite the buffet area there is a dining area, with over twenty 2+2 dining tables, in neat rows. It is very impressive.

Then as you pass the buffet, and the bar-niche on the tight, at the back of the lounge are two more large high marble benches, again with rechargeing pads built in.

At the back are eight work desks: this may not seem a lot, but compared to the old lounge it is wonderful.

Finally At the very rear of the lounge, if you turn right, is an additional seating enclave, which used to be a sealed off area for First Class passengers back when this was the temporary SilverKris Lounge. It's now been converted back into a normal seating area, but few passengers seem to come around this way, so it is very quiet. There are a couple of dining tables, with booth seats lining the walls and a couple of odd triangular benches.

Food

The food here is the best you will get in a Star Alliance lounge at Singapore, so long as you like Asian food. If you don't sandwiches are the order of the day: that is all that the Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Gold Star Alliance Changi T3 lounge offers in the way of western food. However, compared to the old lounge, there is three times as much hot food, and a fine desert selection.

Never the less, even here, the selection of hot food has improved markedly, and now there are four hot tourines with dim sum, bee hoon, noodles & rice, and chicken & beef, and curry. There is a make-your-own laksa station, and even better, a make your own Caesar salad section. A rare delight are the Tibettan Momos which occasionally appear in the wicker baskets.

In the mornings the hot breakfasts are OK, with bacon and eggs.

However, western food is sorely lacking: There is soup (it changes every day), and sandwiches in tightly wrapped cling film on the shelf. Normally there are just two types, with chicken or veggies. And that's it, other than nuts and biscuits.

Bar

The bar in the Singapore Gold Star Alliance lounge is a major disappointment. True, there is a small free bar here, free-pour open 24 hours a day, but it has only a very basic selection of booze, and most of it such as the wine disappears between 4am and 11am.

There is Tiger beer on draft, a single of bottle of cheap white in a bucket on the worktop, and equally forgettable red next to it (in a basket that must cost more than the wine), and a very Spartan collection of five bottles of spirits, including Myers Rum, JW red whisky, and Jack Daniels.

The weirdest thing is the wine dispenser, which offers eight bottles of chilled wine: however not only are all the bottles the same, offering no variety, but the chilled wine is... red! It is a stunning poor decision.

There is also a great selection of cans, with cans of Tiger or Heineken beer.

In the mornings, two fully automatic Boncafe coffee machines often have long queues waiting for them. TWG teabags next to a boiling water tap.

Bathrooms

The redesigned added toilets and showers to the lounge.

Alas, there are only three showers, so there are inevitably long queues, and the shower rooms don't have attached toilets, which is an odd choice. Needless to say there are long queues.

There is also a nursing and changing room is available for parents with young babies.

Business Facilities

At the far end of the outside room there are eight work desks. There is no printer. However, there are plenty of high topped marble benches if you seek somewhere else to work.

The lounge has free WiFi, however the complimentary Wi-Fi network in the KrisFlyer Gold Lounge is best described as adequate: it is much faster in many of the other lounges.

If there's one thing you won't need to worry about at the KrisFlyer Gold Lounge, it's power sockets. Every single seat has power sockets, with both international mains 240 volt sockets, including UK types, and USB power sockets. The high marble benches also have wireless recharging pads.

There is a newspaper rack in the inner room within the lounge: for once it is pretty good with a large number of European newspapers, along with plenty of copies of the SilverKris magazine. There are however few other magazines.

Access

The lounge is open 24 hours a day, and indeed Singapore say that it is the only lounge open overnight: however the SilverKris lounge is unguarded and ungated from 1am to 4am, and you can pop in here - or even the First lounge - to use the showers: it is also a much better place for a sleep.

Note that there is absolutely no access for passengers on Scoot, which is not a Star Alliance airlines.

Video: KrisFlyer StarAlliance Gold T3

KrisFlyer StarAlliance Gold T3 video - Click to play

KrisFlyer StarAlliance Gold T3 video - Click to play