When planning our trip to Seoul, we decided to travel with Vietnamese airlinesallowing us to enjoy a city stopover in Ho Chi Minh City on the way back. Having never flown in Vietnam Airlines’ premium cabins, we were excited for a new experience, but of course also interested to see how they looked after their vegan passengers, or even anyone who chose their special VGML (vegan) meal option. With a short-haul flight from Singapore to Ho Chi Minh City followed by a longer flight to Seoul, we would experience two types of planes and two different dining offerings in each direction. Below is an honest look at our first business class experience with Vietnam Airlines, from check-in to arrival, allowing you to decide if Vietnam Airlines is a “vegan” airline you should consider for your next vegan travel adventure.
Departing from Changi Airport, Singapore Departing from Terminal 3, we were able to use Vietnam Airlines’ dedicated business class check-in counters, which were professional and efficient. Our bags were checked in for both of our flights and we were also given boarding passes for each flight. As Vietnam Airlines did not operate its own lounge in Changi, we were able to access the Premier SATS Loungethis is where we first researched any vegan or plant-based options that might be available.
Everything was clearly labeled, making it easy to realize that we had very little choice. Salad, roast potatoes, cauliflower with black mushrooms and goji berries were the only dishes we could have eaten with steamed white rice. It had delicious marinated tofu but the sauce wasn’t vegan, which was a classic case of “almost, but not quite.” Our flight was delayed, which gave us another option as new dishes were introduced to the buffet, including a black-eyed pea curry and fried garlic kailan, both of which paired perfectly with the aforementioned steamed white rice, making for a tasty and nutritious pre-flight bite while waiting for our delayed departure.
Our flight from Singapore to Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam Airlines uses its A321 on many of these regional flights, where business class offers a 2-2 configuration with spacious reclining seats, plenty of legroom and footrests. Unfortunately, even after changing our pre-assigned seats, we had non-functional seats. A combination of the broken recliner, a headrest that didn’t stay in place, and a footrest that didn’t extend meant that our short flight from Singapore to Ho Chi Minh City wasn’t as comfortable as it should have been. Luckily, our VGML meal was a very tasty tofu in a flavor-packed black bean dish.
This was served with a salad of mushrooms and tofu, which we didn’t eat but looked very good, as well as a roll with vegan butter and cut fruit. The main course was delicious and one of the tastiest vegan meals we have enjoyed on board in recent times.
Lotus Lounge at Tan Son Nhat International Airport, Ho Chi Minh City With limited layover time, we were only able to visit the Vietnam Airlines “Lotus Lounge” for a short visit, but it allowed us to use the facilities and freshen up for our overnight flight and also check out what vegan options were or were not available. Well, it’s lucky we weren’t hungry because there was nothing to eat except fruit. Every dish on the buffet was not suitable for vegans and the staff were unable to help us as they were very busy. We found a comfortable seat in a corner, away from the crowds (the lounge was packed), and waited for our onward flight.
Everything you need to plan your trip in 2026 Our flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Seoul Our next flight was on one of Vietnam Airlines’ Dreamliner 787s, which was much more luxurious for our longer overnight flight, as the 1-2-1 configuration allowed for more space and very welcome flat beds. With our late departure and early arrival, we really wanted to sleep, but of course we had to see what offer VGML had offered us on this leg of our trip.
Well, we were served exactly the same thing as on the previous flight, a mushroom salad and the tofu with rice that we had enjoyed so much a few hours before. The plating and presentation was better, especially for the salad, which may have been due to the extra space in the galley on board the 787, but the food of course tasted exactly the same. There was a welcome surprise, which was an actual dessert instead of fruit, which was very welcome indeed. A soft sponge cake with berry sauce was the perfect way to end our meal before a few hours of sleep was on the agenda.
Korean Air Lounge at Incheon International Airport, Seoul Before our return flight, we were granted access to the Korean Air lounge located in Terminal 1. This is where we relaxed before boarding and completed our Vegan Food Quest on this recent vegan travel adventure.
The lounge was bright, modern and spacious, with plenty of seating and showers for anyone having a long layover. The buffet was quite small but had a few vegan options including mushroom soup with perilla seeds, sautéed mushrooms with rice, and pasta salad. Everything was clearly labeled and had been supplied by Grand Hyatt Seoul. But we had received a wonderful breakfast box from executive sous chef Mike and his team at Conrad Seoulso I chose to eat that instead. Savory fried rice with tofu and grilled vegetables, perfect for a vegan breakfast in the lounge before our flight.
Our flight from Seoul to Ho Chi Minh City Our return flight was back on the Dreamliner 787, so we knew what to expect in terms of accommodation and flat seat/bed. It was a day flight, so we didn’t plan on sleeping, but the fully reclining business class seat certainly made our trip more comfortable. We were intrigued to know if we would be served the same VGML meal again or if we could try something else in the kitchens that prepare meals for Vietnam Airlines. Well, this was different, but sometimes you have to be careful what you wish for because our previous repeat tofu dish was far superior. First there were “canapés” consisting of a single fruit skewer, two cherry tomatoes, half an olive and some dried fruit, all of course edible, but not very creative or exciting.
Then there was an unappetizing appetizer which we sent back. It was a pepper stuffed with beans and vegetables so cold they were almost frozen and served without sauce, which meant flavorless. Our main course was also returned, a mixture of dry, flavorless beans accompanied by overcooked vegetables. This was probably the worst vegan business class meal we have ever been served and it was very disappointing indeed. The crew apologized as they could see that everything we were served was not inspiring and was not of a comparable standard to what the other passengers were eating. They managed to find vegan instant noodles and made them for us which were very tasty, but we didn’t book and pay for business class flights to eat instant noodles.
In recent years, things have improved for vegan travelers, with airlines around the world adding creative and interesting options available for pre-order to their plant-based offerings. Just recently, Emirates announced that it now offers almost 500 vegan recipes on rotation, demonstrating that it is one of the airlines truly leading the way in catering for its vegan travelers.
Our experience with Vietnam Airlines reminded us that the variety and quality on offer still has a way to go. We encountered friendly, helpful crew on our three recent flights, and aside from the faulty seats on our first flight, the 787’s hard-core product, while not revolutionary, was very comfortable. The vegan food however was disappointing overall, two meals the same and one completely lacking in creativity and flavor. Being based in the area we will likely fly with them again and can only hope that the vegan food we are served is of equal quality to that of the crew who looked after us.
Paul Eyers Paul Eyers is co-founder of Vegan Food Quest which writes about luxury hotels and resorts in Southeast Asia with a focus on sustainable travel, eco travel and vegan travel. Currently based in Malaysia, Paul also writes about sporting events and some of the region’s finest golf courses.
Did you enjoy this article? Receive similar content straight to your inbox.
