Beijing Trip – Air China First Class Lounge

Beijing Air China First Class Lounge

I recently went on a weekend trip to Beijing on American Airlines. The trip included travel on the 787 Dreamliner as well as exploring two hotels in the city.

The trip report will include the following posts:

Beijing Trip Report – Introduction

Beijing Trip Report – American Airlines Minneapolis to Dallas Fort Worth

Beijing Trip Report – American Admiral’s Club at DFW – D Club

Beijing Trip Report – American Airlines Dallas Fort Worth to Beijing

Beijing Trip Report – Grand Hyatt Beijing

Beijing Trip Report – Park Hyatt Beijing

Beijing Trip Report – Sightseeing in Beijing

Beijing Trip Report – Air China First Class Lounge in Beijing

Beijing Trip Report – BGS Lounge in Beijing

Beijing Trip Report – American Airlines Beijing to Dallas Fort Worth

Beijing Trip Report – American Admiral’s Club at DFW

Beijing Trip Report – American Airlines Dallas Fort Worth to Minneapolis

Beijing Trip Report – Air China First Class Lounge in Beijing

After clearing immigration and security at Beijing International Airport, I pulled up my Priority Pass app and discovered there were a few lounges in the same terminal that my flight was departing.

One of them was the Air China First Class Lounge. That lounge happened to be on the way to the gate area neat E20 so I decided to stop by.

When I arrived there were three colleagues present near the entrance. One of the colleagues was outside the door and the other two were at the front desk. The colleague near the door welcomed me and invited me to the desk. The colleague at the desk smiled, made eye contact with me and welcomed me to the lounge. The colleague requested my boarding pass and access card. I presented my Priority Pass card and boarding pass. The colleague processed the registration and asked me to sign the screen of the device for admittance. After I did the colleague told me that they do not track my flight at that lounge so I should pay attention to the time. The colleague thanked me and she invited me into the lounge.

The lounge included some unique decorative areas. One of them was at the center of the lounge and it had a small garden like area with some trees and plants and chairs. Within the center area there was a tea station as well as a few chairs. It was a nice change to a typical airport lounge.

The lounge also had a separate dining section with regular tables.

The remainder of the lounge had various comfortable large chairs that were scattered throughout the lounge.

In the main lounge area, there were two beverage and light snack stations. These included fruit, snack mix and beverages. The stations were setup neatly and they were self service.

The dining area was a separate section and it contained a self service buffet with several hot foods as well as some chilled ones.

The hot food included Dim Sum, pasta, chicken curry dish, seafood curry, and a beef stir fry. The cold items included a staffed sushi bar with three varieties of sushi. There were also fruit and light sandwiches available. A refrigerator was stocked with soda, water and juices. Two wines were available; however no sparkling wine was offered.

The buffet stations were all signed and the food was displayed attractively. Condiments were available at the buffet as well as clean dishes, plates, flatware and chop sticks.

The lounge was located on the second floor and it offered direct views of the gate area as well as a view out to the tarmac.

The temperature was comfortable and the lighting level was good. A few announcements from the terminal could be heard; however, the lounge itself was relatively quiet.

There were only a few other guests in the lounge at the time of my visit.

Colleagues were noted to walk around the room and to keep the areas clean. Some of the colleagues smiled and made eye contact with me when they walked by.

I approached the dining area and was greeted by the colleague at the sushi area. The colleague welcomed me and he asked what he could prepare for me. I requested one of each of the three sushi pieces. Two of them were rolls and the other was a shrimp sashimi. The colleague provided the sushi and a small plate and he asked me to help myself to the condiments.

I also selected Dim Sum and the chicken and seafood curry from the self service buffet.

The sushi was served chilled. The rolls were slightly dry and they lacked a good flavor. Each role piece was medium size. The sashimi was also served chilled. The shrimp was fresh and it had a good taste. Soy sauce was provided along with wasabi and ginger. The condiments had a good taste.

The Dim Sum was served at room temperature. The buns were fresh and they had a good taste. The bun was slightly chewy. The seafood curry was served warm. The seafood was light and it had a good taste. The seafood was in a slightly spicy sauce. The chicken curry was also served warm. The chicken was tender and the sauce was mild.

After I finished the meal, I walked around the lounge and noted there was a bar with a variety of alcohol types. There were no colleagues present at the bar at that time so I did not consume a beverage.

When I was ready to depart the lounge, the two colleagues at the reception desk thanked me and they wished me a good flight. In addition, the colleague at the door also thanked me and she wished me a good day.

Summary –

Overall I thought the lounge was nice. If I had more time before my flight, I would have sat in the center area and relaxed in the garden section. I thought that was a nice touch that they had that to provide a space to get away from the airport. I also enjoyed the views of the tarmac.