Korean Air’s new lounges, but are they beautiful spaces in search of a common language?

Korean Air has just unveiled the first phase of its much-anticipated lounge renewal programme at Seoul Incheon, and on the surface, the results are nothing short of spectacular. The airline has opened revamped versions of its Miler Club and Prestige East lounges, while also debuting two brand new Prestige Garden lounges. The design direction is modern and hotel-like, with well-defined areas for dining, relaxation, meetings and wellness. The spaces feel refined, grown up and distinctly premium.

Walking into the lounges now feels like arriving at a lifestyle club more than an airport space. There are live cooking stations where chefs from the Grand Hyatt Incheon prepare dishes on demand, from Korean comfort staples like gimbap and tteokguk to hand stretched pizzas and seasonal delicacies. Guests can order cocktails from bartenders, enjoy crafted coffees from in-house baristas and choose from a rotating menu that blends Korean flavours with international tastes.

Beyond the culinary side, there are new premium shower suites, quiet wellness corners with massage chairs, and private meeting rooms that give a sense of business efficiency. Perhaps most striking are the two themed gardens, one designed with traditional Korean landscaping cues, the other a Western inspired counterpart, both offering passengers the kind of calm that is rare in an international hub.

From a passenger experience perspective, these are some of the best lounges Korean Air has ever delivered. They reflect ambition, hospitality and a desire to create something that travellers will remember long after they have boarded. Yet for all their beauty, there is a growing sense that Korean Air’s broader design language has become fragmented. Each individual project is strong, but they do not always appear to be in dialogue with one another.

Earlier this year the airline unveiled its new livery and identity, created with the branding agency Lippincott. It was the first full rebrand since 1984 and marked a bold shift. The Taegeuk symbol was reimagined in a refined, darker blue and the full “Korean Air” logotype on the fuselage was shortened to just “Korean,” paired with a modern sans serif typeface. The rebrand was striking and contemporary, setting the tone for the airline’s future.

Meanwhile, the airline’s cabin interiors, created by PriestmanGoode, tell another story. Business and economy cabins were given a refreshed look inspired by Korean culture, with details such as Jogakbo patchwork patterns, saekdong stripes and subtle embroidery motifs running through textiles and finishes. The result was a cabin experience that was both contemporary and culturally authentic, offering passengers a tangible connection to Korean heritage.

Now, with the lounges designed by LTW Designworks, there is yet another voice in the mix. The lounges are elegant, no question, but the atmosphere they create does not clearly echo either the livery or the cabin interiors. This is not a criticism of the design work itself. All three agencies have delivered projects of the highest quality. The real challenge lies in the absence of an overarching creative direction at the airline level. When agencies are asked to work in isolation, even the best of them can only deliver brilliance within their own sphere. What is often missing is the connective tissue that ties everything together. Look below, do these three images have a connective thread of design?

For a flag carrier, cohesion matters. A consistent visual and experiential language tells customers that the airline knows who it is, what it stands for, and what it wants passengers to feel at every moment. When lounges, cabins and brand identity are aligned, the entire journey feels intentional. A lounge can prepare you for the mood of the aircraft, and a livery glimpsed through the window can reinforce the story told by the seat fabric under your fingertips. Without this consistency, even the most beautifully executed projects can feel isolated.

This is why more airlines should consider creative directors as integral to their leadership teams. A creative director can act as the guardian of the brand’s soul, ensuring that the work of external agencies aligns into one coherent narrative. It is not about restricting creativity but about weaving together the many threads so that the story being told in a lounge resonates in the cabin, and the brand identity on the aircraft exterior feels like an extension of what is experienced on the inside.

Korean Air’s new lounges at Incheon are an achievement in their own right. They are ambitious, stylish and thoughtful, setting a new standard for the airline’s ground experience. They deserve praise for their focus on comfort, food and atmosphere. But they also highlight how important it is for an airline to think beyond individual projects and embrace the idea of a unifying creative direction. Consistency is what elevates an experience from a collection of good ideas into a compelling brand journey.

Korean Air has shown it can deliver excellence in every sphere. The next step is to make sure these spheres connect. Because when design sings in unison under a guiding hand, the passenger experience becomes more than the sum of its parts.

As I do every year, I ask on your kind support to keep things going. If you are able to donate – whatever amount – it all gets funnelled back in to the site, to keep the site full of content. And I thank you personally for your kind support.