- Introduction: Flying With Royalty (Or Not)
- Review: Air Canada Premium Rouge 767 Tampa To Toronto
- Review: Sheraton Gateway Toronto Airport
- Review: EgyptAir Business Class 777 Toronto To Cairo
- Review: Cairo Airport Lounge Terminal 2
- Review: Royal Jordanian Business Class Embraer 175 Cairo To Amman
- Review: Grand Hyatt Amman
- Review: Royal Jordanian Lounge Amman Airport
- Review: Royal Jordanian Business Class 787 Amman To Kuala Lumpur
- Review: St. Regis Kuala Lumpur
- Review: Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur
- Review: Royal Brunei Business Class A320 Kuala Lumpur To Bandar Seri Begawan
- Review: Radisson Bandar Seri Begawan Brunei
- Review: Royal Brunei Lounge Bandar Seri Begawan
- Review: Royal Brunei Business Class 787 Bandar Seri Begawan To Dubai
- Review: W Dubai Al Habtoor City
- Review: St. Regis Dubai
- Review: Emirates Business Class Lounge Dubai
- Review: Emirates Business Class A380 Dubai To Los Angeles
My Royal Brunei flight to Bandar Seri Begawan was departing at 12:10PM, so I got to Kuala Lumpur Airport at around 10AM. I checked the departure monitor, and easily found the check-in area for Royal Brunei.
Kuala Lumpur Airport check-in hall
Royal Brunei had a business class counter, though it wasn’t staffed. I still queued there for a minute (since the main line was quite long), and after a few minutes the station manager got the hint, and had one of the associates staff that desk.
Within a few minutes I had a boarding pass to Bandar Seri Begawan, and an invitation to the Plaza Premium lounge. I’ve only ever used the Malaysia Airlines first class lounge in Kuala Lumpur, so was curious to see how one of the airport’s contract lounges compared.
Clearing security and immigration was a breeze, as there weren’t lines for either. After that I got on the train to the satellite concourse.
Kuala Lumpur Airport train station
Upon exiting the train I turned left, and followed the map on my lounge invitation towards the Priority Pass lounge.
Kuala Lumpur Airport airside
This lounge is on the same level as the Malaysia Airlines lounge, so you can take either the escalator or elevator up. However, once on the upper level, the Plaza Premium lounge was in the opposite direction.
Kuala Lumpur Airport airside
Upon entering the lounge I presented my invitation, though Priority Pass members also have access to this lounge. So if you have a credit card with lounge access, you can enter.
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport exterior
The lounge was styled similarly to other Plaza Premium lounges I’ve been to, and wasn’t especially full. Just near the entrance was a bar with several high-top seats.
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport seating
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport seating
Near that was an area featuring magazines and newspapers.
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport magazines & newspapers
Behind that was the dining area, which featured tables that had seating for both two and four.
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport dining area
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport dining area
There was a long bench with small circular tables.
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport seating
Other than that, the lounge had pretty traditional seating, with chairs facing one another arranged in rows.
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport seating
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport seating
There was a small business center with some cubicles and PCs.
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport business center
The lounge faced the apron, and the mostly empty apron.
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport views
The food spread was back near the entrance, and wasn’t especially good.
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport buffet
There were a few types of veggies and fruit.
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport food selection
There was a coffee machine, water, orange juice, toast, and croissants.
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport food selection
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport food selection
Then there were soft drinks and bottled water.
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport drink selection
Then there were a couple of hot dishes, neither of which looked very appealing.
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport food selection
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport food selection
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur Airport food selection
My one frustration with the lounge was that the Wi-Fi didn’t work. While I could connect to the airport’s Wi-Fi (which was free but really slow, at least from the lounge), the lounge’s Wi-Fi didn’t work. Oh well, I only had about 30 minutes in the lounge.
At around 11:10AM I headed to the departure gate, which was C13. The plane arrived from Bandar Seri Begawan at around 11:15AM, right as I got to the gate.
Royal Brunei A320 Kuala Lumpur Airport
Kuala Lumpur Airport has “sterile” gates, so once you enter the gate area you’re considered boarded onto the flight. Therefore they scan your boarding passes when you enter the gate area.
Boarding for Royal Brunei flight
The gate area was huge, so there were plenty of open seats given that we were only on an A320.
Royal Brunei boarding gate Kuala Lumpur Aiprort
At around 11:40AM boarding finally began, starting with people who needed extra time (which was about half the plane), and then after that business class.
Boarding for Royal Brunei flight
Plaza Premium Lounge Kuala Lumpur bottom line
The Plaza Premium Lounge KL is a perfectly fine contract and Priority Pass lounge. The design was quite nice, though the food selection and lack of Wi-Fi were a bit disappointing. That being said, I do everything I can to avoid visiting a contract lounge while hungry. In general the airport isn’t especially inspiring when it comes to lounges — even the Malaysia first class lounge isn’t very nice.
I find KLIA to be among the more pleasant airports out there to transit. They have fast track immigration in both directions, and I’ve never had much of a wait for security.
Food spread looks better than any lounge I've been at in the US.
I have been visiting klia plaza premium lounge for years. Of late, i noticed many duty free employees also access the lounge. I confronted the counter n was told these employees use Bank cards to do so. I witnessed them eating their meals, using wifi and rest (sleep) there. While i understand a Bank card allows access but having them in uniform and occupying various seats without actually having a proper Boarding Pass to fly...
I have been visiting klia plaza premium lounge for years. Of late, i noticed many duty free employees also access the lounge. I confronted the counter n was told these employees use Bank cards to do so. I witnessed them eating their meals, using wifi and rest (sleep) there. While i understand a Bank card allows access but having them in uniform and occupying various seats without actually having a proper Boarding Pass to fly is inappropriate. It isnt a nice sight to behold esp when the lounge is so busy n packed n we real flyers could not find a place to seat while these employees are just seated there shutting their eyes to wait for their break time to be over.
Very much hope something can be done. Thanks
I was there last month. It was jam packed. I also visited Malaysia Airlines Lounge. Not very nice. Seemed kind of old and dated. My favorite was the JAL lounge. Nothing fancy but quite and great staff.
I used the same lounge in December while waiting for my Qatar Airways late evening flight. This is a busy time for departures and, as the lounge allows people to pay to enter, the lounge was very busy. There was hardly any available seating, long queues for everything, zero wi-fi and a lack of staff to clean up after the mob. A deeply unpleasant experience which was greatly improved once on board.
After 10 minutes...
I used the same lounge in December while waiting for my Qatar Airways late evening flight. This is a busy time for departures and, as the lounge allows people to pay to enter, the lounge was very busy. There was hardly any available seating, long queues for everything, zero wi-fi and a lack of staff to clean up after the mob. A deeply unpleasant experience which was greatly improved once on board.
After 10 minutes I gave up and moved to a bar in the terminal and waited for boarding to get a meal.
For those who have the time, there is a mini rainforest in the heart of the satellite terminal at KLIA.
If you are travelling First / Business class, towards the middle of the immigration counters, there are the fast lanes for you to use. Note: I have not seen that lane being full at anytime I have travelled.
JN: yes KLIA has scanners at the gate. Any liquids not within the limits would be confiscated.
Thanks, Ben, for this review. It is timely for me since I am going to Kuala Lumpur next month. I had read your review of the MH lounge too, and I was wondering which of these lounges you would recommend. Also, I noticed there is CX lounge, so I was wondering how that compared.
Finally, is the gate situation at KLIA like HKG flights to the US, where you have to go through security (scanners and/or bag checks) at the gate, and cannot bring any bottled water on board?
We had completely the opposite experience. Immigration at KUL was amongst the worst I've experienced and very disorganized. Couldn't count how many times groups of people would cut the line, only to be yelled at by an officer and let through. It was truly bizarre.
The lounge was a milder version of immigration with a 10 deep line and kids running everywhere. It was much quieter in the terminal....
On the other hand, our food...
We had completely the opposite experience. Immigration at KUL was amongst the worst I've experienced and very disorganized. Couldn't count how many times groups of people would cut the line, only to be yelled at by an officer and let through. It was truly bizarre.
The lounge was a milder version of immigration with a 10 deep line and kids running everywhere. It was much quieter in the terminal....
On the other hand, our food spread was much better looking than yours, and the wifi was excellent. Go figure.
@Credit Depends on the airline, I believe Swiss and Lufthansa let you use the First Class lounge if one of your segments if First but most don't and won't let you. Hope this helps! -GottaFly
If you have a three segment journey and first two parts are on business (because there is no first on that route) and last is in first can you use the first class lounge in the first two airports?
You got lucky *wink*, the Plaza Premium lounge at Kuala Lumpur is usually packed when i am there. But like you said, beautiful design!
When are you ging to fly Virgin Australia's new Business class? Just flew it to Abu Dhabi and it was phenomenal. Having a bar on a 777 is just fantastic, especially when you can have a meal on the couch. Food is nothing exotic but it is good quality. Seat is fantastic, similar to Qatar's just with sleek charcoal and whites. Access to Etihad's awesome lounges with a-la-cte dining is an added bonus. Absolutely recommend...
When are you ging to fly Virgin Australia's new Business class? Just flew it to Abu Dhabi and it was phenomenal. Having a bar on a 777 is just fantastic, especially when you can have a meal on the couch. Food is nothing exotic but it is good quality. Seat is fantastic, similar to Qatar's just with sleek charcoal and whites. Access to Etihad's awesome lounges with a-la-cte dining is an added bonus. Absolutely recommend it, great improvement over their old Business class.