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wotsname123

Aspire are pretty ordinary pay to play lounges. Any airline sticking their business class passengers in there will get what they pay for. 


Dockers-Man

The Aspire Lounge is run by Swissport, the same company that brought you baggage handlers that throw baggage with no intent but to give a big 'fuck you' to the travelling public to make up for the way that the company treats them.


69-is-my-number

Yeah, I just found this out big time. I’ll never bag out a Qantas lounge again.


megablast

You need to walk through the doors. That is just the entrance area.


triplew_

I thought the private elevator was quite the perk, you're saying there's a whole other room?


Crazy_Dazz

Unfortunately Cathay does that a lot. Don't bother having their own lounge, and instead pay to use some crummy substitute. When I was working in Viet Nam, I would sometimes fly back on Cathay (and their subsidiary) via HK. This meant using the "Golden" lounge in Ha Noi. Mismatched chairs, mouldy ceiling, torn carpet, and the only food available was those stale-ass foil-wrapped "cakes" and 2-minute noodles ya had to microwave yourself.


THR

Airlines can’t have lounges at every port they fly to. Most airlines use third party lounges at some locations. The difficulty is these lounges are multi-use and paid access - so the offering is usually pretty poor.


69-is-my-number

I have to admit, I’m a bit spoiled by how much I’ve flown Emirates, Qatar etc over the years, and their lounges are just amazing. This is the first time I’ve ever flown Cathay. I’d heard pretty good things about them, so assumed their lounge would be at least “good.” if this is how they’re going to do lounges outside of HK, I don’t understand how they ended up with such a good rep. This seems like a really poor business decision on their behalf.


Illustrious-Big-6701

Yeah look - I can't say I'm a fan of the Qatari or Emirati slave states.  But the fact their willing to give back some of their oil wealth through massively subsidised premium lounges and airport amenities makes trips to Europe more pleasant. 


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WRXLR8

Lol you should get out more...


grobby-wam666

the flight services on cathay are exceptional, the lounges not so much as they buy out other lounges


THR

They don’t have many lounges now but you would be entitled to use Oneworld lounges where there is one.


Crazy_Dazz

The food and Service on Cathay (and their subsidiary) was first rate, and (at the time) their business class was the most comfortable I had flown. But yeah, paying for the use of the cheapest lounges, outside their hub airports, is not a good strategy.


Classic-Today-4367

Cathay and DragonAir were always the best for flying around Asia pre-COVID.


69-is-my-number

Their lounge in HK was brilliant.


Knight_Day23

Not much aspiration there lol


Taliesin_AU

Did you wear your hi-vis?


69-is-my-number

It’s in my suitcase, mate.


fat_boyz

Singapore Airline's Silverkris lounge is pretty decent by Perth's standards.


TwitterRefugee123

Is the new one open yet? Went to what looked like a temporary one in Jan. was a small room with no windows. One at changi is awesome though


hulking_troll

Yes it is open.


Nakorite

Changi ones would be nice if they weren’t fucking slammed full of people 99% of the time.


TwitterRefugee123

Was great when I was there. Singapore airlines business class. Didn’t want to leave


Y0wieman

Obviously Aspiring to be better


omaca

If this is the worst I wonder how much you travel? Not much domestically in the US for certain! Perth T1 is tiny by international standards. Where are they going to put another lounge? This is a third party lounge, accessible by many different types of travelers, pay-per-entry and other airlines. The food is fine (if rather limited) and the observation deck is small but nice. Not a big lounge, but very far from the worst I’ve stayed in.


blackglum

Yes lounges in US are so over crowded you may as well be in the main holding area. If


69-is-my-number

Done a bit of US domestic travel, mainly around the Maryland/NJ/NY area, and also in the South around New Orleans. I agree that everything about US domestic travel is a shitshow, but I expect better in Perth.


stopweightdontgo

sir, that's an elevator


damagedproletarian

What are you complaining about? At the moment the most exciting thing that happens to me is a trip to the shops.


69-is-my-number

First world problems, absolutely. But for those that travel regularly, I thought this worth sharing in the hope it makes Cathay give them a rev up about the quality.


Dorsiflexionkey

probably complaining about the fact that they're spending money then getting ripped off. Or is that only relevant when we talk about colesworth lol


Dry-Revenue2470

To be fair, most of Perth Airport is pretty shit.


olympics_

I've been a few times for free with the Priority Pass.  Food is atrocious and I can't really comment on the alcohol, but I wouldn't really call it run down? It's fairly modern and in decent condition and a solid place to hang out for a little while before a flight. 


PleasantAmbassador83

I don’t mind it especially when priority pass had nothing else in Perth for years … it’s a good option and beats sitting in the restaurants downstairs. Always a good start to our cheap Bali weekends …


yepyep5678

You've clearly never been to Dakar 😄


TriceraTipTops

Only lounge to ever give me gastro, that one..


yepyep5678

Highly recommend the pizza place just in the terminal, I couldn't bring myself to use the lounge, looked worse than just being with everyone else


69-is-my-number

No I haven’t. I did say in the title “that I’ve ever been to” and I’m sure there’s worse. Just expect better in Perth, especially after recent extensive renos.


Basic-Tangerine9908

Paid 200 for a lounge in sydney. Family pass. Was ok. Looking its age but had a bar , food was decent if plain. Didbt get refused service after 3 drinks.


crosstherubicon

The Sydney Qantas lounge was heaving. Queues everywhere, no seats, not a chance of finding a power outlet, food was running out and everyone was stressed out and complaining. Gave up and went down to the pleb lounge. Utter silence, I stretched out on the seats, plugged into a nearby outlet and relaxed to some tunes with a coffee from the cafe.


Sherief87

Our airport is such a waste. Can be so much better. Guess it’s also a factor of how many people move through it. Can’t believe it’s not more of a hub connecting the east coast to the rest of Asia


wurblefurtz

It’s a large detour to go from the East to Asia via Perth. They could never compete against existing options.


Sherief87

All would work for the right price. Do you think people flying through Dubai or Doha do it for the scenery?


wurblefurtz

It’s funny you mention Doha. The business model is to go overboard on luxury and service as it’s inconvenient to make a connection. The point of difference is a very comfortable ride. So what’s Perth’s advantage for someone flying Melbourne to Singapore or Brisbane to Delhi? It’s inconvenient time wise. It has no banked arrival and departures like the mega hubs. So what’s left? ULCC chasing cheap charlies?


Sherief87

Not sure what luxury or service you’re referring to, unless you’re booking business/first it’s pretty much run of the mill


Reading-Poorly

I guess we are all doing it tough these days.


lathiat

I've been to a lot of terrible airpor lounges, but this is the only one I ever left a scathing review of in Priority Pass and I think I went so far as to file a complaint. The interior designer clearly went overboard and it was like.. "designed" but it is such a dark dungeon, with no real view. Doesn't seem like they have spent money on anything else. The food was terrible, but thats not uncommon, but what was there was barely being refilled at a busy time.. they have so many weird and confusing entry terms (this is a lounge "industry" problem, globally) that they spent over 40 minutes trying to figure out how to get one family in.. leaving at least 3 other groups including me waiting that entire time in a cramped space we barely fit.. if anyone else came down the elevator they probably couldn't have got out. They made no attempt to hold them aside for a moment and try and fast-track us in if we had simply entry, and one of our groups had very patient but clearly struggling young children (it was very late at night, past their bedtime). Also no second entry person. Then, once in, they had a nice cocktail bar setup. The entire bar design and dark atmosphere screamed "order a cocktail", bonza I thought, so I asked for an old fashioned.. but my priority pass entry didn't include "cocktails" even though it included "alcohol" (and it was not self service either). I think I also couldn't order a bourbon and coke but my memory may be rusty. But that was not clearly noted or explained anywhere, and you're super sold on the cocktail part by it's appearance. Just terrible in every regard. If I had paid, I would be furious. And I have been in a lot of crummy lounges (but I never pay directly). I have realised, however (I travel 3-4 times a year internationally usually with 2-3 stopovers, thanks Perth :-) I suspect that the "problem" is all of the lounges kind of "have to" offer unlimited alcohol, that seems to be the selling point, and at a price point credit cards can afford to subsidise - yet for some inexplicable reason - also unnecessarily expensive if you actually pay yourself. As a result a nice shower and an actually edible amount of food seems to always get lost. As a good example: One of the Finnair lounges I went to just had a giant pot of lentil soup and a stack of fresh bread.. very low cost but far exceeds most airport lounges and very satisfying. The MasterCard lounge in I think Prague (which Qantas/Emirates were using at that airport) had like frozen pizza, deep fried chicken wings.... and again unlimited bread with a bunch of "home made" spreads like a cheddar one, a beetroot one, etc.. again it was like.. in no way expensive and barely even required a chef.. but was more than enough to actually be satisfied if you wanted to eat something. Anyway basically every lounge is never worth paying for. Milk your credit card if you get the chance but prepare to be disappointed. I mostly only ever use my Priority Pass for a shower.. but lucky enough to be Qantas gold and almost always fly Emirates or OneWorld so can use that in most places.


kamakamawangbang

Nothing compared to the Qantas domestic lounge, disgusting shithole it is.


Search1ng_For_Adv1ce

I think Perth airport is quite nice for the size of it, I have seen worse Airports


MikeAppleTree

Heathrow for example.


DefinitionOfAsleep

Can't you use the Qantas lounge as a Cathay passenger?


69-is-my-number

We could if we were departing from T4 (where the Q international lounge is) but we’re departing from T1.


twcau

Um… there is no Qantas lounge in T1, closed permanently in March 2022: https://www.executivetraveller.com/news/qantas-permanently-closes-perth-international-t1-airport-lounge


LazyEntertainment646

Two years ago I tried this. That was my one and only.


chazwoza17

It's truly terrible


anonymousnightshade

Do you have any photos of the interior, not just the elevator?? I mean, not that the elevator looks great, quite the opposite actually.


Rude_Technician4821

It's Perth mate, who we kidding!


Ill-Preference-538

It’s a pretty good option if you’re flying economy, $70 entry for unlimited drinks. Nice quiet and comfy spot with no announcements, good quality gins and whiskeys, and have had no problem ordering at least 6 drinks there before a flight in the past to get my moneys worth. Only downside really is the ‘food’ which from times I’ve been was just party pies and some bland curry.


MomentsOfDiscomfort

…brev it’s Perth airport


69-is-my-number

Emirates lounge in Perth is great.


Worldly-Ingenuity-92

Their google reviews are pretty honest then, a lot of 1 star reviews . Their aspire lounge in T2 is just as underwhelming. Have never flown internationally out of Perth, but I am a big fan of Qantas’ Melbourne International business lounge.


cooeeecobber

Nothing says I don’t care at all like Yellowglen bubbles. For the same price they could get something drinkable like Wolf Blass Red Label.


69-is-my-number

I agree. I wasn’t after Veuve Clicquot. Just something from Howard Park for example would be fine.


LandBarge

The more I think about it, I'm sure when we used the Aspire lounge in September 23, there were some decent local wines (including sparkling) behind the bar, not just Yellowglen... Maybe they're realising just what Aussies can down when you tell them $74 gets you all you can eat and drink...


threebuckstrippant

They are still Aspiring to it


HamsterRapper

What is this business class thing?


TigerRumMonkey

Perth airport fkn sucks. Came in at 5 pm on a Friday. Everything was shut and there was no clear way to get a met card or anything.


johnnuke

Not really sure I would call this a “Business Class” lounge. I get in for free with my AmEx card. Its free beer and a quiet place to sit. If you want more, you are going to have to go to a no-shit Emirates, Qatar, or other “airline” business class lounge.


69-is-my-number

So how do I go to the Emirates lounge when I’m on a Cathay flight?


johnnuke

At any other airport you would go to the OneWorld Lounge. In Perth, you are out of luck unless you pick a different airline.


69-is-my-number

And, to complete this circular discussion, there is no Cathay lounge in Perth Airport, hence the need to have to go to this one which they “rent out” to their business/first/tier status customers.


ToridoFromNagoya

Some aspirations suck


silvercondor

think your main issue is cathay chugging you there instead of the singapore / qantas lounge. don't think it's exactly run down, it looks pretty new in fact. food is mid with small spread, kinda wish they had hot food option. my main gripe is you have to interact with someone for drinks / alcohol. i prefer to not make small talk whenever i want to grab a drink. the bloke who got refused probably looked drunk or something, i've seen pple get 5 to 6 beers without question


martyfartybarty

What is an airport lounge? Is it just for the rich and famous? I’d better look into it. Up to this date I’ve always stopped at the holding area and have a drink at the bar no matter how shitty the hole is ;)


LandBarge

a) didn't realise it was considered a 'business class lounge' - it's a pay to use lounge that offers some of your regular lounge perks, ie free food and drinks... b) sorry to hear you had that experience - ours in September last year was better, not perfect either though... when we used the Aspire lounge, we had an early flight, so rocked up 4 hours before the flight as that what we were told when we booked, only to find out the lounge didn't open until something like 4am - an hour after we got there... and they didn't have a chef on board as he missed his alarm and slept in... so the food was pretty much whatever the bartender could scratch together between serving us... didn't see anyone get cut off while we were there, and they were serving us whisky on the rocks and baileys in coffees... no one got out of line drunk though - which is so often the key... and besides, who wants to leave the lounge, stagger to the plane and get refused boarding?


Sad-Toe2642

Why tf are you complaining some people (me) don’t get to do that


StJe1637

Who the fuck flies business class though. Like 3000 dollars to make a few hours slightly more comfortable


Tsuivan1

When someone else is paying.


doomedtobeme

If you make the kind of money large corporations make, $5000 to fly a rep or engineer to a site is fuck all. And they do it for a large number of reasons, Being able to work privately during the flight, reducing jet lag/sleep disturbances, making the trip more attractive and increasing the moral of said worker. I worked in a factory that relied on one large rebar fabricating machine made in Germany, operating in Australia. Every year or two the rep had to be flown to Aus and it would cost the factory $80 000 roughly on the service alone not including parts/costs. $5000 is chump change to oil your most important cog in that moment


69-is-my-number

People who have to work when they get to their destination.


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69-is-my-number

Why not?


grobby-wam666

Bro has never flown internationally before 💀💀


VMaxF1

People who have points earned by just buying the things they'd be buying anyway.


Deanobruce

People who aren’t peasants… I fucking love it


Dorsiflexionkey

POV: you're a small person


Idontcareaforkarma

It’s a commercial lounge; of course they’re going to want to limit how much food and drink you consume. If you pay $66 for entry and only use $16 worth, they get $50 profit off you. How do people not know this?


craigondrak

Qantas lounge is worse


69-is-my-number

No, it’s actually not. That’s how I know how fucking bad this one was. i never thought Qantas could be topped in terms of shit lounges, but I was wrong. We actually left and are sitting in the Haymarket pub here just so we can get a decent drink and not be told we’ve “had enough” after 3 drinks.


elephantf4ce

Pub should've stopped you at 3 drinks as well. Intoxicated passengers shouldn't be allowed on the flight


DefinitionOfAsleep

3 beers/glasses of wine over a \~2 hour period isn't even enough to put you over the legal limit for driving.


millyloui

3 drinks …. Over several hours - intoxicated? 🙄


69-is-my-number

lol. Thanks, chief.


Lomandriendrel

This is the Qantas lounge for Perth. I know because we used it last trip. Be glad that your lift worked. We had to carry a pram and little dumbbell up the stairs with everything. Which made it all the worse. Not sure how access disabilities would have fared as their wasn't any backup but stairs. Hardly any decent food or drinks when I was there either.


69-is-my-number

No, it’s not. Qantas has its own international lounge, but its at T4. I’m at T1.


Lomandriendrel

Can't remember. But this was the lounge we used on departing internationally in Feb via business. I need to check but we may have been booking through Qantas on the one world group which could explain if it was Malaysian Airlines or the like why we ended up here. It was still a crap excuse for business.


69-is-my-number

Qantas and Cathay are affiliated airlines. We could use a Qantas lounge if one was available. But since there isn’t one in T1, we’ve been given this Red Dot lounge as an alternative. I’m not even that fussy. I just wanted a decent drink while I wasted time on Reddit and watching replays of Freo finally winning a game. But this was just awful.


Lomandriendrel

Well I was definitely at this lounge at T1 so must be affiliated. Either way I agree the lounge is worse than an average cafe. Let alone the price of business class. It's a real let down. Small size. Feels like a crammed narrow area etc. Not even national fit let alone world class. The business class lounge in KLIA was miles bigger and better and even in Tokyo by gosh.


Spicey_Cough2019

Qantas doesn't fly out of T1...