The brand new American Express Lounge at Sydney International Airport opened in October 2019 and is three times the size of the previous iteration.
Located near Gates 50-63 (effectively two floors below the Silver Kris Lounge) you take the escalator down instead of up and the Amex Lounge is ahead of you.
Given I was flying Economy with Cathay Pacific and held no elite status with OneWorld, it was good to have the American Express Explorer Card which offers two entries per calendar year to either this lounge or its counterpart in Melbourne.
In this post:
American Express Lounge Seating
The new lounge has a wide range of seating to the right of the entrance, with two communal dining tables as the centrepiece of the main room plus booths for groups of four to six along the wall.
Past the dining tables is a circular seating area, which was the only unoccupied area when I arrived during the dinner rush.
Further along are seating areas around low coffee tables.
And finally, we have pairs of high backed armchairs for those who had more time to enjoy the lounge. Incidentally the lounge backs onto an arrival walkway so an occasional flow of passengers would pass by.
There were plentiful power plugs and USB sockets around the lounge for a quick charge before your flight.
American Express Lounge Sydney Dining
With an open kitchen and staffed bar, the food and beverage options at the new Amex Lounge are a big improvement.
Multiple dining booths along offer almost as much seating as the previous lounge and the self service buffet offers a range of salads, cheese and snacks.
There are hot dishes prepared to order including pizza, pasta and Asian options.
I went with the wonton noodle soup and filled out the paper slip to submit my order. The chef advised it would take about 10 minutes to prepare so I popped over to the bar to get a cider to accompany my dinner.
The noodles were very good and I’d estimate the meal would have cost A$30 at an airport restaurant.
In addition to the full bar on offer, a range of speciality coffees and hot chocolates are offered with the bar staff doubling as baristas.
Bathrooms & Showers
There are now full male and female bathrooms in the lounge plus two shower suites.
Bathrooms are well kept and stocked with L’Occitane amenities, though the shower suites were busy for the duration of my stay.
There was a wait of at least an hour so if you are planning on using the shower it’s best to put your name down on the waiting list when you arrive at the lounge.
Summary
Overall the new American Express Lounge at Sydney Airport is a big step up from the previous iteration.
Specifically hot meals to order and a full bar service are a great upgrade and usually reserved for First Class lounges.
Given Priority Pass don’t have any actual lounges at Sydney Airport (just credit at airport restaurants), it is worth getting an Amex card like the Amex Qantas Ultimate for this lounge alone.
Introduction – The Cathay Pacific Encore Trip
Review: American Express Lounge Sydney
Review: Cathay Pacific Economy Class 77W
Review: Cathay Dragon Economy Class A321
Review: Cathay Dragon Business Class A320
Review: The Wing First Class Lounge
Review: Cathay Pacific First Class 77W
Review: Fairfield Inn Manhattan Financial District
Review: Jean Georges New York
Review: Olmsted Brooklyn
New York Winter Activities
Review: AA Flagship Lounge & Flagship First Dining JFK
Review: Cathay Pacific First Class New York – Hong Kong
Review: Mira Moon Hong Kong
Review: The Wing Business Class Lounge
Review: Qantas Hong Kong Lounge
Review: Qantas Business Class A380 (New Business Suite)
Summary – Highlights & Points Earned
