Yesterday, I wrote about the inauguration of the new GVK Lounge at the Mumbai Airport Terminal 2, which came after months of anticipation. I had some work in Delhi today, so I was supposed to take an evening flight from Mumbai to Delhi to get here. The power of mileage tickets, I could just call Air India and swap the ticket from most of their A321 BOM-DEL flights (from Terminal 1) to get a seat on their B77W which flies BOM-DEL-JFK, and hence I could head to Terminal 2 to check out the new lounge.

Air India provided me with an invite to the Business Class section of the lounge, located on Level 3, since I am a Flying Returns Golden Edge Club member. What I saw made me believe that the current operator of the Mumbai Airport, GVK, has really left no effort out in making this a world class airport terminal.

The Lounges are available post-security and passport control on Level 4, and there is one big hallway which is common for all the lounges on Level 3 and Level 4. You arrive and present your invitation, and are sent to the appropriate lounge.

Since I was going to be in the business class lounge, I was checked-in and took the elevator down to Level 3. The lounge is massive, and like they promised, in a silver theme. Compared to the other lounges I’ve seen at the old Mumbai airport, I hope this one does not run out of space. There are over 250 covers, and they’ve taken care of most of the ways people would like to spend time at the airport.

Towards one end of the lounge, there is a dining area where the buffet is set up, and there is a restaurant style setup where you can sit and catch a bite.

Since they thought this through well, there are also small rooms (6-8 seaters) lined up on the side of the lounge where you could occupy them as a group, such as a family, colleagues and so on. I haven’t seen that one before! I am not sure how they allocate the rooms but when I came in they were all empty.

If you like watching sports or so on, there is a big sportsbar set up for you which a massive TV screen and a well-manned bar which can rustle up a nice cocktail for you.

Don’t like a lot of people around and want to have a conversation? There is another smaller bar as well.

A lot of couches are laid out all over the place, and each one of them comes with an individual powerport which is a win in my book. After all, we all need a power port these days to ourselves.

For the solo travellers or the aviation enthusiasts, there are smaller solo couches which leave you alone if you please. I would think the view from here during the day would be pretty nice.

And yes, there are quite some number of sleeping lounge chairs in a quiet corner as well. Next to them, there are iMacs which you can use to access the Internet.

Apart from that, what might turn out to be my favourite corner in this lounge will be the library area. Not exactly a library, but it is done up very well, like a living room.

In terms of dining, the concept with the Business Class lounge is buffet dining, while the First Class lounge will offer dining off the menu. There were multiple options for hot food as well as cold bites, and the staff was on their feet all times to keep them full.

Food included Indian, Continental, Arabic Mezze plates, Cut Fruits, salads, cold desserts and other stuff.

I did try out a couple of things from the buffet, and got myself a nice JD and Coke from the bar. They ain’t stingy with the drinks I tell you, for there was a hearty double pour and hardly any Coke in that glass!

But what really got my eye, and came in later in the evening was a bottle of saffron milk, which came much later on the buffet and I could not resist trying.

I can tell you, I could come back here just for this milk bottle over and over again!

The one thing I did not notice was children play area. However, I have to admit, this is a great step up from the earlier lounges I’ve seen in Mumbai, and airlines should be only happy to send their customers here. I have a feeling most Star Alliance Golds would land up here, and also oneworld Sapphire members, apart from Air India and Jet Airways elites, for whom this is the base airport.

As I was about to leave, I noticed the lounge was starting to fill up as people turned up for their flights later in the evening. There was not too much of crowd felt, however, which indicates this might be a peaceful lounge. I hope they can take care of crying infants however!

What do you feel about the new GVK Lounge in Mumbai’s Terminal 2?

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