Singapore Airlines offers what many consider to be one of the most exclusive lounges in the world in Singapore’s Changi Airport. The lounge coined as the “Private Room” is only available to customers flying First Class on a Singapore Airlines aircraft.
In the past I had heard that lounge access is limited to those passengers that are booked in first class on an outbound flight from Singapore, but somehow I was able to attain an invitation to the prestigious lounge in Melbourne despite my flying First on the inbound flight and Economy Class on the outbound flight to Hyderabad.
In addition, Singapore continues to be generous with access policies for the Silver Kris First Class Lounge. Since I was traveling together with my family, they were allowed into the First Class Lounge with their business class boarding passes. The Private Room however was off limits.
The lounge is pretty easy to find. It is located above the duty free shopping area in Terminal 2, close to Gate E, and inside the Silver Kris First Lounge. To gain access, first you need to present your boarding pass to the receptionist who calls upon another person to escort you to the second desk where your boarding pass is again verified. Since my parents had already visited the Private Room on our way to Auckland, I took this opportunity to have a peek for myself.
The Private Room is a small enclosed area at the back of the First Class Lounge. There is just one rectangular living space within this section of the lounge and one dining space. There was hardly a soul in sight while I was at the lounge.
As you can see the lounge is immaculately designed in the form of a traditional gentleman’s club. The entire place exudes old school elegance with the seats being much like arm chairs found at a high end library.
The lounge looks out onto a quiet area of the airport, which doesn’t really see much in terms of aircraft activity. It’s also likely that you won’t see much because the shades are half drawn down most of the time.
Off to the left side of the seating area (when looking in from the entrance) is the elegant dining space. Again this area has the atmosphere and decor of a high end English cafe. I really wasn’t hungry or thirsty, but upon the insistence of the lounge staff, I took a seat and ordered a glass of champagne (Dom Perignon). Of course, I just got it for the picture, but I did feel bad about wasting it.
The lounge features both an a la carte menu for food as well as a small buffet. There was a vegetarian section of the menu, which featured a quite a few Indian dishes. It’s always surprising to me how much vegetarian food, Singapore lounges have given that their flight menus feature no vegetarian entree.
I should note that most of the items listed on the menu in the Private Room are found in the buffet or made to order menu in the Silver Kris First Class section, which is available to more people.
At the very end of the lounge is a small business area where there are two computers set up in case you need to work.
The restrooms and showers in this lounge are common to both the Private Room and the Silver Kris First Lounge. They are located right before the entrance to this section of the lounge.
Bottom Line
Anyway I returned to join my family in the Silver Kris section after my quick tour of the Private Room. Frankly other than the more expensive champagne, I found the Private Room to be quite unremarkable. Sure it was quiet and exclusive, but it really didn’t have anything that was out of this world awesome. I am perfectly happy with what’s available in the first class section of the lounge as it stands.
The main reason I would want to visit the Private Room honestly is for a portrait photography session. It looks like a classic location to dress up and feel like one were a part of another era. Reminds me really of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s description of the Diogenes Club that Mycroft.
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United Club SFO Concourse F Rotunda
United Global First Lounge – SFO (Now Replaced with the Polaris Lounge)
United NEW Polaris SFO-AKL (777-300ER)
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Crowne Plaza Christchurch
Manaia (Priority Pass) Lounge Christchurch
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Westin Melbourne
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Singapore Airlines First Class Lounge Melbourne
Singapore Airlines First Class Melbourne – Singapore
Singapore Airlines Private Room @ Changi
Singapore Airlines Silver Kris Lounge @ Changi
Singapore Airlines Economy Class Singapore – Hyderabad
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Plaza Premium Lounge Hyderabad
Etihad Business Class HYD-AUH-DFW
Etihad Business Class Lounge Abu Dhabi
Etihad Business Class Lounge Abu Dhabi (US Departures)
