- Introduction: A Quick Trip To Japan & Korea
- Review: Alaska First Class Boeing 737 MAX (FLL-SEA)
- Review: Fairmont Vancouver Airport (YVR)
- Review: SkyTeam Lounge Vancouver Airport (YVR)
- Review: Korean Air Business Class Boeing 787-10 (YVR-ICN)
- Review: Grand Hyatt Incheon Airport (ICN)
- Review: Korean Air Prestige Business Lounge Seoul Incheon Airport (ICN)
- Review: Korean Air Business Class Airbus A321neo (ICN-CTS)
- Review: Japan Airlines Diamond Premier Lounge Sapporo Airport (CTS)
For the next portion of my quick trip to Japan & Korea, it was time to fly Japan Airlines’ Airbus A350-900 first class on the short domestic flight from Sapporo (CTS) to Tokyo (HND). OMG, flying within Japan is an absolutely civilized delight, and that already starts on the ground.
Prior to my flight, I had the chance to check out the Japan Airlines domestic lounge situation at New Chitose Airport, in Sapporo. Domestically, Japan Airlines has two types of lounges:
- Diamond Premier Lounges, which are for domestic first class passengers, and oneworld Emerald members
- Sakura Lounges, which are for oneworld Sapphire members; note that “Class J,” as it’s called, doesn’t offer lounge access, as it’s really more like premium economy than business class
In this post, I’ll be reviewing the Diamond Premier Lounge at the airport. While obviously not to the level of the Japan Airlines First Lounge Haneda (for international flights), I found this lounge to be such a functional and lovely space, and had a great visit. Everything in Japan just hits different.
In this post:
Japan Airlines Lounge Sapporo location
The Japan Airlines premium ground experience in Sapporo is pretty seamless. The domestic terminal is fully separate from the international terminal. The standard security queue didn’t look half bad…
…however, there’s a separate entrance for those who have lounge access. It basically looks like a lounge entrance, but as soon as you enter, you go through a private security screening process, which is super civilized.
Once through security, there’s an escalator, elevator, and stairs, leading up a level, which is where the lounge is located.
Then once you’re at the lounge entrance, there’s a reception desk, with the Diamond Premier Lounge to the right, and the Sakura Lounge to the left.
Getting into the lounge is essentially a self-service operation, as the counter has a tablet where you scan your boarding pass. There’s no gate or anything you have to go through, but rather the honor system is used, since this is Japan.
Then when it’s time to fly, you just go down a level, and then go in the opposite direction of the security check, and then you’ll find yourself in the airside domestic terminal.
Japan Airlines Lounge Sapporo hours
The Japan Airlines Diamond Premier Lounge Sapporo is open daily from 6:30AM, until the last departure of the night.
Japan Airlines Lounge Sapporo entry requirements
The Japan Airlines Diamond Premier Lounge Sapporo is open to same-day Japan Airlines first class passengers, as well as oneworld Emerald members, regardless of the cabin they’re traveling in. In both situations, passengers can bring up to one guest on a complimentary basis.
Let me emphasize that Japan Airlines’ domestic first class is often very reasonably priced, sometimes around $200 one-way, so it’s pretty cool that these tickets include access to a solid lounge. On top of that, Japan Airlines sells cheap upgrades on the day of departure, and upgraded tickets get you lounge access as well.
Japan Airlines Lounge Sapporo seating & layout
The Japan Airlines Diamond Premier Lounge Sapporo is a pretty intimate space, and is basically a rectangular room with some partitions between three distinct zones. Below is a map of the entire lounge space, but as you can see, roughly half of the footprint is dedicated to the Sakura Lounge (which is the less premium lounge).
When you enter the lounge, the largest part of the space is to the right.
There are a variety of seating setups here, ranging from chairs arranged in rows facing one another, to semi-private chairs with side tables, to chairs with tables in front of them.
The largest part of the lounge is a room in the very back, which has two main “walkways.” In the center, there are rows of chairs with their backs to one another, looking either outside or toward the interior of the lounge.
Along the interior of the lounge is a long leather bench with some movable side tables.
The other side has a communal table along the windows, which is probably the best place to get some work done.
The lounge has another room back toward the entrance and by the buffet, mostly with longer benches.
The lounge had a few other amenities and areas. There are two individual rooms with massage chairs, where I spent quite a bit of time.
There’s also a small business center area, with a printer.
Since this is Japan, the lounge also has some individual rooms with doors, where you can take phone calls (my fellow Miami residents would be very confused by this — why use this rather than just taking the call on speakerphone at your seat?!).
The lounge also has lockers, should you want to store your bags during your visit.
Then the lounge has a smoking room, for those who indulge.
Probably my favorite part of the lounge, though, is the views. The lounge has stunning views of the gate area and the runway in the distance. I loved watching all the Japan Airlines A350-900 action at the airport.
It’s amazing how many flights there are per day between Sapporo and Tokyo. Japan Airlines alone often operates well over 15 daily flights, with some even being just 10 minutes apart.
Japan Airlines Lounge Sapporo food & drinks
The Japan Airlines Diamond Premier Lounge Sapporo has a limited but high quality selection of food and drinks. As you’d expect, it’s not as impressive as an international lounge, but that makes perfect sense.
Everything was available from a self-serve buffet inside the entrance to the lounge and to the left.
There seemed to be much more of a focus on drinks than food. During my afternoon and evening visit, the lounge was mostly full of Japanese businessmen in suits who were ready to have a couple of drinks. The lounge has a variety of alcohol, ranging from red and white wine, to sake, to beer. There were also soft drinks, coffee, and tea.
The food selection included a couple of types of snack mix, rice snacks, mochi, soup, and more.
Definitely don’t come to the lounge hungry, but I found the snacks to be tasty.
Japan Airlines Lounge Sapporo bathrooms
The Japan Airlines Diamond Premier Lounge Sapporo has bathrooms, which I found to be spotlessly clean. The men’s room has three sinks, three urinals, and three stalls (with a bidet feature, natch), all of which were very well maintained.
The lounge doesn’t have shower suites, which isn’t surprising, since this is exclusively a domestic lounge.
Bottom line
The Japan Airlines Diamond Premier Lounge Sapporo is lovely space. Of course context is important — this lounge is specifically for domestic first class passengers (and those tickets aren’t necessarily expensive), so this isn’t as over-the-top as many international lounges.
Despite that, what a pleasant facility. I loved the private security channel for those with lounge access, plus the vibe of the lounge and the views. The lounge also has a solid selection of drinks, plus a basic selection of food.
I wouldn’t necessarily spend way more time here than you have to, but it’s not a bad place to kill some time. I had around four hours in the lounge (since I had just arrived in Korean Air’s A321neo business class from Incheon), and I found it to be a great base from which to work.
What’s your take on the Japan Airlines Diamond Premier Lounge Sapporo?
The "honor system" entry wouldn't work anywhere else in the world, where lounge receptionists seem to spend most of their workdays arguing with grifters and wannabes who believe they're entitled to something they're not.
Just you know, anywhere else in the world ≠ the US and Europe.
I absolutely see this working in some other Asian countries.
KLM lounge at AMS has something similar. Obviously there is some underlying check going on, perhaps by someone watching the entrance (as it surely is in JAL lounges), but from the passenger's experience it's the same - you scan your BP, get a green light and walk in. No gate or anything.
I know it's really a silly complaint, but I think the food selection could've been a bit more substantial. Even considering that this is a domestic lounge, the food selection should be better than that in a first class lounge. That being said I don't think the current offering is bad either, though.
Woah. I'll be exactly here in about ten days. Any other intel for nearby hotels/restaurants or downtown Sapporo? Doing major planning today so anything helps and is much appreciated.
Excited to check out ANA A380 biz (Flying Honu!) and some JAL products.
Also, couldn't tell from the pic - were any of the beer dispensers service Sapporo Classic (can only get this beer in Sapporo)?
I went to Sapporo with my family in November for the first time. We really enjoyed it! The Susukino area is the lively area. We also had some of the better meals of this trip there. Tabelog was great for finding restaurants and making reservations. Word of caution: it seems like a lot of restaurants require you to choose course meals when booking through Tabelog, but if you find a place you like you can...
I went to Sapporo with my family in November for the first time. We really enjoyed it! The Susukino area is the lively area. We also had some of the better meals of this trip there. Tabelog was great for finding restaurants and making reservations. Word of caution: it seems like a lot of restaurants require you to choose course meals when booking through Tabelog, but if you find a place you like you can often call and make a reservation without having to pre-select what you're going to eat. Also, don't be scared off by 3 - 4 star ratings. I'm not sure if you're American, but Japanese don't rate things like Americans do on Yelp, etc... 3 stars means very good, 4 starts means amazing, and 5 stars is VERY uncommon.
Crab was high on my list of things to eat, and we ended up going to Hyousetsu No Mon (which also just happened to be about 50 yards from our hotel). It's a collection of private rooms with multi-course meals. The king crab "shabu" was maybe one of the best things I've ever eaten (maybe the best).
We also had Japanese-style Korean BBQ (yakiniku) at a place that I think was called Yakiniku Kiwami which also just happened to be a couple blocks from our hotel.
The Susukino area I guess used to be something of a red light district, so there are remnants of that here and there, but it's nothing crazy. My (70 year old) mom made a comment about a lot of boobs being out in the cold weather. When we figured it out it all made sense and we had a little laugh.
We stayed at the Granbell Hotel Susukino, which was great. Rooms were typical small Japanese rooms, but well-appointed and stylish. Service was predictably very good. Breakfast in the hotel was great as well. Location was great and there's a train station on the block as well as a couple convenience stores.
The train departs from the airport and then it's just one transfer at Sapporo Station to get to Hosuisusukino Station (no elevators, so be prepared to lug your suitcases up the stairs).
It was a nice surprise for all of us to have enjoyed Sapporo as much as we did, and I plan on going back when there's snow on the ground.