I had a short but pleasant stay in the Korean Air First Class Lounge in Seoul (ICN), though the service was very odd.

Korean Air First Class Lounge Seoul Review (ICN)

After stepping off my flight from Atlanta, I had two hours and 15 minutes before my connecting flight to Hong Kong departed and proceeded directly to the Korean First Lounge after clearing transit security.

Hours + Access + Location

The lounge is located in Incheon Terminal 2, near gate 248. It is open daily from 4:00 am to 10:00 pm and shares an entrance with the Miler Club lounge. Proceed up the escalator or elevator to a large landing where you will be checked in. The First Class lounge is on the right side.

This lounge is only available to Korean Air First Class passengers. You must be departing or arriving ICN in first class in order to use this lounge, with no access via elite status or credit card. I was departing ICN in business class to HKG, but because I arrived from ATL in first class, I was able to use the lounge.

Seating

As you enter the lounge, you might wonder whether you’re in a hospital or an airline lounge. A white, sterile hallway greets you inside, with lockers for your hand baggage (though I cannot imagine people stealing your stuff inside this lounge).

Down the hall, you’ll find one large seating area with circular and semi-circular shells creating privacy barriers around each seat or cluster of seats.

Each seat has a universal power outlet and USB-A outlet within reach.

The lounge was virtually empty, with only two other passengers. Once the New York flight started to board (a boarding announcement was made in Korean and English), I had the entire lounge to myself.

A glass partition divides the seating area from the dining room, which I will cover below, but let’s first turn to service.

Service

Moments after taking my seat, a lounge attendant approached me and handed me a menu:

Then she just stood over me, waiting for me to make my selection.

So odd…

I wasn’t feeling particularly peckish after stepping off the 15.5-hour flight, but for purposes of this review, I ordered food. She then took the menu back and disappeared.

I remained in my seat until my food was ready, then walked over to the dining room. There the food was placed down and the attendant disappeared. Drinks are self-service so there was no offer of a beverage, and I did not see the attendant again, though she must have appeared to clear away the dishes when I was done (while I was in the restroom).

Food + Drink

As I mentioned, I ordered food moments after arriving in the lounge, and it was quickly prepared. Five minutes later my first and second courses–potato leek soup and a vegetable salad with asparagus, beets, avocado, grilled artichoke, broccoli and spinach were served. Both dishes were delicious.

Moments later, my “Hanwoo Korean Beef” cheeseburger with French Fries came out (Hanwoo or Hanu is a breed of small cattle native to Korea). Also very good, though I could not finish it.

I concluded the meal with a green salad, which served as a palate cleanser, and some strawberries.

The dining area has a self-serve bar and buffet that includes alcohol, soft drinks, tea, coffee, juice, as well as salty snacks, fruit, and desserts.

Champagne on offer was NV Piper Heidsieck Essentiel Cuvee Brut. I just drank beet juice..

KAL partners with the Grand Hyatt Seoul ICN for the catering in this lounge and it represents a big step up from the Prestige Lounge food and beverage options.

Restrooms + Showers

The lounge has a single restroom for each gender and a single shower suite. That works fine when the lounge is empty, but I’d have to imagine it can get annoying when there are more people in the lounge.

Shower suite:

Male restroom:

Aesop is one of my favorite skincare brands and I was happy to see Aesop skincare products available.

Massage Chairs

No lounge in South Korea would be complete without massage chairs. This lounge has a special room with a single oversized massage chair that I was all too happy to relax in.

I ended up spending far too long enjoying this chair and missed out on early boarding my flight to Hong Kong…these chairs are great, though. I wish I had one at home!

Private Rooms

There are three private suites in this lounge:

• Comfort Suite
• Luxe Suite
• Premium Suite

I took a look inside a couple of them…they just appear to VIP rooms…though there was no staff around to answer questions about them.

Luggage Tags

Korean Air ostensibly offers its first class lounge guests a customized luggage tag, though I picked the wrong day to get one.

Per lounge staff, the machine to make luggage was “not working.” That’s a shame because I don’t think I’ll be flying Korean Air First Class again for many years to come…do you think Korean Air could make a luggage tag and mail it to me? Is it worth asking?

CONCLUSION

Finally, I should note that Korean Air plans to remodel this lounge in the months ahead. It will re-open in 2026