Review: ‘Moscow’ and ‘Jazz’ Business Lounges Moscow Sheremetyevo Terminal D

March 23, 2020March 18, 2021 Koen 0 Comments

In this review we will take a look at the ‘Moscow’ and ‘Jazz’ business class lounges in Terminal D of Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport (SVO).

Getting to the airport

After a fun Moscow stopover of almost 24 hours it was time to head back to Sheremetyevo Airport for my flight back to Paris.

Having finished breakfast at the Pushkin Hotel, it was a rather unpleasant walk to the nearby Tverskaya metro station dragging my trolley along through the snowy Moscow streets. As my flight would only depart at 1.05pm I however had plenty of time, and I still vastly preferred a metro and train ride above a taxi given my fascination for train and metro networks.

moscow tverskaya metro — *Arriving at Tverskaya metro station. ©Paliparan*

Mayakovskaya

It is only two stops by metro from Tverskaya to the railway terminus of Belorussky (Belarus) Station from where the Sheremetyevo airport express departs. Yet you’d be crazy to stay on the train and not to get off at the intermediate metro station of Mayakovskaya – which in my opinion is one of the most beautifully designed stations of the entire Moscow metro network.

Given that there are trains every two minutes, you hardly lose any time at all getting off – snapping a few pictures – and taking the next train again!

moscow metro station mayakovskaya — *Gorgeous Mayakovskaya metro station. ©Paliparan*

Airport express train

Just like my journey into Moscow a day before, the train to the airport was again rather empty. It took just a minute to buy my ticket and the seats around me remained empty during the ride.

aeroexpress sheremetyevo moscow belorussky vokzal station — *The Sheremetyevo Aeroexpress train departs from Moscow’s Belorussky Vokzal (Belarus Station), which is easy to reach by metro. ©Paliparan*

aeroexpress belarus station moscow sheremetyevo — *View from the window of my Aeroexpress train while stationary at Belorrusky station. ©Paliparan*

aeroexpress airport express sheremetyevo moscow — *Inside the Sheremetyevo Aeroexpress train. ©Paliparan*

Check-in

From the railway terminus at Sheremetyevo Airport it was a fairly long walk to reach Terminal D from where my flight to Paris would depart.

Although nowhere close to being beautiful or having any kind of groundbreaking architectural design or cool amenities, the airport does feel quite spacious and never felt too crowded. That included the check-in area, which had a separate area for business class passengers.

With just 2 people in front of me, I was quickly helped by one of the agents who confirmed my window seat and handed out my boarding pass. Unfortunately, the check-in agent could not print a boarding pass for my connecting TAROM flight from Paris to Bucharest, but as I already checked in online for the flight and had a mobile boarding pass it did not matter too much.

sheremetyevo airport express aeroexpress train — *The Sheremetyevo Airport station is connected directly to the terminal buildings. ©Paliparan*

Terminal D

The lines at security and passport control were a breeze at this hour of the day in the late morning and with about two hours to spare before departure I was airside at Sheremetyevo.

It was my first time at Terminal D having previously only seen only the domestic terminal on my way to Irkutsk earlier this trip and Terminal F when once flying from Moscow to Copenhagen on SAS.

Those passengers flying business class, having elite frequent flyer status with the airline or having a priority pass can choose between half a dozen of lounges in this terminal. Frankly, there were so many business class lounges available at Sheremetyevo Terminal D that I hardly knew which one to visit.

Jazz Lounge

After exchanging my last Rubles for Euros I went to the first lounge I encountered – which is one floor up straight after security. Called the Jazz lounge, this lounge is only accessible for Aeroflot passengers in business class and Sky Team frequent flyers and not for priority pass holders.

Like the domestic lounge, the first impression was rather bad as the lounge was very dark with no natural light. It was also absolutely packed – which surprised me as the terminal itself seemed rather empty. The only seats available were bar stools at a long table.

sheremetyevo terminal D lounges jazz — *The Jazz lounge at Moscow’s Shermertyevo Airport. ©Paliparan*

Jazz lounge food

Food and beverage options in the lounge were decent enough. The coffee machines made a decent brew, there was the usual breakfast stuff such as croissants and cold cuts, as well as a decent booze selection. There were also lots of sweets.

I therefore decided to have a second breakfast in true hobbit-style and get myself a cup of coffee and some orange juice while trying every sweet I could find, as why not? The little cakes were however visually more appealing than they tasted. They weren’t necessarily bad – but more rather unmemorable and bland.

Although I might have had a slightly better impression if the lounge would be less crowded or would have visited during lunch or dinner time, I thought it was absolutely forgettable.

svo sheremetyevo moscow jazz lounges lounge — *Having a second breakfast of sweets at the Jazz lounge. ©Paliparan*

Moscow Lounge

As I didn’t really like the Jazz Lounge, I went for a quest to find a better place to spend the remainder of the time before my flight departure. Right next to my departure gate for Paris I found the ‘Moscow Lounge’, which allows both priority pass holders as well as Aeroflot and Sky Team elite passenger in.

Even though it was absolutely packed to the brim at 11am – I found it more pleasant than the Jazz lounge as it had some natural light coming in from the terminal corridor which separates it from the tarmac as well as a more pleasant overall design. I managed to grab a seat by the window so I could look out over the same-floor terminal.

svo sheremetyevo moscow lounge lounges terminal d — *The ‘Moscow’ business class lounge at Sheremetyevo Terminal D. ©Paliparan*

Lunch

When I arrived they were changing the food offerings from breakfast to lunch, with a soup and a huge bowl of chicken wings available. As I was not hungry, I didn’t partake. Instead I just had a glass of champagne and some water.

The Moscow Lounge is again nothing to write home about – but vastly superior to Jazz in my opinion.

In short

While much better than the domestic lounge, the international lounges at Terminal D are nothing to write home about. There are quite a few other lounges available besides the two I tried, but what I’ve heard they are all more or less the same in terms of design and food and beverage options.

Just like the airport itself – the business class lounges at Sheremetyevo are something which definitely could and should be improved. As a big hub airport to a major world city, it definitely feels a bit subpar when compared to the excellent airport lounges you can find in other cities.

Besides the average quality, crowding is also a huge issue in these lounges which is definitely something which Aeroflot and Sheremetyevo Airport should improve. It is especially a pity because in flight Aeroflot has an excellent business class product.

If the airline truly wants to compete with the world’s best they should definitely refurbish the lounges at their hub airport.

Trip report index

This article is part of the ‘Siberian Shuffle – A Crazy Winter Trip Around Eurasia‘ trip report, which consists of the following chapters:

1. Review: Wizz Air Bucharest to Oslo Sandefjord Torp (Airbus A321)
2. A Day in the Norwegian Capital of Oslo
3. Review: Norwegian Railways Night Train Oslo-Stavanger in a Private Sleeper
4. Review: Radisson Blu Royal Hotel, Stavanger
5. Stavanger – A Great Norwegian City Trip Surprise
6. Review: North Sea Lounge Stavanger Airport
7. Review: KLM Cityhopper Business Class Stavanger to Amsterdam (Embraer RJ-175)
8. Guide to the Carnival Celebrations in the Netherlands
9. Review: KLM Crown Lounge (Schengen) Amsterdam Airport
10. Review: Air France Business Class Amsterdam to Paris (Airbus A319)
11. Review: ‘Salon Paris’ Business Class Lounge Paris CDG Terminal 2C
12. Review: Aeroflot Business Class Paris to Moscow (Airbus A320)
13. Review: Aeroflot Domestic Business Class Lounge Moscow Sheremetyevo
14. Review: Aeroflot Domestic Business Class Moscow to Irkutsk (Boeing 737-800)
15. Review: Matreshka Hotel, Irkutsk
16. Irkutsk Trip Report: Exploring the ‘Paris of Siberia’ in Winter
17. Review: Mayak Hotel, Listvyanka (Lake Baikal)
18. A Winter Trip to the Frozen Wonderland of Lake Baikal
19. Review: Ibis Irkutsk Center Hotel, Irkutsk
20. Review: Domestic Business Class Lounge Irkutsk Airport
21. Review: Aeroflot Domestic Business Class Irkutsk to Moscow (Boeing 737-800)
22. Review: Pushkin Hotel, Moscow
23. A 24 Hour Stopover in the Russian Capital of Moscow
24. Review: ‘Moscow’ and ‘Jazz’ Business Lounges Moscow Sheremetyevo Terminal D (current chapter)
25. Review: Aeroflot Business Class Moscow to Paris (Airbus A320)
26. Review: TAROM Business Class Paris to Bucharest (Airbus A318)
27. Review: TAROM Business Lounge Bucharest Otopeni Airport
28. Review: Air France Business Class Bucharest to Paris (Airbus A320)
29. A Short Overnight Stopover in Paris
30. Review: Sheltair Business Lounge Paris CDG Terminal 2D
31. Review: Azerbaijan Airlines Business Class Paris to Baku (Airbus A320)
32. Review: Old City Hotel and Apartments, Baku, Azerbaijan
33. Destination Baku: An Intriguing Mix Between Old and New
34. Guide: Train Travel in Azerbaijan
35. Sheki: Azerbaijan’s Most Lovely Town and Springboard to the Caucasus
36. Must Be the Ganja! A Visit to the City of Ganja in Azerbaijan
37. Review: Shah Palace Hotel, Baku, Azerbaijan
38. Review: Azerbaijan Airlines Business Lounge Baku Airport
39. Review: Azerbaijan Airlines Business Class Baku to Paris (Airbus A320)
40. Review: Air France Business Lounge Paris CDG Terminal 2F
41. Review: KLM Business Class Paris to Amsterdam (Boeing 737)
42. Review: KLM Business Class Amsterdam to Bergen (Boeing 737)
43. Blissful Bergen – Is It Really Norway’s Most Beautiful City?
44. Review: Bergen to Oslo on a Norwegian Intercity Train (Bergensbanen Railway)
45. The Flamsbana Railway – From the Myrdal Mountains to the Fjord at Flam
46. Review: SAS Economy Class Oslo to Brussels (Boeing 737-600)
47. Review: Diamond Lounge Brussels Airport Pier B Non-Schengen
48. Review: TAROM Economy Class Brussels to Bucharest (Boeing 737-800)