First among in-equals

The conundrum of the first class lounge

Qantas’s gorgeous new Hong Kong Lounge is as beautiful as it is bang on trend.

Stunning design, shower suites, a pre-flight dining concept, and upgraded food – including Neil Perry’s Qantas First lounge favorite salt and pepper calamari – what more could a business class traveller want? The answer, of course, is “a first class lounge”. oneworld is the only alliance to permit its top-top tier Emerald frequent flyers to access member airlines’ first class lounges, and for Qantas Platinum cardholders it’s a significant perk. Yet it’s not available at outstation airports with two-class lounges like Hong Kong.