Review: Minsk Airport International Business Lounge
This review details the business lounge in the international departures terminal of Minsk Airport (MSQ), Belarus.
Minsk Airport
After two enjoyable days in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, it was time to move on to my next destination, so I took the bus back to the airport for my Turkish Airlines flight to Istanbul.
For what it’s worth, this trip took place in 2019, and while I always found Belarus to be a safe country to visit, I wouldn’t recommend travelling there now — especially for Western travellers, due to the high risk of politically motivated arbitrary arrests and being used as a political bargaining chip.
Needless to say, the massive, violent crackdown on free speech following the fraudulent 2020 presidential elections, which saw President Alexander Lukashenko secure another term, and the invasion of Ukraine by Russia — Belarus’s closest ally — have significantly complicated matters when it comes to travelling to Minsk, both from a safety and moral perspective.
Airplane graveyard
I arrived at the airport three and a half hours before departure and still had some time to kill before check-in opened, which for Turkish Airlines at international outstations is usually three hours before departure.
Normally, I wouldn’t recommend arriving this early, especially not in this part of the world where airports tend to be basic and boring, yet in the case of Minsk, that isn’t quite true.
If you walk along the access road away from the terminal building, you’ll reach an outdoor exhibition of old Soviet aircraft belonging to Minsk’s Museum of Aviation Technology (Музей авіяцыйнай тэхнікі) in around five to ten minutes.
The exhibition, which is free to visit, is essentially an aircraft graveyard filled with old Tupolev and Ilyushin planes and the like, and is well worth seeing if you have even the slightest interest in Soviet aviation.
Check-in
After a while, I walked back to the airport, where the Turkish Airlines check-in desks had just opened, including a dedicated line for business class and Star Alliance Gold passengers.
As I had already checked in online, I only needed a printed boarding pass for my collection, so the process was extremely quick.
The check-in agent also handed me an invitation to the business lounge.
There were no queues at all at security or passport control, and within minutes I was airside in the terminal.
Minsk Airport Business Lounge location and entry requirements
While Minsk Airport looks fairly modern landside, once you’re airside you’ll find a delightfully old-fashioned maze of narrow corridors, oddly laid-out gate areas, and strangely positioned shops.
It took quite some time to find the badly signposted entrance to the business lounge, which is accessed by going up a staircase hidden inside one of the duty-free shops.
Minsk Airport has two business lounges, with the one I visited located in the international section of the terminal, while the other lounge, intended for domestic (union) departures, is situated in a separate area.
Although there are currently no domestic flights from Minsk Airport, Belarus forms a customs union with Russia, allowing citizens of both countries to travel between them as if on domestic flights.
Entry requirements to the business lounge at Minsk Airport depend on your airline’s policy.
In the case of Turkish Airlines, access is granted if you are flying in business class or hold Star Alliance Gold status.
The business lounge at Minsk Airport can also be accessed with lounge membership programmes such as Priority Pass and Dragon Pass.
Inside the business lounge at Minsk Airport
I’ve visited hundreds of business lounges at airports on every continent apart from Oceania, but I’ve never encountered one as bizarre-looking as the lounge in Minsk.
The L-shaped lounge isn’t a proper room but rather a section of the upper terminal floor, enclosed by iron plates around 2 metres (6.5 feet) high, leaving a large gap with the actual ceiling.
Some of the plates were left in their natural metallic colour, while others featured images of airplane windows with various sights of Belarus depicted inside them.
The business lounge certainly resembled more of an impromptu space quickly sectioned off from the rest of the airport premises, rather than an exclusive retreat.
The main part of the business lounge featured comfortable loungers, a few tables and seats, and, oddly enough, two green four-poster beds right in the middle of the lounge – all placed on a faux grass carpet.
Around the corner on the other side of the lounge, you’ll find mostly dining tables, along with the buffet area.
Sadly, I couldn’t capture it well on my phone camera, as the lounge staff were quite strict about their “no photography” policy, and I didn’t want to risk any issues with the authorities.
As a result, I had to take all of these snaps covertly, which is why many shots are a bit blurry and not up to my usual quality standards.
Lounge buffet
The international business lounge at Minsk Airport has a small buffet with just a few (cold) snacks, none of which looked even remotely appetising.
For review purposes, I did taste a few, and I must say the little bites were better than they looked, and I didn’t suffer any food poisoning from them either.
The lounge has a couple of self-serve fridges where you can grab bottles of water, soft drinks, beer, and some locally produced alcoholic beverages.
There was also a bar where you could order ‘premium’ (foreign-made) drinks for an additional charge.
Tea and coffee are available in the lounge free of charge.
Simply put, you won’t want to rely on the business lounge at Minsk Airport for a filling meal, although it’s fine if all you need is a simple drink.
Other lounge facilities
The Wi-Fi connection in the lounge was somewhat unreliable, with slow speeds.
The signal dropped a few times during my stay, requiring me to wait about five minutes for it to reconnect.
There are a few power outlets scattered around the lounge to charge your phone or laptop, though you won’t find them at every seat.
According to the Minsk Airport website, the international business lounge has a shower room and paid sleeping cabins, though I didn’t inquire about these services, so I’m unsure of what they look like.
My lounge stay
Given the somewhat unreliable Wi-Fi, I scrapped any plans to get work done on my laptop and instead spent my time lounging on one of the four-poster beds, sipping a beer or two while ‘admiring’ the lounge’s bizarre design.
At least the local Belarusian beers tasted good!
A walk around the airport
After a while, I’d had enough of the lounge and decided to take a walk and explore the airport a bit more.
Although the terminal layout prevents you from getting close to the windows — due to the walkways for arriving passengers and some plants separating the seating areas of each boarding gate from the glass — you can still get some good views for planespotting at Minsk Airport.
As you’d expect, Minsk Airport sees a range of exotic aircraft rarely spotted at most European airports, including planes from local carrier Belavia, though the highlight for me was a Turkmenistan Airlines Boeing 737.
I found the design of Minsk Airport just as fascinating as the lounge.
The gate areas had a fantastic Soviet-futuristic look, with most even featuring a small bar, making it feel like I was walking through a communist spaceship.
That said, the airport clearly hails from another era and isn’t designed with passenger comfort or space efficiency in mind, though it’s fascinating to explore.
Boarding
Unfortunately, my Turkish Airlines flight was delayed, with the inbound plane arriving 40 minutes late in Minsk, which caused a potential issue for my onward connection in Istanbul to Almaty.
After a short wait, I finally saw the Turkish Airlines Airbus A321 arriving at the jet bridge, and once the passengers from Istanbul had disembarked, it was our turn to board.
From the plane window, I had one last great view of Minsk Airport and the Belavia planes parked at some of the terminal jet bridges.
In the next chapter of this trip report series, I’ll review my Turkish Airlines business class flights from Minsk to Istanbul and then on to Almaty in full.
Conclusion
The international business lounge at Minsk Airport is far from a great place, though it is one of the quirkiest I’ve ever visited.
The lounge design is rather bizarre, with iron plates only partially enclosing it from the rest of the terminal and odd pieces of furniture like four-poster beds placed right in the middle of the floor space.
You shouldn’t come to the Minsk Airport business lounge expecting a filling meal, as the buffet offered only a few cold snacks, none of which looked particularly appetising.
The drink selection was decent, with free tea, coffee, water, soft drinks, and local Belarusian alcohol, while more premium foreign-made drinks came at an extra cost from the lounge bar.
That said, I genuinely enjoyed my time at Minsk Airport, which really is a fascinating place thanks to its Soviet-era design and the exciting planespotting opportunities it offers.
Trip report index
This article is part of the ‘Back to Central Asia: Travels Through Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan‘ trip report, which consists of the following chapters:
1. Review: TAROM Domestic Flight Bucharest to Cluj-Napoca
2. Cluj-Napoca: A Travel Guide to Transylvania’s Vibrant Capital
3. Turda Salt Mine and Gorge: An Easy Cluj-Napoca Day Trip
4. Cheile Turzii: Hiking Through the Impressive Turda Gorge
5. Review: Cluj-Napoca Airport Business Lounge
6. Guide: Free Turkish Airlines Transit Hotel at Istanbul Airport
7. Minsk, Belarus: Chasing Soviet Ghosts in Europe’s Last Dictatorship
8. Review: Minsk Airport International Business Lounge (current chapter)
9. Review: Turkish Airlines Business Class Minsk-Istanbul-Almaty
10. A Visit to Almaty, Kazakhstan’s Vibrant Economic Capital
** rest of the chapters to follow soon **
