Singapore Airlines reopens Taipei SilverKris Lounge

Singapore Airlines has reopened its SilverKris Lounge in Taipei, the 10th and final overseas SilverKris Lounge in its network. The lounge was closed for more than 40 months, as the COVID-19 pandemic worsened, and remained shut even after travel returned to normal.

The lounge will be available to passengers on both of Singapore Airlines’ daily flights, who were previously redirected to the Plaza Premium Lounge (they could also use the EVA Air lounge as Star Alliance passengers).

Operating Hours & Location

The SilverKris Lounge at Taipei Airport is located at Terminal 2, Level 4. 

Operating hours will be from 1130 to 1745 hours daily, which means it will serve passengers on both of Singapore Airlines’ daily flights:

• SQ877, departing at 1420 (B787-10)
• SQ879, departing at 1745 (B787-10)

Access rules

Access is available to passengers departing on a Singapore Airlines or Star Alliance flight in:

• First Class (+1 guest)
• Business Class
• Any cabin, with Solitaire PPS Club, PPS Club, KrisFlyer Gold or Star Gold status (+1 guest)

Access is available to passengers departing on a Singapore Airlines flight in:

• Any cabin, with Velocity Platinum or Gold (+1 guest)
• Any cabin, with Virgin Atlantic Flying Club Gold

Solitaire PPS Club members travelling on Scoot may also access the lounge, together with one guest. This is a new perk that has been in effect since June 2023. 

However, given the opening hours of the lounge, it will only be an option for those travelling on:

• TR899, departing at 1555
• TR993, departing at1955

All guests must be travelling on the same flight as the eligible passenger.

Overview: SilverKris Lounge Taipei

The SilverKris Lounge in Taipei is a curious one. It’s the smallest SilverKris Lounge in the world, and its entire existence boils down to legacy reasons: during the 1990s and 2000s, Singapore would operate its Honolulu and Los Angeles services via Taipei (you might remember the tragedy of SQ006, which collided with construction equipment while attempting to take-off from the wrong runway at Taoyuan). The lounge served as a place for transit passengers to chill during the layover, or a starting point for fifth freedom passengers. 

Taipei ceased to be a transit hub for Singapore Airlines in October 2008 (TPE-LAX flights were revived briefly in August 2021, before quietly disappearing again), and perhaps that’s why the lounge here was one of the few not to get the “Home Away From Home” makeover by Ong&Ong, which began with Sydney in 2013 and gradually spread across the network.

That, and the fact that EVA Air already operates multiple lounges for Star Alliance passengers in its home base, was the reason I believed the Taipei lounge would get the chop during COVID. Shows what I know…

The SilverKris Lounge in Taipei is basically one long rectangular room, with seating reminiscent of SilverKris Lounges in the late noughties, and somehow manages to be naturally lit and dark at the same time.

I snapped these photos back in 2017, way before my Pixel days, so forgive the potato-quality shots.

Pre-COVID food options included scrambled eggs, dumplings, sweet and sour chicken, assorted vegetables and fried noodles, with additional Singapore touches like bak kut teh. Champagne is absent from this lounge, sadly, with the only sparkling option being a very mediocre Martini Asti. Business Class passengers should save their weekly allowance for the stuff served onboard. 

Universal power outlets with USB charging ports can be found throughout the lounge, though productivity pods have not been installed. Shower rooms with attached toilets provide a place to freshen up. 

One cute and unique feature of the Taipei lounge is their “memorabilia closet”, displaying a range of kitsch Singapore Airlines accessories like fans, Hummelesque figurines (He orchestrated it! Jimmy!), an A380 playset, even a SQ-branded Monopoly kit. 

Which SilverKris Lounges are currently open?

Prior to the pandemic, Singapore Airlines had 13 overseas SilverKris Lounges. Adelaide, Kuala Lumpur and New Delhi have been permanently shuttered, and of the remainder, the rest have all now reopened:

• Bangkok
• Brisbane
• Hong Kong
• London
• Manila
• Melbourne
• Perth
• Seoul
• Sydney
• Taipei

Singapore Airlines has announced plans to upgrade some of its overseas lounges, per a disclosure in its recent financial results announcement. As one of the oldest lounges in the network, I’m quite surprised that Taipei didn’t get any love. 

That said, we do know that Singapore Airlines is planning a brand new Perth SilverKris Lounge that will open by the end of 2023, hosting 140 customers in a modernised space formerly occupied by Qantas.

Singapore Airlines to open new SilverKris Lounge in Perth

Hopefully the reopening of the Taipei lounge means that Singapore Airlines isn’t finished with this facility just yet. 

Conclusion

Singapore Airlines and Star Alliance passengers flying out of Taipei once again have access to the SilverKris Lounge. This is one of the oldest lounges in the SilverKris network, so expect it to be dated without modern conveniences. However, it could also be much less crowded than the EVA Air lounges, given how few travellers are aware of Star Alliance reciprocal access rules.

With the entire overseas SilverKris network now reopen, we’re a long way away from three years ago, when there was only one SilverKris Lounge open in the whole world at Changi Terminal 3!

What do you make of the SilverKris Lounge in Taipei?