Throughout my lengthy journey to Abu Dhabi, I flew Garuda Indonesia’s Boeing 777 enterprise class from Jakarta to Jeddah. Previous to my flight, I had the possibility to go to the Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta.
I had excessive hopes of this lounge. I imply, Garuda Indonesia is a Skytrax 5-star airline, and that is the provider’s worldwide flagship lounge. Not solely that, however Terminal 3 solely opened in 2016, so it’s nonetheless a reasonably new facility.
With that in thoughts, the lounge was extremely disappointing, in probably the most complicated manner conceivable. It appears to me just like the lounge was possibly a lot nicer in some unspecified time in the future, however to chop prices the airline has began taking furnishings out of the lounge, closing off rooms, and so on. The Garuda Indonesia Lounge pales compared to the Plaza Premium Lounge within the terminal, which I’ll be reviewing within the subsequent installment.
Anyway, let’s get into the assessment of the provider’s worldwide enterprise class lounge, however goodness, Garuda Indonesia certain has fallen (and I’d say Skytrax wants to remove the 5-star score from the provider if it needs to keep up any credibility, however that ship sailed a very long time in the past).
Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta location
The Garuda Indonesia Lounge is situated in Terminal 3 at Soekarno-Hatta Worldwide Airport (CGK), previous safety and immigration.
The lounge is situated on the mezzanine degree, close to gate 9. That is situated a degree beneath immigration (if you happen to’re originating in Jakarta), and a degree above the principle concourse, if you happen to’re connecting.
The entryway resulting in the lounge actually units the tone for the extent of high quality you’ll discover within the lounge.
First you stroll previous the closed top notch lounge (I can’t inform if it has completely been shuttered as a result of provider so vastly decreasing its top notch footprint, or if it’s solely open over choose hours?).
The whole terminal simply feels prefer it wants some TLC, together with the ceiling space main as much as the lounge.
I’m actually confused by how this terminal solely opened a number of years in the past, between the cracks within the ceiling, plus the ceiling being so low on one facet that you might simply hit your head if you happen to walked in that space.
Then as you get nearer to the doorway of the lounge, there’s a bunch of (what seems to be) lounge furnishings, plus a play space for youths. Is Garuda Indonesia having a storage sale, or why is all of this outdoors the doorway to the lounge?
By the best way, watch out if you take the escalator exiting the lounge, so that you simply don’t hit your head, as a result of the clearance may be very low.
Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta hours
The Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta doesn’t have any constant hours, so far as I do know, so I consider it’s simply open from previous to the primary Garuda Indonesia worldwide departure till the final Garuda Indonesia worldwide departure.
Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta entry necessities
The Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta is a regular SkyTeam lounge, so it’s accessible by all SkyTeam first and enterprise class passengers, plus SkyTeam Elite Plus members. SkyTeam Elite Plus members can deliver one visitor with them, whereas others usually can’t.
Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta format & seating
What’s the Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta like? While you enter the lounge, you’ll see the buffet straight forward, and if you flip proper, you’ll end up in the principle a part of the lounge space. There’s one lengthy walkway, with seating on either side.
The primary a part of the lounge primarily has seats organized in clusters going through each other, in addition to just a few eating tables.
Then as you go deeper into the lounge, you’ll discover extra seating. This tends to be the quieter a part of the lounge, because it’s farther from the doorway and the buffet.
This a part of the lounge additionally has some chairs going through home windows, overlooking the terminal.
While you enter the lounge and switch left, you’ll discover one other small seating space, with simply over a dozen chairs.
The lounge additionally has a play space for youths.
It’s additionally cute how proper by the doorway, the lounge has a show with some Garuda Indonesia memorabilia, starting from mannequin airplanes, to the glassware used onboard.
Now that is the place issues get unusual. opinions from the lounge a number of years in the past, the lounge appears to have been a lot larger up to now (for instance, have a look at the primary two footage on LoungeBuddy).
I do know Garuda Indonesia has been doing a little value chopping, so has the airline closed a big a part of the lounge? Fairly bizarrely, the lounge simply ends with… no matter you name the beneath? Like, what’s occurring right here? You may see within the beneath image some lounge signage suggesting that this was at one level a part of the lounge, however I assume not anymore?
Even a number of the facilities inside the lounge have been shuttered. For instance, I noticed signage for a coworking area and a cinema, however each have been locked.
It’s arduous to go to this lounge and never conclude that Garuda Indonesia has sort of given up in terms of high quality. If the airline wanted to chop prices and cut back the scale of the lounge, there’s definitely a classier method to go about it than what the airline did, no?
Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta meals & drinks
What’s the foods and drinks choice like on the Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta? There’s one major buffet space proper by the doorway.
The meals choice included salad, fruit, mini-cakes, finger sandwiches, cereal, a pair sorts of soup, packaged croissants, and a number of other scorching dishes, together with fried rice, hen sausage, potatoes, baked beans, egg bites, and extra.
The lounge additionally has an egg station, the place you may order eggs per your preferences. Nevertheless, I by no means truly noticed anybody staffing this station, so I’m unsure how available that’s.
By way of drinks, there was was a fridge with soda, a reasonably lame espresso machine, and bottled water. The lounge additionally doesn’t serve alcohol (although there have been vacation bottles that have been supposed to be ornamental on the “bar”).
I imply, the meals choice is okay, whereas the drink choice is sort of underwhelming. As some extent of comparability, the Plaza Premium Lounge has distinctive barista espresso, alcoholic drinks, and a meals menu you may order off of, in order that places Garuda Indonesia to disgrace.
Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta loos & showers
The Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta has loos within the again proper nook of the lounge.
The lads’s room was fairly small, and had a single sink, two urinals, and a few stalls, and the toilet didn’t really feel notably clear or properly maintained.
The lounge has a single bathe situated inside the boys’s room. This must be one of many least luxurious lounge showers I’ve seen in a very long time.
Backside line
Toto, I’ve a sense we’re not in Hong Kong or Singapore anymore! I had pretty excessive expectations of the Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta, on condition that this was my first time flying out of the airport’s new(ish) terminal, and on condition that Garuda Indonesia is a really properly regarded airline.
Suffice it to say that my expertise was disappointing. The Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta simply seems like an afterthought and a shell of what it could have been up to now. The lounge is pretty small, has a restricted choice of drinks, lacks facilities, and has a bathe room that leaves so much to be desired.
I assume Garuda Indonesia is simply in value chopping mode, as a result of I consider this lounge was considerably extra spectacular? It’s unhappy when a Plaza Premium Lounge blows away a properly regarded provider’s flagship worldwide lounge, however that’s precisely the case in Jakarta…
What’s your tackle the Garuda Indonesia Lounge Jakarta?
