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Before my flight from Osaka to Los Angeles on Japan Airlines, I visited the JAL Sakura Lounge at Osaka Kansai airport. The lounge wasn’t the easiest to find, since it’s in the center of the concourse and not well-marked. Even this little map I got was only semi-helpful in getting me to the right spot.
Once I found it, the unimpressive entrance set the bar low.
Inside though, it’s a nice lounge. It’s not as nice as the JAL first class lounge in Toyko Narita, mind you, but it’s a decent enough business class lounge, especially since there aren’t nearly as many Japan Airlines flights leaving from Osaka.
There was a decent food buffet set out. While there wasn’t any sushi like the first class Tokyo lounge, it was still decent for business class, featuring beef curry, fried chicken, and local delicacy okonomiyaki.
They also had salad, soups, some baked goods including sweet cream filled buns, sandwiches, and cookies.
There were also little flavored cheeses. I did a taste test and ranked them as follows from best to worst: cheddar, plain, ham, smoked salmon. I didn’t try olive or tomato since I knew they would be disgusting.
Because it’s Japan, they also had to have beer machines.
The self-service bar was decent, featuring a nice selection of sake.
Beyond the large dining room, which dominates the JAL Sakura Lounge in Osaka, there are a few other nice seating areas.
Even the smoking lounge looks comfortable. Unfortunately, it could still be smelled slightly in the quiet back area at first.
There were tons of electrical outlets scattered all over the lounge, as well as a business center.
The Sakura Lounge also has lockers available.
One of the highlights of the Sakura Lounge was the massage chair. They were available most of the time, so I had a go. It was half-amazing, half-terrifying. Most of the time it was relaxing, but there were a few times where I felt it was going to swallow me whole. If robots rise up and kill us all someday, these massage chairs might be leading the charge.
Overall, the Japan Airlines Sakura Lounge at Osaka KIX is a nice lounge. It’s quiet, aside from that machine humming, and there’s more than enough space for everyone to spread out comfortably. The food is also decent for an airline lounge. Unlike some crowded lounges, it’s a good place to relax before your Japan Airlines flight, or any of the other partner flights that have access to the lounge in Osaka.
Hi. Flying through KIX in a few weeks from LAX. Are there showers in the lounge?
I did not see any in the lounge, but I didn’t go out of my way looking for them since I had been in Osaka overnight. As far as I can tell from other reviews, they may be available, but just not inside the lounge itself. There are pay showers elsewhere in the terminal. Sorry to not be of more help.