I flew into Seoul on Virgin Atlantic’s new route, spent three days exploring, and then headed back to China on China Eastern Airlines. Thought I’d do a quick write-up of the final day: lounges, flight, and hotel all in one.
I departed from T1 at Incheon International Airport. I’d seen plenty of dramatic posts on Xiaohongshu claiming even arriving three hours early wasn’t enough. In reality, it was fine. Business class check-in (on China Eastern) had no queue, and since I didn’t buy anything, there was no need for tax refunds. The most time-consuming part was security: about a 30-minute wait, and no fast track either.
Time wasn’t super generous, but I still had a quick wander, picked up a pair of Gentle Monster sunglasses, and checked out a couple of lounges. Didn’t expect the duty-free selection at Incheon to be this extensive, which was genuinely great for browsing. In hindsight, I should’ve arrived earlier (even though I’m not much of a shopper anyway).
With SkyTeam status plus Priority Pass, there are plenty of lounge options in T1. First, rule out China Eastern – surprisingly, they do have their own lounge here, located after taking the train, but it’s reportedly very poor, basically just instant noodles, so not worth your time.
You can instead visit the Korean Air lounge, which is right after security and immigration.
The space isn’t large, but the design is quite stylish, and it was almost empty.
Food-wise, though, it’s pretty basic, but still better than just China Eastern’s instant noodles.
If I remember correctly, all Korean Air flights depart from T2, so this lounge mainly (only) serves partner airlines, which probably explains the more modest offering. Right opposite is the oneworld alliance lounge, with a futuristic design that looks identical to the one in Amsterdam.
That said, the best-reviewed lounge here is Matina, which partners with Priority Pass and DragonPass etc. The consensus is simple: the food is excellent, so much so that some people even queue before it opens.
I went to take a look: no queue at the time, but it was quite crowded.
The food selection was indeed impressive, especially considering it was only around 10am. Hot options included:
- Stir fried egg noodles
- Mediterranean-style grilled fish
- Sweet and sour chicken
- Meatball
- Scrambled eggs
- Assorted fried food
Plus an entire fridge of desserts and various ice creams. My takeaway: eat at Matina first, then if you’re not shopping, move to the Korean Air (or another quieter lounge) to relax.
Soon enough, it was time to board my flight to Nanjing. For some reason China Eastern often offers many excellent fares departing from South Korea. My one-way ticket in business class cost less than £150.
I’ve flown China Eastern’s A321 business class recliner quite a few times now, nothing particularly new here.
Slippers are provided, which seems to be a common feature among Chinese carriers.
The entertainment system is fairly limited.
The drinks menu looked extensive on paper, but the crew said many items weren’t actually available.
For the main course, the choice was pork noodles or seafood rice. The former was okay, and as for the latter – I struggled to find any actual seafood in it.
As for service – how should I put it? It felt a bit overenthusiastic, to the point of being slightly uncomfortable. Before landing, I was handed a feedback card and politely asked to fill it in.
It seemed like I was the only one given one – was that because I’m a SkyTeam Elite Plus?
One interesting detail: a crew member was using a tablet to help foreign passengers fill out arrival information. Turns out China now offers electronic arrival cards as well, which is quite convenient.
After landing in Nanjing, I stayed one night to catch up with friends. Since I needed to be near the South Railway Station and Jiulonghu area, I chose the Marriott Hotel Nanjing South.
Overall, it was perfectly solid. Breakfast was quite good (didn’t check out the lounge), and I finally managed to use one of my CITIC free night vouchers.
Oh, and one last thing: I accidentally left a charging cable on the plane. China Eastern proactively called me about it, and the airport handled it very efficiently. It was couriered back to me the next day, cash on delivery. That definitely deserves a mention.
Brill review. Thanks.