Tough Rules Coming Soon to AMEX Centurion Airport Lounges – AMEX Platinum Cardholders Take Note!

January 26, 2019 By Meghan Hunter

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If you have one of the following AMEX cards, this news affects you:

That’s because these cards come with the ultra-rare benefit of free access to AMEX Centurion airport lounges, widely considered the best domestic airport lounges in existence. And the number of lounges is steadily growing! AMEX Centurion Lounges offer:

Hot buffet-style meals
Premium alcoholic beverages
Showers
Conference spaces
Reliable Wi-Fi

And beginning March 22, 2019, it will become more difficult to enter!

A Rendering of the Upcoming Denver Centurion Lounge. American Express Centurion Lounges are our Favorite Lounges to Relax at While Waiting for an Upcoming Flight. — AMEX Centurion Airport Lounges Are Perhaps the Best in the Country!

New AMEX Centurion Airport Lounge Rules

The new rules taking place in late March are as follows:

You won’t be allowed in unless your scheduled departure is within 3 hours, or unless you can provide proof of your upcoming connecting flight
If you have arrived at your final destination, you can NOT enter the Centurion Lounge
You can bring children under 2 years of age for free (and they won’t count toward your 2 free guests), as long as you can prove their age or show a “lap infant” boarding pass

The reaction this news evokes will vary wildly, depending on who you are.

While it sounds like bad news (you can now enter less frequently), this hopefully means the lounges will be less crowded, which has been a big complaint of late. You won’t be able to freshen up at a lounge at your final destination before you leave the airport, but your pre-departure experience should be a lot more enjoyable.

As a reminder, you can find AMEX Centurion Lounges in:

Charlotte (coming soon)
Dallas-Fort Worth
Denver (coming soon)
Houston Intercontinental
Las Vegas
Los Angeles (coming soon)
New York-La Guardia
New York – JFK (coming soon)
Miami
Philadelphia
San Francisco
Seattle-Tacoma

Let me know what you think of this change! And read my post on the top cards for airport lounge access if you’re looking to make your next trip more comfortable.

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Enjoy complimentary access to the Global Lounge Collection, the only credit card airport lounge access program that includes proprietary lounge locations around the world.
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