Given the proximity of Japan and Korea, and the number of Korean Air flights between the two countries, it’s no surprise that Korean Air’s KAL Lounges are the most ubiquitous lounges in international terminals of Japanese airports.
Back in October, while making my way to Europe, I had a chance to spend some time in the KAL Lounge at Fukuoka airport which I’ll be reviewing below.
Location, Opening Hours & Access
The lounge is located opposite to gate 56 (past security and immigration) of Fukuoka airport international terminal.
It’s accessible to Korean Air and other SkyTeam business and first class passengers, as well as SkyTeam status holders (I accessed it with my Delta Gold Medallion status). Besides that, the lounge is also accessible to members of Priority Pass.
The lounge is only open around the time of Korean Air departures: 08:30 to 10:45AM, 2:30PM to 4:05PM, and 5:50PM to 8:45PM. Priority Pass members are only admitted to the lounge during the first two time slots, not during the third – evening – one.
Lounge Tour
The KAL Lounge at Fukuoka airport was very compact.
Just past the entrance, on the right side, was a reception desk, and across from it were some shelves for visitors to store their luggage on.
Then, there was a small seating area with sofa chairs and sofas that could fit about twenty people.
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There was another similarly sized seating area to the left of the reception – though all of the tables in that area had “reserved” signs on them. Given that it was not a problem when I sat down at one of those, I assume they were reserved for Korean Air passengers as opposed to “general” Priority Pass visitors.
Finally, to the left of the reception, there was a small buffet counter with some food and drinks as well.
The lounge had no restrooms.
Food and Drinks
Given how close Japan is to Korea, it is no surprise that the food selection in the lounge was nothing to write home about. After all, a flight from Fukuoka to Seoul is just a bit over an hour long, and a flight from Fukuoka to Busan is under one hour.
The only warm food available in the lounge were several kinds of cup noodles. Other than that, there were some packaged snacks including cakes, cookies, etc.
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As for drinks, there were coffee and tea, canned soft drinks including soda and Minute Maid juices, and canned Asahi and Kirin beer. There was also some wine and two kinds of liquor.
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KAL Lounge Fukuoka Summary
If you arrive at the airport early, instead of heading to the lounge, I recommend having a proper meal at one of the terminal’s restaurants (assuming you’re hungry). Alternatively, given how close the city is to the airport (just a couple of subway stops), stay in the city center longer and arrive at the airport closer to your departure time.
That said, if you happen to have some minutes before boarding and are thirsty or want a light snack, then, by all means, pay a quick visit to the lounge.
