For many years of my life, I didn’t know that airport lounges existed. When I first became aware of them, they seemed like something that existed solely for upper echelon travelers in business and first class. On a whim, when traveling through India and Indonesia with my sister and niece (see How to Spend Two Weeks in India and Indonesia) I booked us lounge access before one of our flights. It was not the ultimate luxury experience, but it opened my eyes to the possibility of more comfortable travel. Yet, regular lounge access still seemed like a splurge that was out of my budget.
However, it seems lounge access is becoming a more an more popular concept. Which means it has also become more accessible to travelers. Here we’d like to share our experience with lounge access across the globe.
How to Get Access
There are a variety of ways to get airport lounge access, often depending on the lounge. Some lounges are exclusively to travelers flying that particular airline. Often these require purchase of a business or first class ticket or a certain level of membership in the airline’s loyalty program.
Other lounges may offer access to all travelers willing to pay for entrance on an pay-per-use or as you go basis. Or there are options for travelers willing to pay for a subscription to regular lounge access. For example Priority Pass, who describe themselves as “the world’s largest independent airport lounge access programme.”
The final option is the route we ourselves chose for lounge access – through a credit card. There are quite a few credit cards now that offer lounge access, including several airline co-branded cards. You can see a more comprehensive discussion of the best cards for airport lounge access here.
Probably the most popular and most expansive is the lounge access offered through the AMEX Platinum card. Read more about the perks of this luxury travel card in our post Luxury Bang for Your Buck: Why You Should Consider the AMEX Platinum.
One of the great bonuses of the AMEX Platinum card when it comes to lounge access is that authorized users can also use their cards for access. Up to three authorized users can be added for the same annual fee. Therefore, you can add family and friends and gift them lounge access as well.
Lounge Types
Lounges can vary drastically in their availability, quality and amenities. Larger international airports tend to have more options to choose from of course. While Priority Pass lounges are most prevalent, they also tend to be toward the bottom of the scale in terms of quality and quantity of amenities.
Priority Pass, Plaza Premium, Centurion, Airline
Perks
So, what is lounge access like? Quiet place, nicer bathrooms, showers, massages, free food and drinks, charging, wifi, free guests
Potential Cons
Lounges not open, overcrowding, annual fee.
Is It Worth It?
To Be Continued …
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