Previously, I had shared my experience vacationing at The St Regis Langkawi. It was my first time to the island resort and I had no idea nor expectations for what was to come. I took Air Asia for the flight to and from Langkawi, enjoyed its facilities, and experienced the unique experience that small airports like that in Langkawi had to offer.
Flight Overview
Singapore to Langkawi vv
SIN – LGK
Flight Number: AK733
Aircraft Type / Registration: A320 / 9M-AQB
Class: Economy
Departure (ETD/ATD): 1045hrs (GMT+8) / 1049hrs (GMT+8)
Arrival (ETA/ATA): 1215hrs (GMT+8) / 1155hrs (GMT+8)
Duration (Estimated/Actual): 1h 30m / 1h 06m
Seat: 17D
Meal Service: Lunch (Pak Nasser’s Nasi Lemak (purchased), included Americano (instant) and mineral water (350ml). hard boiled egg was overcooked and dry. rice was fragrant. chilli with caramelised onions was sweet and spicy. chicken was spicy, slightly dry, but better than expected.)
LGK – SIN
Flight Number: AK732
Aircraft Type / Registration: A320 / 9M-AGV
Class: Economy
Departure (ETD/ATD): 1410hrs (GMT+8) / 1504hrs (GMT+8)
Arrival (ETA/ATA): 1545hrs (GMT+8) / 1641hrs (GMT+8)
Duration (Estimated/Actual): 1h 35m / 1h 37m
Seat: 19C
Meal Service: Snack; Curry Puff (purchased). so-so. like those sold by roadside hawkers at MRT station.
Flying Budget to Luxury Vacation
Ironically, my vacation at posh St Regis began and wrapped up with flights on a budget airline that was Air Asia. The cramped, heat-retaining seats and cold service was a hard pill to take!
We made it up by purchasing inflight meals to ease ourselves between the contrasting realities. Yes, buying a meal… On a 1.5 hour flight! How lavish!
Air Asia is known for its tasty Pak Nasser’s Nasi Lemak. The no frills dish lived up to its reputation indeed. The rice was fragrant and the chilli was sweet and spicy, no thanks to the caramelised onions. That doesn’t mean they should be eaten together though. I preferred to enjoy them on their own. That said, the chilli was wonderful at making the overcooked hardboiled egg more palatable. 🥹 I chose Americano (instant) to go with my meal. On top of that, the meal also came with bottled water.
On my return trip, I ordered the curry puff. Meh~ It tasted like those we buy from the roadside kiosks at the MRT stations. Nothing fascinating.
Perks and Quirks of Flying Air Asia
The only consolation from the flights were that the A320 was still using the old school air vents. That was a blessing for the hot weather – and stuffy airplane cabins – which was severely lacking in the newer planes! On top of that, we got to board and disembark our planes by walking on the tarmac. Langkawi Airport is a small airport after all! The experience of walking between the plane and the airport terminal wasn’t new, but it was still interesting enough. Well, at least the ground staff wasn’t as anal as the New Zealand airport’s and just let me take all the photos I wanted to record the experience!
On the other hand, the ground staff at Langkawi DGAF about boarding groups already indicated on the ticket. It was ironic, because I had purchased priority boarding thinking I’d need the overhead cabin space since I didn’t purchase check in luggage. Lo and behold! The unorganised boarding meant that my priority boarding was basically dud.
So point to note: If you are flying Air Asia FROM Langkawi, DON’T BOTHER PURCHASING PRIORITY BOARDING. It was a bus gate anyway. Priority boarding usually don’t apply at bus gates. And I thought Air Asia was being dishonest for selling a product that didn’t exist in the first place!
Air Asia also lived up to its reputation and our return flight was delayed by almost an hour. That being said, we still managed to board the special GE livery on our flight to Langkawi, on the A320 registered as 9M-AQB. The aircraft also experienced quick turnaround of 10 minutes for that flight.
St Regis / Westin Airport Lounge
The highlight of my visit to Langkawi, though, was the airport lounge experience. As part of the St Regis suite experience, we had access to St Regis managed airport lounge in Langkawi Airport! Unfortunately, the lounge was located in the domestic departure.
We had to let the St Regis staff bring us through the security (despite not flying domestic) to reach the lounge that was right after the security check. Thereafter, we had to make our way back to the public departure hall and then clear the security for the international departure. Quite a hassle, but the security seemed to be used to it. They didn’t even bat an eye when we went past them!
The St Regis / Westin lounge was for guests of the hotels. It was a small enclave with just a few tables and couches. The food option was also rather limited. I ended up with a cup of coffee – just to complete the experience. That said, the lounge offered some respite from the small, but chaotic, airport. And they had a private bathroom too!
Plaza Premium Lounge at Langkawi Airport
We left plenty of time before our flight for lounge hopping. As such, we also utilised our Priority Pass to use the Plaza Premium Lounge at Langkawi Airport. Interestingly, this lounge was in the public area. That meant we still had to leave sufficient time to clear the security – which hardly brought us the value of airport lounges.
The Plaza Premium Lounge’s use of dark tones was a contrast to the St Regis / Westin lounge of bright, white decor. The food options were limited, but more varied than St Regis’. I had their Laksa – not that spicy – and their tumeric rice, sausage and braised chicken. Pure comfort food. I also had the pandan cake – so-so – and the gem biscuits just for the heck of it. We gotta maximise our Priority Pass’ values, ya?
Parting Words
Since it was my first time at Langkawi Airport, and I don’t know when I’d be back, I shall leave some thoughts on the airport. The compact airport meant that it was very walkable. It wasn’t as small as that of Iceland’s Keflavik Airport, but the single level terminal could accommodate both the departure and arrival halls side by side. In fact, we could literally watch our Grab turn in from the main road while waiting for it at the arrival driveway!
The international departure’s gate hold room was also a compact space. It was literally steps away from the central security check. 2 holding areas shared the space, and as more passengers checked in and cleared the security, the other holding room was opened so everyone could have a seat. And like in Queenstown New Zealand, we could just step out of the gate hold room and walk across the apron to reach our plane. It was only in such small airports that we could really view the planes from below. Rare opportunities!
Interestingly, the small Langkawi Airport also offered up some unique lounge experiences. It was my first time experiencing an airport lounge outside of the transit area. It was also my first time using a lounge that was managed by a hotel. And it was in the wrong part of the terminal, which made me squeeze past (awkwardly) the security! Exquisite experience indeed. I think it would be some time that I would encounter another unique airport experience. Till then, stay wanderlust!
All photos and videos were taken using Google Pixel 9 Pro XL, and edited with Google Photos.