On our early morning dawn departure from Indira Ghandi New Delhi International Airport, we had a visit to The Plaza Premium Lounge in Indira Ghandi International Airport Terminal Three in the International Departures zone. We had a functional visit and were offered comfortable lounge chairs, hot food and wifi. The lounge was consistent with the Plaza Premium Brand, by offering something every business traveller would need.

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Review: The Plaza Premium Lounge, Indira Ghandi International Airport, International Departures, Terminal 3, New Delhi, India

“The Plaza Premium Lounge provided all the usual amenities that the Plaza Premium Lounge brand offers; a comfortable lounge chair, hot food and wifi, conveniently situated above New Delhi’s international duty free retail zone”

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Our stay at the ITC Maurya – A Luxury Collection Hotel, was very short, and we were up at the awful hour of 2:30 AM for our 3:30 AM transfer to Indira Gandhi International Airport Terminal Three International Departures. We had a quick twenty minute traffic free drive in a hotel contracted Toyota Camry Hybrid and we arrived to an airport that was just getting going for the day. 

Checking into Turkish Airlines Business Class:

A quick check in at Turkish Airlines in aisle L with our bags tagged all the way to Vancouver consisting of 3 flights worth. We would have a very long travel day with Turkish Airlines Business Class flights New Delhi – Istanbul Atatürk, followed by Turkish Airlines Business Class Istanbul Atatürk – Montreal, and finally Air Canada Business Class Montreal – Vancouver. The check in process at the Turkish Airlines outstations always appears to be a bit of a line with few check in agents working. We passed through the last segregated security screening checkpoints and through another London-esque duty free. 

We avoided the currency exchange “commissions” that were being charged to change Rupees to any other currency, and we used up our last cash Indian Rupees on a souvenir tea, rice and a spice set. 

Locating the Plaza Premium Lounge:

Turkish Airlines has contracted with the Plaza Premium Lounge at Indira Gandhi International Airport. While we also had the choice of the Air India Business Class International Departures Lounge under the Star Alliance Gold lounge access policy, we went with the contracted lounge as it was about 4 AM at this time and our heads weren’t all to clear. Turkish Airlines had provided us with direction and instructions on check in, along with a written lounge invitation.

Plaza Premium has a substantial presence at Indira Ghandi International Airport and this review referrs to the International Departures Lounge “A”, in Terminal Three.

The lounge is located immediately above the duty free retail emporium. We headed upstairs above the retail mayhem and entered into the open air lounge. 

Accessing The Plaza Premium Lounge:

There are several ways to access the Plaza Premium Lounge.

The Plaza Premium Lounge accepts reservations for entry on it’s website. The reservations are split into blocks of time ranging from two, up to five hours and are priced at the time of writing at $29 USD for two hours or $42 USD for five hours.  

The Plaza Premium Lounge network also partners with several credit cards to provide access. This includes many credit cards worldwide, which include DragonPass, LoungeKey, LoungeClub, Priority Pass (although this is being discontinued) and the Club. You do not need to make a reservation while using these systems. 

For North American Card holders, the lounge is also part of the American Express Global Lounge Collection, which offers a suite of lounges available for access with it’s premium American Express Platinum and Centurion Cards. Access can be granted by presenting one of these cards.

Today’s access was provided by voucher issued from Turkish Airlines as a result of Business Class cabin travel.

Inside The Plaza Premium Lounge New Delhi:

The Plaza Premium Lounge was similar to almost all the other versions that I’ve been to. It had the same comfortable chairs with clean surroundings. All furnishings and fixtures were in good condition and clean. The lounge itself was actually pretty souless and without personality. This is either a good thing or a bad thing depending on what you happen to be looking for. 

This version of Plaza Premium had a nice open air concept that was exposed to the natural light of the terminal. This meant that there were also pigeons floating and flying around in and through the lounge. 

Food and Beverage:

As with my past experiences, the Plaza Premium Lounges never seem to have great catering or alcohol selection. Today’s service at 4:15 AM had a small mini pancakes and paneer bread for breakfast. I opted for a machine ground cafe latte instead and decided to wait for a proper leisurely sit down breakfast on our upcoming Turkish Airlines Business Class New Delhi – Istanbul Atatürk flight set to depart at 6:05 AM.

We didn’t stay here to long. It had the basic necessities; food, drink and wifi, but other than a quick snack or stock up, it wasn’t a lounge that I would describe as worth leaving home early for. Our stay was limited to about 30 minutes before we headed off on our departing flight Turkish Airlines Business Class New Delhi – Istanbul Atatürk. Probably one of the biggest surprises overall were that New Delhi had reasonable lounges that were comparable to any lounge at any international airport in the Western world. 

My Thoughts on the Plaza Premium Lounge New Delhi:

Overall, The Plaza Premium Lounge Indira Ghandi International Departures Terminal Three New Delhi was an adequate place for a visit. It was really no different from the Air India Domestic Lounge New Delhi that we had experienced earlier in the trip. The lounge provided food and wifi, although I ended up opting for a strong coffee instead. It certainly wouldn’t be the most memorable lounge visit of our travelling career but it might be worth a pit stop if you need some wifi on your way out of India.

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If you’ve visited the Plaza Premium Lounge in New Delhi, did you have birds flying through the terminal on your visit?

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