The Best Business Lounges Around Asia

Long flight. No sleep. You’ve spent almost 20 hours in the air and now you’ve got five hours to kill in this airport 5,000 miles away from home. You don’t know anyone for thousands of miles; everyone you see is a complete stranger. You’re alone. So very, very alone. What you need is a good drink.

It’s a fact that Asia has more business travelers per capita than any other continent on the planet. The business world has its pivotal hub in the Asia Pacific region, with Hong Kong, Singapore, and Tokyo only playing parts in the area’s distinct economic influence on the world. Therefore, the airports around Asia reflect the deep regard and respect each Asian country has for the men and women making their economies grow.

Having a good business lounge to reward today’s Business Warrior on their long travels is just another way of brightening a day fraught with temperamental children and rough turbulence. Walking through the doors of a lounge designed specifically with you in mind is like being hugged by mom.

There are lounges designed strictly for VIPs and business people, while others cater to all passengers. If you are a business traveler and you just got off a flight that included a family of five loud tourists, it would be wise to avoid going to the lounge they just stepped into. Try the one that specifically caters to you.

There are things that any lounge will have, regardless of whom gets in. They will usually have:

•    Drinks

•    Snacks

•    Television and internet

•    Comfortable seating

There are some, however, that fly just above the rainbow. Here are the select few lounges in Asia that offer exemplary class and service.

•    Hong Kong International Airport (Hong Kong)

Cathay Pacific’s Wing Lounge in the Hong Kong International Airport not only caters to any specific taste, they pride themselves on improving on even the most minute of details. They offer first-class travelers private cabanas, private showers, and chaise lounges.

•   Suvarnabhumi International Airport (Bangkok)

Thai Airway’s Royal Orchid Lounge not only offers the best in travel, but their layover accommodations go beyond the normal rules of class. You feel stressed? Get a Thai massage or take a hot shower. If you need to have a last second meeting, meeting rooms are right there. Also, should you need transportation anywhere, Royal Orchid has a fleet of Mercedes-Benzes at your beckon call should you need to go anywhere.

•    Chengi Airport (Singapore)

This airport features almost unanimously lauded lounges. Whether you need to nap, shower, or visit the spa, they have you covered. And if you have a lot of time to kill, you can go on a Singapore Tour. Yes. For a 5-hour or longer layover you can take one of four tours around the city and make it back well before you flight.
If you don’t want to leave the airport, you can walk around in one if it’s six gardens. That’s right. And airport with six gardens. What more could you want?

•  Dubai International Airport (Dubai)

Dubai is almost defined by the decadent hotels there that cater to the world’s nobility. Movie stars, world leaders, and rich heiresses have all stayed a night or two in the gold-plated, marble-floored castles for the elite. So why stop there?
The Dubai International Airport took the luxury of a 5-star hotel and transposed it into their lounges. With restaurants that feature a dining experience unparalleled in air travel, it is clear to see why people clamor to be stuck in Dubai. They offer spas, Jacuzzis, a full gym and swimming poor to all first-class passengers.

•    Incheon International Airport (Seoul)

Asian airports are known to pamper their travelers. Like the airport in Singapore, Incheon offers travelers with selected layovers tours of Seoul. They went one up on them, however. The VIP lounges are catered specifically to first-class flyers. Also, for the past two years straight the lounges in Incheon International Airport have been given the Global Traveler award for the best in the world.

In a time when simply being good was never so hard, these airports looked great, seemingly without effort. Naturally, you would be just as tired of flying in a VIP lounge as you would in the terminal. But there a lot to be said about hating to fly in style, as opposed to despising it on a plastic chair in front of Gate 24. If the adage, “you get what you pay for” is true, then these lounges are worth millions.