Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport is a sprawling complex that used to house nine premium lounges of its resident carrier, Thai Airways. Most of those spaces are shut now, sadly. But just before COVID, Thai Airways opened the biggest of them all – the Royal Orchid Prestige Lounge in Concourse D.

This is now the catch-all lounge that most Thai Airways lounge-worthy passengers will gravitate towards, as it’s straight after immigration and security. With room for 463 travellers and a footprint of over 2,000 square metres, there’s certainly plenty of room for everyone.

Here’s what it’s like at Thai Airways’ current flagship lounge in Bangkok.

Lounge location and details

The Royal Orchid Prestige Lounge is situated straight after Fast Track security. If you check in at the dedicated premium counters and make your way through the Fast Track lane, you’ll find the entrance to the lounge directly ahead of you, down the escalator.

But for those who have to make do with the normal lanes or who want to fill up their cabin bags with a bit more shopping first, you can find the main entrance opposite Gate D4.

Nearby is the Royal Silk Lounge on Concourse D, which is an older Business Class lounge. That’s also open for business, but not the adjacent Royal First lounge for First Class passengers. Also closed, sadly, is the Royal Orchid Spa – a relic from Thai Airways in its heyday, where Business and First Class passengers could enjoy spa treatments before their flight.

Instead, the newer Royal Orchid Prestige lounge has separate wings for Business and First Class passengers. It’s open from 5:00 am to 2:00 am, daily.

Lounge layout and seating

As I’m flying in Business Class, I’m directed to the larger east zone, which is home to Royal Silk Class passengers and those with Star Alliance Gold equivalent status. It’s one long room that seemingly goes on forever, but is divided into different areas through partitions.

I do love the use of greenery, which provides a pleasing burst of colour against Thai Airways’ typical refined palette. Floor-to-ceiling windows along the whole side of the lounge lets in plenty of light from the terminal, though it’s too early in the morning for me to see anything. It’s a modern, new look that suits Thai Airways.

The majority of the seats are your typical lounge chairs, separated by a small table, lamp and charging ports. But there are bar tables and dining tables near the kitchen, if you prefer.

A quick lounge tour

Starting from the main entrance and turning right, the first major area is the main dining room. This area got quite busy towards 7:00 am, so I’d recommend venturing further down if you prefer some quiet in the morning. Moving along, I spot the entrance to the bathrooms on the left and a locked VIP room on the right.

It gets quieter as I trundle towards the satellite dining area and the bar. I find it a bit strange that the staffed bar is so far away from the main kitchen, but since there’s barista-made coffee here (and cocktails later in the day), it’s sure to be worth the walk.

Finally, right at the end of the lounge is a secondary entrance where you have ended up if you took the escalator down from the Fast Track lane. At least the bar is the first thing you see when you enter like a rock star.

Food and beverage

Buffet and made-to-order dining

As someone who finds basic breakfasts to be rather boring, I’m happy to say that the Thai Airways Royal Orchid Prestige lounge puts out a rather decent spread in the morning. I predominantly tuck into Asian-inspired delights such as steamed dumplings and buns, fresh-cut fruits and vibrant salads, fried rice, sauteed mushrooms, spring rolls, chicken wings and more.