With Singapore being a major business and financial hub, it’s no surprise to find an Emirates Lounge at Changi Airport. Serving multiple daily flights to Dubai and beyond, it welcomes a mix of premium cabin passengers and elite frequent flyers.

In fact, many Qantas passengers also make the cut – and that’s exactly how I stepped inside.

Location

Once you’re gliding your way through Terminal 1, wheel your cabin bag along the airport’s signature patterned carpets towards gate C1. You’ll find Singapore’s Emirates Lounge up the nearby escalator and to your left.

It’s an enviable location, being just a short walk from the terminal’s central immigration departure point. But more excitingly, the lounge enjoys some fantastic airfield views – and not just of the nearby gates. Here, you can relax and sip Champagne with a clear view of runway 02L/20R.

I’m here not even five minutes and I’ve already spotted an airline touching down that we don’t get in Australia: Turkish Airlines. It’s a nice reminder that international flying is getting back to how things were before ‘the big pandemic pause’.

Opening hours here are shaped to suit Emirates’ flights to Dubai. This currently sees the lounge welcoming travellers from 7:10 am to 10:10 am each day prior to EK349. The lounge then reopens at 5 pm ahead of EK355, and remains in action until 12:30 am to match with EK353, which departs just after midnight.

In practical terms, these opening hours also align well with most Qantas flights to both Australia and London – but more on that later.

Lounge layout and seating

The bulk of Singapore’s Emirates Lounge wraps itself around an L-shaped footprint. Sometimes, layouts like this can foster sections that prove really busy – close to the entrance, most commonly – contrasted by quieter pockets towards the back. But the layout here cleverly avoids this, and actually helps travellers experience the lounge in full.

Once you’ve passed reception, the first group of seats are marked as a family zone. This encourages you to keep walking, at which point, you’re drawn to those terrific runway views. As you meander towards them, the adjacent part of the ‘L’ reveals itself, home to the dining area and buffet. Without even trying, you’ve taken the full tour.

Those who fly with Emirates regularly will know that outside of Dubai, the airline’s lounges typically fall into one of two categories. Some are ‘renovated and modern’, while others could endearingly be called ‘not renovated yet’. In Singapore, the Emirates Lounge is gleefully the former.

In a nod to the sands of the Arabian Desert, cream-coloured leather makes a frequent appearance throughout the lounge. That’s contrasted by other chairs with more of a tan tint. They’re adorned with red cushions, reflecting Emirates’ key corporate shade.

Blue ocean-coloured carpet makes for a smooth contrast between the hues of the land and the Persian Gulf, against which Dubai resides. It’s subtle, but it all comes together as being distinctly ‘Emirates’. Bursts of greenery also appear but are at a premium – again taking a leaf from the UAE, so to speak.

Food and beverage in the Emirates Lounge, Singapore

Outside of Dubai, Emirates’ lounges operate as something of a hybrid. That is, they cater for Business Class and First Class – and also for both Gold and Platinum frequent flyers – in a single space.

But regardless of your seat number or status, the service in Singapore’s Emirates Lounge remains the same for every guest. (No, there’s no ‘secret Champagne’ if you’re flying Emirates First Class from Singapore – I’ve done that research before!)

What you’ll find is a comprehensive buffet and self-serve bar, designed to please a wide variety of tastes and preferences. I stop by a little after 5 pm, when the lounge reopens for the evening, and find everything from light snacks through to substantial mains and sweets for dessert.