I was picked up at the hotel on time by the shuttle bus and as I was the first passenger on the shuttle, it went on to pick several more passengers before we reached the airport at around 11:00pm, which was still early and I am glad I chose to mention to them that my departure was at 12:30pm. It beats being late for an international flight.


Premium Economy Line


Business Class Check-in Line

The Qantas premium economy check in was quite empty while the business line was more crowded. Thus I went on to the premium economy check in line and obtained my boarding pass while checking in both of my luggage to Jakarta. I was provided with a priority departure line access card and it was off towards the immigration line which was quite short. I had yet to fill in my departure card so it took some more time before I entered the duty free area.


Apple Store at SYD

I had decided to get some bottles of Australian wine to bring back home and after finishing with my shopping, I headed upstairs to the Qantas lounges. There was other shops to discover for shopaholics in Sydney's international terminal and there was even an Apple store for those keen on taking advantage of the duty free shopping in the terminal.


Entrance to the Qantas Business Class Lounge

With the shopping completed, I proceeded upstairs to the lounge which was divided into a first class and business class section, and since I was due to board the latter cabin, I had to walk to the end of the corridor. It is worth noting that one gets a nice view of the departure shopping area from the walk towards the lounge.


Dining Table at the Lounge

Inside the Qantas lounge was as vast as the domestic lounge in Melbourne and had similar fantastic views of the Tarmac and Sydney's skyline. I stored my hand carry items on the luggage rack and proceeded to get some food. There was a dining table in the centre of the lounge area where a menu was being prepared and guests can order from it. The lounge service agent was preparing the table with cutleries in preparation for lunch at this time too and enquired if I would like some food. I decided instead on food from the buffet counter and helped myself to a bowl of spicy carrot and coconut soup with ginger and coriander, topped with croutons. For the mains, I got myself the French lamb braise with fennel and orange served with cous cous. The cous cous in this lounge was like small pearls and more palatable than the one served during my CX flight. Some side dishes I sampled includes smoked beef and some macaroni salad.


Tarmac View from the Lounge


Beverage Station and Magazine Rack


Soup and Ginger Ale

After my meal I checked out the row of Macs on the counter and also went to see the shower room. There was no counter or agent checking the use of the shower rooms though so I was free to check those empty ones out. It feels similar to the one in LA and even has the same Molton Brown amenity.


Row of iMac Workstations


Shower Room

The magazines and newspapers provided in the lounge were mainly Australian fare and wasn't as interesting for me. The whole lounge wasn't too crowded though and was comfortable to spend my time in.


Qantas Business Class Lounge

Five minutes before boarding was due to be called, I left the lounge as I wanted to take some photos of my departing aircraft. The A330 was parked beside a similar Cathay aircraft bound for Hong Kong and I managed some good shots through the duty free shop beside the boarding gate.