My flight from London was scheduled to arrive at 5:20AM, while my flight to Shanghai was scheduled to depart at 7:50AM, so I had a 2hr30min layover.
We seemed to be one of the first arrivals of the morning, and when I showed up at the international transit security checkpoint there weren’t even any staff there. So when the ground staff saw me coming they asked me to wait for a moment so they could get two security personnel to screen me. They showed up quickly, and in the meantime a handful of other passengers got in line behind me (a vast majority of the people on my flight seemed to be terminating their travels in Vietnam).
SGN Airport transit security
Once past security I took the escalator up a level and followed the signage towards the Vietnam Airlines Lotus Lounge, which the airline uses for their business class passengers.
SGN Airport transit security
The terminal was still very quiet, with most shops closed.
SGN Airport terminal
After walking for about a minute I found signage for various lounges.
Vietnam Airlines Lounge signage
The Vietnam Airlines Lotus Lounge is located on level three of the terminal, just across from a Burger King.
Ho Chi Minh City Airport terminal
Vietnam Airlines Lounge entrance
When I first arrived there wasn’t even an employee at the desk, as they just seemed to be setting up for the morning. He showed up within about a minute, and told me there would be a boarding call for my flight.
Vietnam Airlines Lounge reception
Vietnam Airlines Lounge reception
I think I’ve visited just about all the lounges at the airport at this point, and this one was surprisingly nice. It had tons of natural light, and great views of the taxiway and runway. The beautiful sunrise I was witnessing didn’t hurt either.
Vietnam Airlines Lotus Lounge seating
The lounge had a variety of seating options. Along the center of the lounge were rows of dining tables with 2-4 seats each, some communal tables with high-top seating, and just rows of chairs facing one another, separated by coffee tables.
Vietnam Airlines Lotus Lounge seating
Vietnam Airlines Lotus Lounge seating
Along the windows were more rows of seats facing one another.
Vietnam Airlines Lounge seating
There were also some cute seating areas that had four seats each, with a little roof covering them. That really added quite a bit of style to the lounge, in my opinion.
Vietnam Airlines Lounge seating
Vietnam Airlines Lounge seating
In the back corner of the lounge was a business center with some PCs and a printer.
Vietnam Airlines Lounge business center
The lounge was in an “L” shape, and the buffet was along two walls by the interior.
Vietnam Airlines Lounge buffet
Along one side of the buffet were the drinks, which included liquor, beer, wine, soft drinks, juice, a Pepsi soda fountain, and a Nescafe coffee machine. The liquor and wine selection was pretty basic.
Vietnam Airlines Lounge buffet
Vietnam Airlines Lounge alcohol selection
Vietnam Airlines Lounge drink selection
Vietnam Airlines Lounge soda fountain
Vietnam Airlines Lounge coffee machine
As far as the food selection goes, there were both cold and hot options. Cold options included cereal, salad, fresh fruit, pastries, croissants, and cake.
Vietnam Airlines Lounge food selection
Vietnam Airlines Lounge food selection
Vietnam Airlines Lounge food selection
Vietnam Airlines Lounge food selection
I’m not sure what exactly all the hot options were, so I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.
Vietnam Airlines Lounge food selection
Vietnam Airlines Lounge food selection
Vietnam Airlines Lounge food selection
Vietnam Airlines Lounge food selection
Vietnam Airlines Lounge food selection
Vietnam Airlines Lounge food selection
Vietnam Airlines Lounge food selection
The lounge had bathrooms that were basic but clean. There was one shower room located inside the men’s bathroom, which had wall-mounted toiletries and a towel. There was no toilet in the actual shower room.
Vietnam Airlines Lounge bathroom
Vietnam Airlines Lounge shower room
Vietnam Airlines Lounge shower room
I spent about an hour in the lounge using the fast Wi-Fi. Otherwise I just had a cup of (fairly decent) coffee and enjoyed the views of the apron and runway in the distance.
Vietnam Airlines Lounge view
I decided to head towards the direction of my gate at around 6:30AM. My flight was departing from gate 26, which was about a five minute walk from the lounge.
Ho Chi Minh City Airport terminal
As I approached the gate I had a view of the Vietnam Airlines A350 that would be taking me to Shanghai — what a beauty!
Vietnam Airlines A350
The gates at the airport are one level down from the main concourse, so I took the escalator down.
Vietnam Airlines departure gate
Vietnam Airlines departure gate
There weren’t any gate agents at the time, though the two pilots were there, and couldn’t get onto the plane. So they had a seat, made a couple of phone calls, and 10 minutes later were let on the plane.
Vietnam Airlines departure gate
While my boarding pass indicated that boarding would start one hour before departure, in reality boarding started at 7:10AM, 40 minutes before departure.
Vietnam Airlines Lotus Lounge bottom line
I think I’ve visited just about all the international lounges at Ho Chi Minh City Airport at this point, and the Vietnam Airlines one is my favorite. That’s simply a function of the great views and the amount of natural light. The food and drink selection was alright as well.
On top of that I love how easy international to international connections at the airport are. Very few people seem to connect at SGN internationally, so I’ve repeatedly found this to be an easy process. If given the choice, I’d gladly connect here again and spend some time in one of the best airport lounges in this part of the world.
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