My flight back to London from Shanghai is with Virgin Atlantic. Due to the Russian airspace ban non-Chinese airlines must add a few hours to their travel time, but Virgin’s upper class award cost still tips the balance heavily.
Virgin used to be at Pudong’s Terminal 2, but relocated to Terminal 1 in October 2023. This might be related to them joining Skyteam, although China Eastern operates from both terminals as Pudong is one of their most important hubs.
Virgin, as well as many other airlines, had a contract with the V77 Lounge at T2. This switched to the V36 Business Class Lounge with the terminal relocation, which is also a China Eastern & Plaza Premium lounge. You could gain entry through Amex Platinum or Priority Pass, but interestingly not with Dragonpass.
The invitation vouchers:
After security check, head upstairs and the lounge is in front you. There are seven partner airlines on their banner but Virgin hasn’t been added yet.
It’s quite a lot of space, and you can barely see the end of the lounge.
There are a few more tables and seats on the side.
If you are looking to charge your device, go for these long desks by the wall.
The kitchen and buffet area is at the innermost.
It’s 9am in the morning and you can expect the following for your breakfast:
- Spaghetti Bolognese
- Mushrooms in butter
- Seasoned bean curd
- Boiled eggs
- Chicken soup
And the noodle station of course, which is said to be China Eastern’s signature offering in every branded lounge.
And there’s more room on the upper floor.
In sheer contrast with the ground floor, there’s barely anyone here and it’s absolutely tranquil. Downside is there’s no hot food here either, but only snacks and beverages.
Somehow it feels even more “old-cadre” than downstairs. The shower rooms:
And surprisingly, four massage chairs:
Conditions of the massage chairs though are so desperate that they make the seats on London tubes look good. The leather is very worn, and I wonder if they clean it at all. I wouldn’t want to rub my bare skin against it, but there are obviously people who don’t mind.
In summary, China Eastern’s V36 Lounge is spacious with decent food options. If you have Priority Pass however, go to the V39 Lounge instead, which is their First Class counterpart. Note that “business class” and “first class” are often used interchangeably in China’s aviation so the lounge quality isn’t fundamentally different, but from what I understand the V39 Lounge tends to be a lot quieter with slightly better service.
Recent Comments