In a previous installment, I covered how I was very pleasantly surprised by Starlux Airlines’ Airbus A350 first class across the Pacific, as I flew from Los Angeles (LAX) to Taipei (TPE). In this post, I’d like to briefly cover the first class ground experience at Taipei Taoyuan Airport, which is… odd. Of course I’ll have a full review soon.
In this post:
Starlux has two different first class ground experiences
In general, Starlux puts a ton of effort into its ground experience, and into offering a seamless end-to-end experience. For example, in Los Angeles I covered how the airline sends first class passengers to PS LAX. At its Taipei hub, the airline has two different experiences, depending on your trip type:
- If Taipei is your origin or destination, you can use the Huan Yu VIP Terminal; if you’re departing you can also choose to use the Starlux first class lounge instead, but I think virtually everyone would opt for the airport’s exclusive VIP terminal
- If you’re simply connecting in Taipei, you can only use the first class section of the Starlux Galactic Lounge, as using the Huan Yu VIP Terminal isn’t an option; you’ll still get picked up at your arriving flight by a Starlux representative, escorted to your connecting flight, etc.
It’s certainly a unique system for an airline to have, to essentially outsource its lounge at its hub airport, assuming you’re originating or ending there. You’d think they’d build an amazing dedicated lounge that everyone would use, but I suppose that still wouldn’t be as seamless, in terms of getting through immigration and security as fast as possible.
I’m conflicted on Starlux’s dedicated first class lounge
I’ve gotta say, the Starlux Galactic Lounge Taipei is… unique. Billionaire Starlux founder Captain K.W. Chang loves outer space, which explains so much of the carrier’s design and branding choices, and that’s more evident in the lounge than anywhere else.
There’s just a lot going on with the lounge’s design. As the airline describes it, “the waiting process is like a journey through time and space.” The business class section of the lounge is described as being inspired by a “train-style capsule,” so it just all doesn’t feel very cohesive?
The first class section of the lounge is arguably even stranger. On the plus side, I was literally the only guest using the lounge, since people don’t actually seem to fly Starlux first class (the commercial strategy makes little sense). However, the space just struck me as… odd?
It felt like a hybrid between a space-themed attraction in an amusement park and a McDonald’s dining area.
Like, does this seating actually look at all comfortable or high-end? Maybe it actually cost a lot, but for an airline that collaborates with brands like Loro Piana, Huntsman, Aesop, etc., it just struck me as feeling sort of low end.
There’s this tiny private room over in the back corner of the lounge, which was “reserved” for me, but really, the entire lounge was my private space. In theory it’s nice to have a space like this. There’s even a privacy door, which the attendant would always close. That was well intentioned, and was supposed to reflect attention to detail with service, but it honestly felt a little like being locked in a closet.
When it comes to food and drinks, I was impressed by the beverages, with everything from signature cocktails, to good wine, to exceptional barista coffee.
Food was entirely a la carte. There was nothing really “snacky,” but instead, everything was intended to be more of a full meal. I asked the server for his recommendation, and he said the first two items on the menu were exclusive to first class, so he suggested I order one of those. So I opted for the fish en papillote with lemon and vegetables, which was… fine. I mean, I appreciate the creativity.
One thing that gave me a chuckle is that the menu listed the calories for all the menu items. It suggested that the above had 750 calories, while things like the burgers had 315-370 calories. How do they come up with this stuff? Does that small lemon wedge have 600 calories, or how do we arrive at that number?
Anyway, I’ll have a full review soon. Ultimately my layover was perfectly pleasant, but definitely didn’t match the onboard experience, or ground experience at LAX, for that matter. While I think Starlux might rank as having a top 10 first class onboard product, the lounge definitely doesn’t belong on the list of the world’s best first class lounges.
Bottom line
Starlux Airlines’ Galactic Lounge Taipei is definitely pretty “out there” in terms of design. I was curious to see what the first class section was like, as I hadn’t seen any reviews of it online. Well, it’s certainly… unique.
While it in theory checks the boxes in terms of privacy, great drinks, and a la carte dining, I couldn’t help but feel like the overall concept missed the mark in terms of creating an environment that feels comfortable and luxurious.
This is of course minor in the scheme of things, and I’m lucky to fly first class at all. It’s just all rather unusual, in my opinion.
What do you make of the Starlux first class lounge setup?
Most F cash passengers will fly from origin to destination on a nonstop as time is king. Your US to Japan via TPE case in F is super rare.
Did you forget Ben's goal of flying every true First class product in the world?
That is, by far, the most expensive espresso machine I have ever seen in a lounge. It's a Spirit from Kees van der Westen, a boutique espresso machine maker from the Netherlands. It's about $30,000USD - https://procoffeegear.com/products/kvdw-spirit
That's reflective of how high end coffee gets in Taiwan....
In contrast, the chairs look like they were bought from Ikea during an uninspiring season.
That red and yellow is giving me McDonalds vibes...
Ronald might be hiding somewhere in the lounge (spooky)