I visited the Encalm Privé lounge twice in March 2025 during my trip from Milan to Melbourne in business class on Air India.

I describe what business class looks like on an Air India Boeing 787-8 in this review.

Normally I could only visit the Air India lounge, but it is currently under renovation and during this time Air India and all Star Alliance airlines use Encalm Privé.

Lounge opening hours and location

The Encalm Privé lounge is only accessible to passengers who have already cleared immigration and security to the departure area.

It is located in the international section of Delhi DEL Terminal 3.

Opening hours are 24 hours a day.

The lounge can be found about a 2-minute walk from the only security checkpoint of the international terminal, next to the Guardian Pharmacy.

In this section, there is a significantly lesser lounge called Encalm, which is available to all passengers upon payment.

Encalm Privé is located on Level 3 and is accessible by four elevators.

Entrance - who has access to the lounge

The Encalm Privé Lounge is only available to premium class (business and first class) passengers of the following airlines and holders of Gold status and above:

• All oneWorld airlines
• All SkyTeam airlines
• Air Mauritius
• Emirates

For airline passengers, lounge stay is unlimited.

In addition, all passengers regardless of class and airline can pay for a maximum of 2 hours in the lounge at 3 900 inr. However, access for these visitors is limited when the lounge is at capacity.

Holders of credit cards or DragonPass, Lounge Key or Priority Pass cards are not allowed to enter this lounge.

Official lounge website: encalm.com/encalmlounge.

Lounge size and overall ambience

Encalm Privé is a large lounge with ample seating of all kinds. The downside is the lack of a view of the airport tarmac.

Even at busy times (most between 8pm and midnight and also between 5am and 8am) there is no problem finding an available seat.

To the right you will find comfortable seats ideal for relaxing:

The central part of the lounge is dominated by a huge room with a bar and food counters, around which there are plenty of seats with tables where you can eat comfortably.

Additional dining tables are available near the showers and spa. There are usually only a minimum of people here and you can easily get seated even if the main lounge area is full.

Food and drink on offer

Encalm Privé stands out above all for its exceptionally extensive food offer.

Particularly when it comes to hot dishes, I can't think of many lounges in the world with a more extensive menu. The food is largely Indian, but you'll also find international cuisine in the right-hand section of the counter.

On request, the chef will prepare, for example, eggs, pasta or various types of tortillas and sandwiches.

Salads, fruit and various types of dressings and sauces are also on offer. The meze-bar with a wide range of tzatziki, hummus and similar dishes is absolutely wonderful.

However, the meze bar is only available from 11:00. Until then, it is mainly vegetable and fruit salads.

There is also a wide selection of sweets, yoghurts and cereals.

The food selection is poorest in the cold kitchen, where only a few cheeses and pastries are usually available.

Cocktails, beer and other alcohol are available at the centrally located bar. Alcohol is only ever served by the bartender.

Definitely the worst is the selection of soft drinks, which are only available in cans and small plastic bottles.

Usually only water, Fanta, Sprite and Coca Cola are available as well as coffee drinks from the coffee machine.

Lounge facilities

What other facilities and amenities does the Encalm Privé lounge offer?

Showers

A shower before a night long-haul flight is always an extremely welcome refreshment and showers are available in the lounge.

Unfortunately, however, there are only 3 showers for men and 3 showers for women, so you will need to make an appointment first and wait in a room near the showers.

At peak times, the wait for a shower can be over 45 minutes.

The showers themselves are great though - very spacious and immaculately cleaned. Of course, towels, soaps and shampoos are provided free of charge.

Wi-fi

Internet access is available via free wi-fi.

To connect you need a username and password, which you generate at the kiosk just inside the lounge entrance or at the computers between the main lounge area and the showers.

Charging plugs

At Encalm Privé, the hassle of finding plugs to charge your electronics is completely eliminated.

Outlets are available at literally every seat and table throughout the lounge.

All plugs are type C, D and M.

Sleeping capsules

You will also find 5 sleeping pods in the rear of the lounge. However, there is no full-size bed inside the cubicle, just a fold-out seat similar to, for example, the business class seats on an airplane.

In addition, there is a charge of 2 000 inr per 3 hours for the use of the cubicle.

Desktop with computer and printer

Between the main part of the lounge and the showers you will find several desks with erary computers and also a printer, which you can use for free.

Children's corners

There are no play areas or toys for children in the Encalm Privé Lounge.

Conclusion and my review

Overall, I rate Encalm Privé as one of the best lounges I have visited in the last year.

Particularly positive are the ample space, the different types of seating from comfortable relaxing chairs to dining tables, and plenty of quieter areas.

The selection of hot food, sweets, fruit and salads is absolutely wonderful, as is the extraordinary number of charging plugs.

The one definite negative is the very poor selection of soft drinks and also the potentially very long waiting time for a shower.