Starlux now has two lounges in Taipei and I visited both of them ahead of my flight to Bangkok. While both Galactic Lounges are excellent in their own away, they really felt like two different worlds.
Starlux Lounges TPE – Which Is Better?
After a big breakfast at the W Hotel in Taipei, I returned to Taoyuan International Airport, again opting to take the nonstop bus. The rain had passed (though it was still very cloudy) and the journey back to the airport at 9:45 am was smooth, quick (about an hour), and uneventful.
After checking in for my Starlux flight, I checked out the Starlux Galactic Lounge in Terminal 1. As Starlux describes it:
The STARLUX airlines lounge is designed to be both elegant and fashionable. Upon entering, our guests are welcomed by our Polaris logo. It is our hope that every one of our passengers can fully relax in this comfortable and luxurious environment before starting their journey.
Polaris? Don’t tell United!
This is a small lounge next to the China Airlines Lounge, but I had it all to myself and thought it was a very nice space. In addition to a small buffet (I could not help myself and enjoyed a beet salad), there was an a la carte menu. I can imagine this place filling up, but only one other passenger showed up during my visit.
Terminals 1 and 2 are connected airside at TPE and I walked over to the carrier’s second and larger Galactic Lounge in Terminal 2, which was close to where my flight was departing from. This had a more space station theme and was larger, with a small buffet (including a massive salad bar) and an a la carte menu.
Downstairs, there was more seating and restrooms, plus shower suites.
Which lounge did I like better? Hard to say…I guess I liked the bright colors of the T2 lounge and also feel like this lounge must handle crowds better. But both lounges are charming in their own way and if you are hungry, I don’t think you can go wrong at either lounge.
But both are nice and had I been hungry, the menu of food and beverages available would have satisfied that hunger.
I’ll share more details and photos about these lounges in my full review, but now it’s onto Bangkok on Airbus A321…
Have you been to both Starlux TPE lounges? Which one did you prefer?
I’m sharing about my whirlwind trip through Asia.
“It was the best of (lounges); it was the worst of (lounges).”
@1990 – EVA has the worst lounge in TPE. For such an amazing airline it’s weird how bad their business class lounge in TPE actually is. My wife and I went to a nearby lounge with entry through Amex Platinum and were much happier. Nice to read that Starlux seems to do things properly.
I second that. That lounge is really the pits.
Now, that is a beautiful salad bar. Why US airlines can’t do something like that on their lounges?
Both lounges are a solid 6 out of 10 when compared to the other two airline lounges in TPE. They’re just good enough, which is terrible compared to the onboard experience or the experience they advertise. First world problem on an award ticket? Definitely.
I mean, the other two airline lounges aren’t that great, to be honest.
I like the second one better, I’m a sucker for space-station-themed anything! zit Kinda reminds me of the Space 220 restaurant at Disney World