Another Big Airport Lounge Policy Change! Are You Affected?

October 2, 2017 by Million Mile Secrets Million Mile Secrets

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I told you AMEX tightened their Centurion Lounge guest policies earlier this year. And now, AMEX has made another big change!

Folks are reporting that starting today, October 2, 2017, you will no longer be able to buy AMEX Centurion Lounge day passes! So if you don’t have an AMEX credit card granting you access to the Centurion Lounges, you will NOT be allowed in.

Another Big Airport Lounge Policy Change Are You Affected — AMEX Centurion Lounges Can Be VERY Crowded, Which Takes Away From the Premium Experience!

No More AMEX Centurion Lounge Day Passes

Link: AMEX Centurion Lounge

Before today, anyone with an AMEX credit card could purchase a day pass into any AMEX Centurion Lounge for $50 per person. But to the imaginable delight of folks with Centurion Lounge access from credit cards, this will no longer be an option!

I noticed this crowding problem when I reviewed the Centurion Lounge in San Francisco. There were barely any available seats at all!

So AMEX is doing this to prevent crowding in their lounges, and to give folks with their premium credit cards a better experience. If you have a credit card that grants Centurion Lounge access, you’re probably happy to hear this! But if you do NOT, your lounge options just got smaller.

There are only a few cards that will give you access to Centurion Lounges:

The Platinum Card® from American Express
The Platinum Card® from American Express Exclusively for Mercedes-Benz
The Business Platinum® Card from American Express OPEN
American Express Centurion Card (invitation only)

With these cards, the lounge policies will remain the same. You can bring 2 guests with these cards. And you can purchase day passes for more guests if you like.

Bottom Line

For folks who don’t have AMEX Platinum credit cards, you can no longer buy access to AMEX Centurion Lounges for $50 per day.

This may be disappoints news for some. But why buy access, when you can apply for cards that give you access for free? 😉

How do you feel about this policy change?

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2comments

7:57 amNovember 4, 2017 Brad

This is a needed move. I almost dropped the card when they changed from letting my family of four in, but I like those lounges so much we kept it. Crowding is an issue and this seems like a fair move.

10:39 pmOctober 2, 2017 Tom

I assume you just accidentally omitted the Schwab Platinum and Ameriprise Platinum, right? As far as I know, they should have exactly the same benefits as the regular Platinum (plus a few broker-specific extras).