- Introduction: Around The World For Allegris
- Review: Delta Sky Club Miami Airport (MIA)
- Review: Delta First Class Boeing 737 (MIA-MSP)
- Review: Delta First Class Airbus A319 (MSP-YVR)
- Review: Lufthansa Allegris Business Class Airbus A350 (YVR-MUC)
- Review: EgyptAir Business Class Airbus A320neo (MUC-CAI)
- Review: Le Meridien Cairo Airport, Egypt
- Review: Kuwait Airways First Class Airbus A330 (CAI-KWI)
- Review: Waldorf Astoria Kuwait City
- Review: Kuwait Airways Elite Lounge Kuwait Airport (KWI)
- Review: Kuwait Airways First Class Boeing 777 (KWI-BKK)
- Review: Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok Airport (BKK)
- Review: Turkish Airlines Lounge Bangkok Airport (BKK)
- Review: Thai Airways Business Lounge Bangkok Airport (BKK)
- Review: Thai Airways First Lounge Bangkok Airport (BKK)
- Review: Thai Airways First Class Boeing 777 (BKK-NRT)
- Review: United Polaris Business Class Boeing 777 (NRT-SFO)
During my Allegris round the world journey, I had an overnight layover in Bangkok. Fortunately the airport is bustling 24/7, which allowed me to do some lounge hopping. In this post I’ll be reviewing the Coral Finest Business Class Lounge (interesting name for a lounge, eh?), which is accessible with Priority Pass.
Of all the Priority Pass lounges at the airport, this is the one I was most looking forward to checking out, as this lounge is a trip down memory lane. Why? Well, the Coral Finest Business Class Lounge is in the space of the former Thai Airways First Class Lounge, which was one of my favorite lounges back in the day.
I’ve gotta say, for a Priority Pass lounge, I found this to be excellent, with comfortable seating, a huge selection of food and drinks, nice bathrooms, and even complimentary massages (though not during the hours I was visiting).
In this post:
Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok location
The Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok is located in International Concourse D, on level three, near gate D1. Below is a map that gives you a sense of the terminal layout, and relative location of the various lounges.
Bangkok Airport has a layout whereby this part of the terminal basically consists of two connected “crosses,” so it can potentially be quite a distance between areas of the terminal. Lots of international airlines depart from the area near this lounge, so it should be conveniently located for many.
Note that the airport has several Coral Lounges, but only one is the “finest.” 😉
Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok hours
The Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok is open 24/7, so it was ideal in my situation, given that I was at the airport from around 2AM until 7AM.
Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok entry requirements
The Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok isn’t run by an airline. The lounge is open to Priority Pass members, with usage allowed for up to 2.5 hours. There are of course many premium credit cards offering Priority Pass memberships.
I believe the lounge also has an agreement with some airlines for access, but I’m not sure which, as there wasn’t much obvious signage in that regard (other than VietJet Air SkyBoss passengers getting access).
Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok seating & layout
The Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok looked familiar from the moment I walked in, despite the furniture having completely changed since the days that Thai Airways controlled this space. I’d say that this is one of the more elegant and tastefully decorated Priority Pass lounges out there.
As you enter the lounge, there are first a couple of seating areas, before you get into the main part of the lounge.
The main part of the lounge is then one large rectangular room, which has a variety of seating arrangements, including sofas, and cafe-style tables with chairs.
Along the side of the lounge, there are several semi-private rooms of sorts, some of which were blocked off. I remember these back in the day, when Thai Airways would essentially give each first class parties one of these areas. I’m not sure who can use them now, or why they’re blocked off.
Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok food & drinks
The Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok has an above average selection of food and drinks. The main buffet is close to the entrance. Even beyond the food as such, I’ve gotta give it to the lounge for the decor around the buffet. Okay, it’s all a little random, but still, it’s more effort than most lounges put into their buffet area.
The food selection in the middle of the night was extensive, and cold options included everything from salads and veggies, to cereal, to finger sandwiches, to a variety of canapés, to croissants and pastries.
There was also a large selection of hot options, including both Western and Asian dishes.
Personally I largely avoid these buffets, simply because I can’t help but wonder how long the food has been sitting out, especially when the lounge is quiet. But still, you’ve gotta respect the selection.
As far as drinks go, there were fridges with all kinds of soft drinks, water, and juice. They also had some desserts.
I was impressed by the self-serve coffee selection. The Nescafe machine was excellent, and you could even easily make your own iced lattes. That’s something you don’t often see.
There was also a decorative cart with Drury coffee and tea.
Alcohol was available from a bartender, and there was a large selection of recommended cocktails, along with beer and wine.
I found it a little tacky how there was a sign saying that you’ll be charged if you damage a glass. For that matter, there were tip jars in several places in the lounge, including at reception.
So yeah, color me impressed, especially for Priority Pass.
Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok bathrooms
The Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok has bathrooms down the hall from reception, in the opposite direction of the rest of the lounge. There are about half a dozen individual bathrooms, each with a sink, toilet, and urinal. I love these kinds of bathroom setups, especially if you want to brush your teeth, change clothing, etc.
I was also impressed that the bathrooms were constantly cleaned.
Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok massage
The Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok offers complimentary 15-minute massages, on a first come, first served basis. They’re available daily between 6AM and 12AM. Unfortunately that didn’t coincide with my visit. It’s so cool how several Priority Pass lounges in Bangkok offer complimentary massages (meanwhile Thai Airways has completely eliminated its spa, which used to offer treatments).
Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok bedrooms
So I’m not sure how exactly this is related to the lounge, but inside the lounge and to the right there are private bedrooms, marketed as The Coral’s Chambers, in partnership with Omazz (which seems to be some sort of special mattress). I asked about this at reception, and was told that they needed to be booked in advance.
Looking online, it seems there’s an email address and phone number you can contact to book these. They come at an extra cost, though I’m not sure about the pricing. The bedrooms look nice, so if someone is looking for an airside transit hotel, this could be a good option. 
Bottom line
The Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok is an excellent Priority Pass lounge. It has nice decor, an extensive selection of food, bartender prepared cocktails, good machine coffee, and complimentary massages during select hours. The lounge also gets bonus points for bringing back fond memories of the Thai Airways First Class Lounge, which used to occupy this space.
While there’s a lot of lounge hopping to be done in Bangkok, I’d say this is my favorite Priority Pass lounge at the airport.
What do you make of the Coral Finest Business Class Lounge Bangkok?
It’s amazing how much the quality of Lounges in BKK have gone down. I will always remember the Thai F lounge, and of course the buggy on both ends of the trip to HKG in high regard. The A380 F was pretty good too. The private living rooms in the lounge was certainty a first for me, however this was probably 10 years ago.
The domestic Thai and Bangkok Lounges have always been garbage though. I wonder who is running the old Transero Lounge these days
This is certainly not the coral lounge that was available on our recent trip to Chaing Mai.
However when it comes to alcohol it appears that it is probably the same. When you show a picture of alcohol the menu is unreadable and the bottles make no sense except for the Vermouth.
In the other Coral there were only fruit wines (sweet) and sweet "cocktails" made with some alcohol of some sort. Nothing like...
This is certainly not the coral lounge that was available on our recent trip to Chaing Mai.
However when it comes to alcohol it appears that it is probably the same. When you show a picture of alcohol the menu is unreadable and the bottles make no sense except for the Vermouth.
In the other Coral there were only fruit wines (sweet) and sweet "cocktails" made with some alcohol of some sort. Nothing like real wine or real scotch, vodka, etc.
Buyer beware - it looks like the alcohol is non-existent except for small glasses of watery local beer.. and some horrid fruit wines.
Ben - if you have more information that we can read giving what real alcohol is available it would be nice.
Love this lounge.
BKK is one of the best airports for lounge hopping, especially for PP members.
I think we have visited around 6-10 lounges overall in this airport, and this one is just great! Thank for the trip down memory lane!
Great timing.
I’ll be at BKK Wednesday and will check out this lounge, thanks for the writeup!
On our first pointspros redemption Ben recommended a stay over in Bangkok so we could enjoy the full Thai first experience in this lounge. My wife still regales her friends with the story about the spa. I always remember when they asked us what we wanted for breakfast, I asked for a menu and they just replied 'Just tell us what you want and we will make it'. Thanks Ben
"I’m not sure who can use them now, or why they’re blocked off."
Why not just ask someone who works in the lounge about them?
Some of them have Air Asia X pillows if I recall correctly and indicate they are only for Air Asia X pax. That said, have sat in there before and no one bothered me about it.
Still nicer than ALL of the Alaska Airlines lounges combined.
Per the Priority Pass website the lounge reviewed is located at International Concourse C, near gate C1. Is the website correct?
@ CJH -- There are multiple Coral Lounges. The one I visited was this one:
https://www.prioritypass.com/lounges/thailand/bangkok-suvarnabhumi-intl/bkk20-the-coral-finest-business-class-lounge
If only Priority Pass lounges in the USA were as nice as the Coral Lounge that you visited. DFW is my home airport and the Priority Pass lounge (terminal D) and Premium Plaza longe (terminal E) are adequate at best. I was just in the Priority Pass lounge in Charleston, SC where the food was not edible. But the staff were friendly and at least the drinks were free. Always enjoy reading your posts.
I've never been clear on this kind of rating system. Is this 4.5 stars based on the fact that it's a Priority Pass lounge or is it 4.5 stars on the scale of all lounges meaning that it's only a slight step down from the best business class lounges?
Because those mean very different things especially if passengers have multiple options out of BKK does the 4.5 stars mean you would actively recommend anyone use this lounge over others?
The star system is very confusing. I have understood it to be a sort of reflection of Ben's expectations. Clearly, this lounge exceeded them, but this does not make it one of the world's best lounges.
@ Yoloswag420 -- The star rating system is intended to be relative, so the idea is to make clear that I think this lounge is much better than average for a Priority Pass lounge.
The 2 rooms are pretty expensive. The smaller one with the single bed will cost you 2500 Baht for 3 hours while the nicer double room is at 3500 Baht - which is roughly 100 $ for 3 hours.
I would say this lounge looks on par if not better than the Thai Airways J lounges at BKK which IMHO are pretty poor for their hub.
Now there are the S-gates and brand new lounges to go with them. They take a while to get to so anyone lounging in the classic part of the airport should budget at least 15 minutes of transit time for the new gates.
I was at the S-gates 3 nights ago. At this time, there are 2 Priority Pass lounges run by "Miracle Lounge" open for business. Shower facilities were also available in one of them.
Concur with Mike about BKK lounges being decidedly ho-hum. Then again the airport has always been second rate compared to arch-rival Changi. I remember Thaksin Sinawatra saying in 2012 that BKK's new terminal would eclipse Changi(!). Simple things like lack of maintenance, lack of cleaning, poor air conditioning throughout the entire terminal, lack of seating etc etc all add up. That's why I actually valued lounges in BKK more than most other airports anywhere else....
Concur with Mike about BKK lounges being decidedly ho-hum. Then again the airport has always been second rate compared to arch-rival Changi. I remember Thaksin Sinawatra saying in 2012 that BKK's new terminal would eclipse Changi(!). Simple things like lack of maintenance, lack of cleaning, poor air conditioning throughout the entire terminal, lack of seating etc etc all add up. That's why I actually valued lounges in BKK more than most other airports anywhere else. You could escape the crowded, humid conditions in the rest of the terminal.
I like BKK airport, but they could sure use a lot more seating.
It is always at least 10 degrees F too hot — and sticky — in the BKK terminal building.
You're right about that, Jack. Hot and stuffy all throughout the terminal. But you get respite in the lounges. And generally the departure gate areas, which are under the main departure concourses are more bearable. But the worst area for blazing heat is around the juncture of E, F, and G concourses. My Thai friends tell me that AOT economizes by always keeping the aircon low, to save money. Also, the glass cage design doesn't...
You're right about that, Jack. Hot and stuffy all throughout the terminal. But you get respite in the lounges. And generally the departure gate areas, which are under the main departure concourses are more bearable. But the worst area for blazing heat is around the juncture of E, F, and G concourses. My Thai friends tell me that AOT economizes by always keeping the aircon low, to save money. Also, the glass cage design doesn't help in a tropical environment with the sun beating in(!!) Worst design ever.
Great to know. In general, BKK lounges leave a lot to be desired.
Spent some time in the Cathay, JAP and Emirates ones last week. The Emiartes lounge was the only decent one.
I didn't bother with the Miracle lounge (used by Qantas) due to terrible experience in the past (please stay away from their buffet!)
The clear winner for anyone flying Oneworld premium is the Qatar lounge... Beautiful and friendly. Sadly it only opened as I was heading to the gate.
The sheer selection of Priority Pass lounges at BKK is fantastic, and there are several decent ones. I don't know that any PP lounge (anywhere?) will compare to a good non-PP airline lounge, although the China Air lounge in BKK is decidedly worst than all but the Oman Air PP lounge there. Several BKK PP lounges also have water bottles so you can grab one to take with on your flight, and the free massages...
The sheer selection of Priority Pass lounges at BKK is fantastic, and there are several decent ones. I don't know that any PP lounge (anywhere?) will compare to a good non-PP airline lounge, although the China Air lounge in BKK is decidedly worst than all but the Oman Air PP lounge there. Several BKK PP lounges also have water bottles so you can grab one to take with on your flight, and the free massages are a nice touch from the couple that offer it. Maybe need a roundup of the best priority pass lounges in the world?
Agree that miracle lounges (of which there are many) are nothing great and the Qatar lounge in BKK is great with good selection of foods that look and taste good.