While the demand for seats on Air New Zealand flights between Auckland and Bali is obviously high, there’s no Koru Lounge at Ngurah Rai International Airport. Koru Club members have two options at this Bali airport: T/G Lounge or Premier Lounge.
Neither lounge seemed to have great online reviews with poor Wi-Fi and overcrowding being the main points of concern. You can pay for entry to the T/G Lounge and both are Priority Pass lounges which means a heap of members including anyone with the right credit card can get in.
I knew the lounges were upstairs after security and could see people sitting with drinks upstairs above the duty free shops but found that the airport signage wasn’t at all clear as to how to get there. Eventually I found the stairs and lift and headed up.
I went to the T/G Lounge simply because it was the first of the two I came to and presented my Koru Club Card and Boarding Pass to a staff member who asked whether I’d booked.
I hadn’t, but that didn’t seem to be a problem.
After recording my details she handed me a tiny square with the Wi-Fi Code (Login: guest Password: tg2018) and told me I’d need to show it at the bar when ordering drinks.
T/G Lounge Denpasar Bali Airport
The T/G Lounge has mixed seating, some areas certainly offer more comfort than others. On the plus side there are plenty of appliance charging ports available wherever you choose to sit (or are able to sit – the place was pretty busy!) and the plant walls are a really nice touch inside an airport terminal devoid of both plants and landscape views.
Apparently somewhere in the lounge there are also free 15 minute foot massages on offer but I did not find it.
Having read that lounge guests are entitled to three complimentary alcoholic beverages I was well confused by the sign at the bar with prices on it.
“Do you have to pay for drinks here?” I asked of the man behind the bar.
“Yes, those are the prices.” he confirmed.
I helped myself to some food and watched others for a bit (none of whom were handing over any money) before heading to the bar and simply asking another staff member for a white wine. I could see in the mirrored surface behind the bar that she squatted down and filled a glass from a cask! The priced list must be for the good stuff.
Contrary to the advice I was given at the entrance I didn’t need to show my Wi-Fi password to get a drink and no one marked anything off to ensure I was limited to the maximum of three.
In terms of food there was a cabinet of steamed buns which I’d not seen in a airport lounge before, otherwise the rest of the buffet was as you’d expect: salads, pasta, soup, hot chips, fruit and a couple of hot options, none of which were vegetarian.
There was a board displaying a list of meal items which supposedly could be made at the live kitchen (as Air New Zealand have in their larger Koru lounges) but the chef was nowhere to be seen whenever I was up there.
The selection of doughnuts was epic and there was a really good range of soft drinks so I probably consumed more sugar than I needed to before an overnight flight.
The internet reviews were certainly right about a few things – the Wi-Fi wasn’t strong enough to download anything from Netflix but coped with the basics, and the bathrooms desperately need an update.
Value for money is definitely low so if you’re not eligible for free access to the T/G lounge or Premier Lounge I’d recommend spending the money one off lounge entry would cost (NZ $39 NZ/USD $25) on food and in nice a restaurant downstairs at Bali Airport instead.
