Solid 3 star establishment when compared to airline lounges around the globe. However, for existing in the PI, this gets an additional bump to 4. Manila is a great place to visit and has some really beautiful things to see and people to meet. However, it is also overrun with poverty in many areas and the infrastructure is not very advanced in some places. Couple that with sauna-like weather and I spent my days here surrounded by panhandlers, sweaty shirts, and nearly broken ankles from the potholes and uneven walking surfaces. So coming into this club which is air-conditioned, has some nice plane-spotting views, a flat surfaced floor, and offers plenty of refrigerated beverages as well as ice and this was like entering shangri-la. I expect that stuff in Europe and North America. I was ecstatic to find it here.
This is a locally run lounge, not a SkyTeam Alliance lounge and not run by Delta Airlines. It is open to public access for a fee and the only airline it caters to is Delta for their premium passengers. Given that, it is small with maybe seats for 90 people and has a basic load out of beverages and food. Nothing too fancy or over the top but compared to the main terminal where you are relegated to Jollibee and instant cup noodles, this is a nice step up.
There are moderate numbers of charging outlets, a small selection of alcoholic beverages, and some food choices with a local flair. I had a bowl of local chicken congee with calamansi squeezed in and it was really good. This is also a last chance for an ice-cold San Miguel beer prior to leaving the country if that is your thing. It is not mine. Frankly I am not much of a beer drinker so I was pretty excited to see an American whiskey available here, even if it was Jack Daniels. Back home I would not drink that as I consider it to be crap swill but after being here with limited whiskey availability in constant crotch rot conditions, a little JD over ice next to an air conditioner vent made me as happy as a pig in a mud puddle.
I know that this review makes me sound like the arrogant, entitled jerk American. I do not mean it that way and I am genuinely thankful for my opportunities to travel to a lot of different places. I also am a big fan of the Philippines because the culture and food are amazing and the people are some of the friendliest I have come across on the planet. What I wanted to convey in this review was that for an airline lounge, this one is really no big deal. But when you compare it to what the locals have to do to make this place happen, it is a really nice space for some pre-departure hospitality. I have zero complaints about this lounge and the time I spent in it and I will look forward to it when I next get a chance to visit. read more