Singapore Airlines reopens Sydney, Melbourne lounges

Singapore Airlines will unlock the doors of its airport lounges at Sydney and Melbourne on Monday November 1, ahead of the restart of quarantine-free travel between Australia and Singapore on November 8. 

A spokesperson for Singapore Airlines has confirmed to Executive Traveller that the carrier “ is planning to ‘soft-open’ its Sydney and Melbourne SilverKris Lounges for select flights from November 1, 2021.”

However, the soft opening will initially be limited to Singapore Airlines' evening flights, not the morning services.

And with Air New Zealand's lounges still shuttered, the SQ lounges will also be a welcome sight for passengers flying on other Star Alliance airlines such as ANA, Thai Airways and United Airlines, provided of course the opening hours of the Singapore Airlines lounges line up with the departure times of those other airlines’ flights.

As expected for flights in the wake of the coronavirus, there’ll be “limited food and beverage offerings” at the start, although the airline assures passenger that “the full SilverKris Lounge service will be gradually introduced as restrictions allow.”

To date, London Heathrow has been the only Singapore Airlines lounge outside of the airlines’ home base of Changi to roll out the welcome mat – and even at Changi the lounges are temporary affairs, ahead of a December ribbon-cutting for stunning new first class and business class lounges at Changi T3’s SilverKris lounge precinct.

That multi-million dollar project will also reveal a fresh take on The Private Room, an exclusive haven reserved for Singapore Airlines’ own first class passengers, including those travelling in the Airbus A380 Suites class.

But economy passengers have not been forgotten, with a vastly improved KrisFlyer Gold lounge for Elite Gold members of Singapore Airlines' KrisFlyer rewards program and Gold-grade frequent flyers of Star Alliance carriers and other partner airlines (such as Virgin Australia) booked into economy or premium economy.

As we've previously reported, this once underwhelming lounge has been dramatically transformed: it's not only bigger and brighter, with a greater sense of space and plenty of natural light, it now boasts its own washrooms and showers.

Read more: Singapore Airlines’ new flagship first, business lounges open December