Update: These lounges are now closed.
Our long awaited Singapore Airlines First Class trip was about to begin. First up, lounge visits in San Francisco.
We got off the shuttle from the Westin San Francisco Airport at the International terminal. I’ve flown from SFO countless times, but never checked in for an international flight from there. This terminal is quite nice and much more modern than the others. I have not used the newly renovated SFO Terminal 2, which looks much better than the other domestic terminals.
We checked our bags and scuba gear and received our first class boarding passes and an invitation to the Silver Kris lounge. I have visited this lounge before, but this was some time ago, before a renovation and before access was restricted to only Singapore Airlines passengers or Star Gold passengers flying internationally.
Matthew reviewed the Silver Kris Lounge previously, so like my visit here, my commentary will be brief.
When we arrived, the lounge was busy, but nowhere near full. As we relaxed a bit, and had a snack, it got steadily busier. The lounge itself is furnished very well, there is lots of natural light, and decent tarmac views
United’s international and domestic at SFO
Star Alliance wide bodies at the International terminal
For food options, I saw both the breakfast and some lunch options while we were there. Its much better than a typical domestic US airline lounge, but was badly put to shame by other Singapore lounges I experienced on this trip, which I will discuss later.
It was crowded enough I didn’t want to bug people too much with me taking photos while they were milling about. Food items included instant noodles, some fresh fruit, and then later a mix of noodles and fried rice and a few other Asian inspired choices. Drinks were self serve, with a decent alcohol selection, plus some juices, sodas, an espresso machine, and a selection of teas.
This photo was just after I arrived before it got too crowded.
After a little while, and as the room got a bit more crowded, we decided to head over to the United Global First lounge. It is arguably a nicer lounge, and it was actually closer to our gate. I had visited this lounge before, but this was just for a few minutes before it closed when I was flying to Australia several years back.
It seems we found this lounge in between departures, since it was mostly empty. We nearly had the lounge to ourselves.
The lounge is located on ground level, and is pretty spacious. There is a wide selection of reading materials available from all over the world. I wanted to watch the UEFA Champions League final, since I was the only person near the TV, I just changed the channel, and enjoyed the exciting conclusion of that match.
Also, there were some nice close up views of planes at the international terminal
well hello your majesty!
Food and drink selection is significantly better than what is on offer in the United Clubs. Its still pretty sad compared to most other Star Alliance International First Class lounges I have experienced such as in Frankfurt, Tokyo, Sydney, Bangkok or Munich.
Nice to have the Woodford Reserve, and not be on Delta!
a decent international selection of cold beverages
Food wise, it was nothing special. This is the typical fare for United Global First lounges. Here are my reviews of the Global First lounges in Chicago and Washington in 2012.
Buffet looks a little tired, but with 3 full meals on my upcoming flight, I wasn’t concerned.
As boarding time approached, we gathered our stuff and headed back upstairs to the concourse level and then to our gate. Boarding is at the lower level, so we went down the escalator and found no line for First/Business Class.
Our first Singapore Airlines flight was finally ready for departure!
