Delta Sky Club HNL Lounge Review: Compact & Equipped but Dated

Over the past couple of years, I’ve really started to become a big fan of Delta Sky Clubs.

But on a recent trip to HNL, I had my doubts about the Delta Sky Club mostly because I knew it would be small and the prior lounges I visited at HNL were nothing special.

But luckily, my expectations were surpassed at this compact yet equipped lounge and in this article I’ll tell you all about the experience!

Getting to the Delta Sky Club at HNL

It was extremely easy to get to the Delta Sky Club which was no surprise because HNL is not very big.

The Delta Sky Club is located in terminal two just outside of security near Gate F1.

Delta check-in was located in lobby seven so that is the lobby that we entered through after going through the USDA check for our checked bags.

Once you make it past security, you’ll turn left and it’s very hard to miss the lounge.

Gate F1 also happened to be our gate so it made getting to the lounge and planning our exit as easy as could be.

Access for the Delta Sky Club at HNL

We had access to the Delta Sky Club HNL via our American Express Platinum Cards because we were flying Delta back to the mainland.

Specifically, we were flying Delta One Suites from HNL to SEA and then Delta First Class from SEA to PHX.

We had just arrived from Kona to HNL about four hours before our departure and the check-in agents were gracious enough to check our bags for us.

However, the lounge strictly stuck to the three hour prior to flight window and that meant that we would have to kill some time before being able to enter the lounge. That was annoying but it’s probably a good thing they have the policy because it is such a small lounge.

Related:

Experiencing the lounge

When we were finally able to get into the lounge, the agents were very friendly and professional.

They made sure to tell us about all of the features of the lounge and invited us to send our own Hawaiian postcards (with postage paid for by Delta). That, to me, was a very nice and fitting touch for travelers departing Hawaii and we sent a couple of them out to family members.

The lounge had a pretty minimal amount of traffic which made it very relaxing at least for the first hour or so.

It would pick up and get a little bit busy but it never got too crazy and died down towards the end of our visit. That was nice because for small lounges like this, I always worry about the lounge becoming an unenjoyable madhouse.

There were a hand full of different seating areas and we decided to grab a couple of chairs just on the other side of the bar. Some of the seating does have counters with outlets so look out for those if you need to stay powered up.

Most of the seating options offered in the lounge were the same or similar and consisted of typical airport lounge chairs. Comfortable yet a little boring by today’s lounge standards. You can get a feel for the different seating areas with some of the photos below.

I liked the Hawaiian artwork on display and also liked that they had a profile of the artist below each piece.

Aside from the entire lounge feeling pretty dated, I did like the relaxing color scheme found throughout the lounge with teal/mint accents contrasted against woodgrain. Not necessarily the most impressive decor for sure, but I appreciated that they at least had done something a little bit different.

The drinks and dining

I went over to check out the dining options and I was pleasantly surprised to see so many different hot food items along with some tasty sandwiches.

I really wasn’t sure what to expect in this lounge since our last lounge experience at HNL definitely was nothing special.

But this exceeded my expectations with a diverse range of food options raging from Hawaiian to Japanese, and also offering your basic items like ham and cheese sandwiches and even comfort foods like chicken noodle soup. I’d say it was a pretty solid food line up.

Here’s a close look at all of the food items that were offered in the late afternoon/early evening.

If you were just looking for snacks, they did have a stand with Lays potato chips.

And another station with desserts which included some type of pudding dish, oatmeal raisin cookies, and a small freezer with some sort of special ice cream.

As for drinks, the lounge has a small bar with a very friendly bartender who also was pretty efficient at serving up drinks. You never saw the line get a long at all.

The mai tai drinks, complete with decorative flower and umbrella, seemed to be a major hit for many people. I just went with my usual sparkling water but Brad had one last mai tai before we departed Hawaii.

There’s also a good lineup of different teas with honey and an easy to use hot water dispenser.

Iced tea, lemonade, and ice water were also available.

If you want some soda water they had a small soda water dispenser and if you’re in the mood for some coffee they had two espresso machines.

Near the food station, they had a pretty long row of two person dining tables along with some seats with tables found along the wall.

In the back corner of the lounge there was a TV area with a large screen playing ESPN. This appeared to be the busiest area of the lounge during our stay.

The lounge had a rack of literature to check out and I decided to try out a travel magazine to pass some time.

It had been a while since I had sat down with a magazine and I actually enjoyed going through it and learned quite a bit about some cool spots on different islands of Hawaii.

I definitely think I’m going to return to magazine reading as it was something I used to always do at airports and when flying but at some point I just dropped the habit.

There’s a small workstation area with a few chairs, some outlets, and a printer station. If you have something that you need to print, you can send it to the printer via email by just following the instructions.

In this back corner of the lounge there is another TV area but it’s a good amount smaller than the other section. It was also much quieter over here.

One thing that I thought was interesting about the lounge is that they came around with a cart serving mini cannolis and some type of special alcoholic tea. That’s not something I typically see in an airport lounge, especially a small one, so I thought it was pretty cool and once again a nice touch by Delta.

The bathroom

While some Delta Sky Clubs on the larger side have some pretty amazing (and huge) bathrooms, the men’s bathroom here is quite small with one urinal and one stall. I know this is a smaller lounge but only having one stall is under equipped to me.

Final word

The Delta Sky Club at HNL is pretty compact and yes it is dated.

However, the staff is great and the dining and drink options were solid and plentiful. The lounge also provided a few special touches here and there that made the experience feel a bit more premium.

Overall, I really liked the lounge and would prefer visiting this over the Plumeria lounges any day but it will be nice if the lounge can get some renovation love in the near future.

Daniel Gillaspia

Daniel Gillaspia is the Founder of UponArriving.com and creator of the credit card app, WalletFlo. He is a former attorney turned full-time travel expert covering destinations along with TSA, airline, and hotel policies. Since 2014, his content has been featured in major publications such as National Geographic, Smithsonian Magazine, Forbes, CNBC, US News, and Business Insider. Find his full bio here.

Wow: Delta Sky Club LAX Terminal 3 Review

After being in the works for four years, The Delta Sky Club at LAX Terminal 3 recently opened in April 2022. It’s a beautiful and spacious lounge that is fully equipped with multiple bars, a Sky Deck, showers, and a lot more.

Check out what the experience is all about in the review below and if you ever go to visit let us know what you think!

Getting to the lounge

The Delta Sky Club at LAX Terminal 3 is located on the departures level between T2 and T3. Once you get close, you really can’t miss it.

The new lounge was part of an even larger project that involved re-doing Delta’s Terminal 3 in a substantial way.

Highlights of the new Terminal 3 include:

A centralized headhouse that consolidates check-in, security and baggage claim
32 self-serve kiosks and 46 check-in positions
A 250-foot digital backwall featuring helpful info like Delta Sky Club volume
Five baggage claim carousels
Seven new security lanes

If you’re coming from Terminal 3 you’ll be able to experience the new terminal but because we were on a connection going through Terminal 2 we didn’t really have that opportunity.

Note: When the Delta Sky Way at LAX project is complete in 2023, Terminals 2 and 3 will be a consolidated.

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Access

We gained access to the lounge since we were flying Delta and we had Amex Platinum cards but there are various ways you can gain access to Delta Sky Clubs.

As soon as we entered the lounge I noticed there were five self-service kiosk stations with a few staff members attending them and it occurred to me that this would be an automated entry.

I absolutely hope other lounges head in this direction because it just makes things so much easier.

Because Brad and I were together they asked if we had separate entry which we did based on us each having a Platinum Card so we checked in separately.

All we had to do was scan our boarding pass and swipe our cards and then that was it.

Access granted.

I did see there was an option to add a guest so if that’s what you need to do it looks like that will be easy to accomplish on the kiosk.

After enjoying a little 21st-century kiosk automation, we made our way up the escalator in this stunning lobby, where fixtures designed to resemble waves rolling in the ocean hang from the ceiling and immediately impress.

Exploring the lounge

As soon as we made our way past the wood-screened area, which marks the official entrance to the lounge, I could tell this was going to be one of the more memorable legacy carrier lounge visits I’ve had in recent memory.

The swankiness is undeniable.

The lounge was spacious and had a steady flow of traffic but did not ever feel overcrowded.

That’s no surprise considering that it’s over 30,000 square feet — one of the largest in the Delta network.

We took a right upon entering and made our way towards the corner of the lounge where we had some nice runway views while also being close to the food and drink area.

Before grubbing out, I made my rounds around the lounge to check everything out and was continuously impressed by the design and layout.

There’s a lot of seating options and no shortage of power outlets and USB ports making it extremely easy to get comfortable and charge your devices at the same time.

You’ll definitely have no excuse for your device going dead at any point.

Floor to (nearly) ceiling windows line the lounge offering great runway views for many guests.

Delta Sky Club LAX seating with outside view of planes

If you’re unable to secure a view looking out, the views looking in to this swanky interior can also delight. It didn’t take long for this lounge to win me over.

I liked the area with the little privacy pods for getting work done or talking on the phone.

These cozy little phone booths could be a great place to focus if the lounge gets a bit busy. Inside each one you can find a power outlet and USB port. Sensors will trigger the light when you open the door.

These are perfect for people like me who rely a lot on speech to text dictation. And hopefully this will attract some of those people that can’t help themselves to using speakerphone in the lounge…

For those trying to get work done out in the open there’s a beautiful wooden work table for eight. Semi-private cushioned cubbies resembling a nice NFL locker room surround it.

A printer station can be found in the corner.

This is right by where you’ll find the entrance to the bathroom (more on the amazing bathrooms below).

Just beyond the work table area, there is a bar area which once again has plenty of outlets built-in.

There’s also a large media wall that was playing ESPN.

You’ll find comfortable seating options in front of it that give off a very fitting cinema vibe.

Near the media wall a flamboyant little nook with a mosaic mural featuring glass tiles imported from Italy, known as the “Coffee Grotto,” will certainly catch your eye.

It’s a nod to the golden age of Hollywood and it seemed to be popular because it stayed busy for almost the entire time. Eventually, after several passes, I got a shot with only a few people in it.

Also in this part of the lounge was another seating area partitioned off with some Hollywood Hills inspired design.

Just like the other side of the lounge you also have great runway views along with the backdrop of mountains. Catching LA on a pretty clear evening was a nice finishing touch to this trip.

Delta Sky Club LAX views of Delta planes

Later on during our visit, we made our way over to this side because our gate was located right next to it so we could watch our plane come in from where we were seated.

Always love a lounge visit where you can keep an eye on your gate and it makes it that much sweeter that you only have a short walk to get there.

One final thing I meant to mention was that you can find help desks near the entrance of the lounge along with kiosks.

Dining

This Sky Club had some high-quality dining options.

To kick off the dining experience, first I made my way to the drink section where I found a lot of different options.

They had regular Starbucks brewed coffee along with decaf and a hot water dispenser.

Different types of Harney & Sons tea packets were available including green, mint, and earl grey.

If you want more flavors, head over to the drink station on the other side of the lounge and you can find different types like chamomile and several others.

That’s also where you can find the stations for making your own espressos and cappuccinos.

They also had different types of infused water including some with fresh strawberries. Infused water always sounds so good and refreshing to me… until I drink it. I think it’s that watered-down taste that just makes me want to put down the glass.

Delta Sky Club LAX infused water station

Sparkling water is very different story, however.

For sparkling water enthusiasts like myself they had a Bevi machine, although you could also choose Aha from the Coke Freestyle machine right next to it.

Delta Sky Club LAX Coke freestyle machine

Next to the drink station, you could find a variety of snacks and potato chips.

After figuring out the drink situation, it was time to check out the real food.

The lounge features local chefs on a quarterly basis via the Local Flavor program so they are constantly mixing up something special.

I started by checking out the different types of sandwiches which included vegetarian options.

The main attraction for myself and most people that I saw had to have been the juicy brisket.

As someone from Texas, I have high standards for such a dish and it did not disappoint at all. Not only was it tasty but it also was fresh and just kind of blew my mind how good it was. Definitely did not expect that.

Other dining options included spicy tofu and a Thai vegan broth along with tomato basil soup.

For sides they had Ruby Rice, steamed broccoli, and a variety of vegetables and dishes like coleslaw. Bread rolls were also plentiful.

My measuring stick for judging the quality of food in an airport lounge is: can you get full only eating items you truly enjoy?

In this case, the lounge passed this test with flying colors.

Delta Sky Club LAX vegetables with ranch dip

They also had a meat and cheese selection which looked pretty appetizing.

Delta Sky Club LAX meat and cheese station

For dessert, they provided an apple tart dish and multiple types of cookies which are the only things I didn’t truly care for.

But that also probably had to do with the fact that we just had an amazing chocolate chip cookie on board Delta First Class flying from Houston (IAH) to LAX.

So I think I was a little bit over the limit with sweets at that point.

The other side of the lounge also had a buffet center where you could put together your food items. I think it was a little bit smaller but it was also a lot less busy than the one we were sitting by.

At the end of this food area there is a hidden candy corner where you can find glass jars full of different types of candies like flavored Tootsie Rolls and other types of “classic” wrapped candies like taffy.

Bar

There are two main bars in the lounge: one indoors and one on the Sky Deck.

The bar inside is located right in the middle of the lounge and it’s pretty much on the opposite side from the one on the Sky Deck.

The servers at both bars were very good and I was really happy to have such great service.

The bar will serve you up complimentary drinks although you will need to pay if you want one of the signature cocktails or premium alcoholic beverages.

The complimentary beverages include:

Wine

Sparkling Brut
Chardonnay
Pinot Grigio
Rose´
Cabernet Sauvignon
Pinot Noir

Beers & Seltzer

Michelob Ultra Draft
Regional Craft
Michelob Ultra Cucumber Lime Seltzer
Samuel Adams Just the Haze IPA NA

Spirits & Liqueurs

New Amsterdam Vodka
Damrak Gin
Plantation 3 Stars Rum
Camarena Silver Tequila
Old Forester 86 Proof Bourbon
Dewar’s Scotch
Kahlua
Saint Brendan’s Irish Cream

As for the signature cocktails, you’re gonna be spending around $9 to $12 for most drinks.

If you want premium spirits then they have a variety of those including vodkas, gin, rum, tequila, whiskey, scotch, and cognac.

Prices are typically around $7 to $10 but can get much more expensive for some of the higher end products like Johnny Walker Blue Label.

Brad decided to try one of the signature cocktails called the Flower District Margarita. A tasty drink and the St-Germain elderflower liqueur put a nice twist on a margarita.

Delta Sky Club LAX flower district margarita

You can also take advantage of a pretty broad selection of champagne, wine, and beer.

You’ll have to shell out some cash (~$5) for premium craft or imported beers such as Blue Moon or Dos Equis.

Unfortunately, the bar is still without Dom Perignon so you can’t currently use your miles for a glass or bottle. I’m really hoping that that option comes back soon.

Later on, we spent some time out on the Sky Deck which was an awesome experience.

Because I have almost exclusively flown United, American, and Southwest I’ve only had one prior visit to a Delta Sky Club at PHX but it did not have a Sky Deck.

For the longest time I’ve been wanting to experience one and I don’t think there could be a better place to do so than the one in LAX considering how awesome it feels outside especially during the evenings.

It’s not a surprise that it remains open all year round.

On the Sky Deck, you could find different types of seating from bar seats to comfortable chairs.

A lot of the seats looking out towards the runway were taken outside which was no surprise given how great it felt. However, there were plenty of open seats along the bar.

(If you don’t see a bartender at the bar just approach the bar and one will probably come out to serve you from the inside.)

Bathroom

The bathrooms are to the left after you enter the lounge and you’ll find them in a beautiful hallway that also is home to the showers.

The men’s bathroom was huge with quality and very private stalls.

It was also clean and smelled good so it was about as good as you will be able to get.

I didn’t get a chance to check out the showers but based on the status of the bathrooms and all of the photos I’ve seen, I’m sure those were top notch.

Final word

As a travel blogger, I’m constantly researching experiences before we ever give them a shot and so rarely am I ever surprised.

But on this occasion, this was our final connection after traveling for roughly 3 weeks and I did not do my homework before heading to the lounge.

That meant that the entire experience was a true surprise and I was unexpectedly blown away which is something that does not happen very often.

Our First Class flight with Delta was also an enjoyable flight and so I’m really becoming a pretty big Delta fan.

Daniel Gillaspia

Delta Sky Club PHX (Terminal 3) Review [2022]

Almost all of my flying around the US has been on United, American, and Southwest. But recently we decided to dabble with Delta and our flight started off with a visit to the Delta Sky Club at PHX.

It was a nice morning lounge visit and below I’ll break down the whole experience so that you’ll know what to expect when you visit this lounge found in Terminal 3.

Trip overview

This Delta Sky Club visit was the beginning of a fast-paced trip where we flew Delta First Class from PHX to BWI with a connection in MSP.

The goal of this trip was to finally explore the Northeast.

We rented a car and spent eight days hitting up 13 states in the northeast region and exploring some of the fall color change along the way.

Taking advantage of great October weather, we also checked out the National Mall in DC, Salem Witch Trial sites, and caught a game at Fenway.

Some of the interesting hotels we stayed out included:

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Getting through the airport

We had bags to check and, while we were flying Delta first class, the baggage check-in experience was a little underwhelming.

That’s because the line was backed up and with only a couple of staff members it appeared to be going even slower than the standard line.

It ended up being that classic scenario where you don’t realize another line is moving quicker until you have already progressed quite a way in your own line, so we just stayed put.

The good news is that we breezed through security with TSA Pre-Check and CLEAR.

Delta Sky Club Location

The Delta Sky Club is located in Terminal 3, across from gate F8.

Terminal 3 serves Delta Airlines among many other airlines at this American Airlines hub.

The entire Terminal 3 South Concourse consists of 15 gates and was opened in early 2019 which is the same time this lounge opened up.

It’s a pretty nice little airport terminal if you ask me with some notable eating spots like Shake Shack and Panera Bread.

As mentioned, you will find the lounge across from gate F8, just after you pass up Shake Shack. The entrance to the Sky Club doesn’t stick out that much but you still shouldn’t struggle to find its clear blue doors.

Access & hours

The lounge is open daily from 5:15am to 12am.

We got in to the Delta Sky Club at PHX free of charge with our Amex Platinum cards.

With the Amex Platinum, you can get free access to Delta Sky Clubs but the catch is you have to be flying Delta that day.

Your guest cannot get in for free but you can pay to get up to two guests in at a discounted rate of $39.

In this case, I had made Bradley an authorized user on the Platinum Card so he had his own Platinum Card and was able to get in for free.

The authorized user fee is $175 for up to three users which actually turns out to be a pretty good deal if you can max it out.

We were flying domestic first class to MSP where we would have a layover and then another short first class flight to BWI. Unfortunately, like other domestic airlines, you don’t get lounge access automatically when flying first class domestically.

If you want to look into other ways to get access you can check out the access policy here.

Lounge

Opened in early 2019, the 7,500-square-foot Delta Sky Club boasts design “inspired by the Southwest desert landscape.”

As someone who recently moved to Arizona in the spring of 2020, the look and feel of all things Southwest has grown on me exponentially. So I was interested to see what they did with the lounge.

Throughout the lounge you’ll find earth tones with pops of rich colors and some of the walls showcase artwork from local artists. The Southwest influence is definitely there but it’s still pretty subtle in my opinion.

There’s a small printer station in one of the corners which was out of order when we visited.

The center of the lounge has a beautiful modern chandelier with a lot of seating options that to be honest looked a tad bit crowded.

I would say that this airport lounge is one of the more beautiful airport lounges I’ve seen for a domestic airline. I loved the aviation artwork and overall peaceful color scheme.

American and United have also done a pretty good job of renovating and giving their new lounges a fresh modern feel. To see what I mean check out a couple of the photos below.

Here’s an image from one of the newer Admirals Clubs:

And here is one of the newer United Clubs:

At the end of the Delta Sky Club there is a long wall with decent views of the neighboring gates but I believe the closest runway is on the other side of the terminal so you don’t get those close/direct views.

Along the wall, you’ll find a long conference table with plenty of outlets for getting work done.

Most of the seats had power outlets or USB ports near the seats. So charging your devices should not be an issue but I would still be careful with plugging directly into USBs.

There’s a TV on both sides of the main central living area, which again felt a little bit cluttered with the seating.

After scoping out some of the seats we decided to head to the back where the bar is. Since this was still really early in the morning, the bar was not open and not serving alcohol.

But if you do come during later hours you can take advantage of seasonal cocktails including the Agave Experience – “an extensive selection of tequila and mezcal that can be sampled in individual pours or tasting flights.”

They also have wine selected by Delta’s Master Sommelier Andrea Robinson.

It looks like they had removed a couple of seats from the bar area for social distancing.

However, there were still a lot of seating options in this section of the lounge. If you need a power outlet consider getting a spot at one of the high counter seats located next to the partition.

Personally, I really like the vibe of this wooded area.

Dining

We passed on breakfast and so I was really interested to see what type of food we would be able to enjoy at the lounge.

I was happy to see that there was a self-serve line and that they had some pretty hearty options like this breakfast casserole along with sausage and scrambled eggs.

You could also go with hard boiled eggs and throw in a little bit of red salsa if you wanted.

They had a nice little section of fresh fruit including pineapple, cantaloupe, and melon along with grapes and strawberries. And to my surprise they even had blueberries, blackberries and raspberries.

Overall, the breakfast options were much superior to what I experienced at non-hub Admirals Club lounges when arriving early for breakfast. I could actually fill up if I wanted do at this lounge versus just getting by with light bites.

There was a whole mixture of yogurt including plain Greek yogurt and vanilla yogurt.

And if you were looking for cereal they had Cheerios, raisin bran, and rice crispies. The cereal dispensers were tricky for some people so my pro tip is to be a little gentle with the levers. I almost witnessed an early-morning disaster.

There’s a soda machine with Coke products including Coke Zero, Dr Pepper, Minute Maid lemonade, and ginger ale.

You could also pour up some fresh orange juice which can be found next to the utensil dispenser. They had a sparkling water machine but I was not able to get it to work which resulted in pouring a glass of some very pathetically carbonated water.

We grabbed our food and then locked down a table in the corner area which gave us plenty of space from other travelers as the lounge did not have much traffic this early in the morning.

Shortly after we sat down to eat there was a morning surge that came in and then also quickly thinned out after only about 20 to 30 minutes.

The lounge seemed to have pretty decent views of some of the other gates where we found Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines.

However, given the morning hour there wasn’t much to see beyond our own reflections in the window.

I took a quick visit to the bathroom which was very clean and modern. It’s always a good feeling to avoid those airport terminal bathrooms.

Final word

Overall, this was a very solid lounge experience. I thought that the lounge was beautiful, clean, and not overcrowded. The breakfast was hearty and had some nice additional options like fresh berries. The Wi-Fi was fast and there were no issues with anything really. Just a great lounge visit.

Daniel Gillaspia

Escape Lounge at Minneapolis−Saint Paul International Airport (MSP) Review

I’ve been waiting to visit an Escape Lounge for a very long time.

A few visit opportunities had arisen in the past but every time it seemed like it would just be inconvenient or more practical to visit another lounge. So finally on a recent layover at MSP it was the perfect time to have our very first Escape Lounge visit!

Below, I’ll give you an overview of what the lounge was like when visiting in the fall of 2021 when things were still not quite fully opened.

Escape Lounge MSP airport terminal location

The Escape Lounge at MSP is located in Terminal 1 on the mezzanine level above the entrance to concourse E.

It’s pretty hard to miss and can be found right above a chocolate factory in case you have a little sweet tooth before making your way to your flight.

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You can take the stairs up to the lounge or take the elevator. Once you are in the elevator, select level three to get to the lounge.

Access & hours

Access to the Escape Lounge is free for American Express Platinum cardmembers. In fact, I was also able to bring Brad in as a complimentary guest. (Platinum cardmembers can bring up the two guest for free.)

You can also get in for free if you have an American Express Delta SkyMiles Reserve Card but you will have to pay $30 for your guests.

If you don’t have a card that gets you in for free you can book a visit and pay out-of-pocket.

If you book your visit online ahead of time the entry price is $40 but if you pay when you arrive it is $45.

As of the time of this writing the open hours are 5am to 8pm.

I’ve seen several Escape Lounges that open really early so these lounges seem to be a good alternative when other airport lounges don’t open until later in the morning.

Dining

Due to coronavirus the standard dining options were not available for self-serve.

Instead, a staff member came around taking orders.

The staff member was extremely personable and very attentive.

In fact, I would even say the service level we received on our visit was on par with American Express Centurion Lounges.

We used the QR code found on the table to pull up the digital menu on our phone which I have provided a photograph of below.

I was surprised to see that they have a pretty extensive menu.

For breakfast they had a lot of different options I would not expect like fruit smoothies, breakfast tacos, French toast, etc.

We ended up trying the creamy tomato bisque, turkey sandwich, and soy ginger salmon along with a couple of drinks.

I was pretty happy with the quality of the food.

I wasn’t expecting the most gourmet experience in the world and I felt that these food items properly held me over while we passed time during the layover.

I would put the food quality on par with a decent international Priority Pass lounge.

The lounge

At 5000 ft.², the lounge felt pretty spacious to me.

The seating looked like it had been rearranged for social distancing but there were still quite a few different types of seating options with some offering more privacy than others.

Thankfully, the lounge was not doing assigned seating which really can be annoying when you get placed in a type of seat you would never choose on your own.

Anytime I can get a good view for plane spotting I will take it so we took the back corner of the lounge on a table with great views.

There are quite a few tables with nice views.

Some of these have power outlets and USB ports for your charging convenience although I would read my article on using public USB ports before using them.

The bathroom situation was very interesting.

I had to exit the lounge in order to use the bathroom which was essentially just a normal public airport bathroom that was a bit hidden in a hallway.

The back door leading to the hallway does not allow for re-entry so I had to go around to the front to get back in the lounge.

One of the perks of airport lounges is not dealing with the busy and often times disgusting bathrooms with an airport terminal so it was a little disappointing to not have a quality and connected bathroom.

The bar area is also where I believe the buffet is typically set up but I wasn’t sure.

Again the lounge asked that you make all food and drink orders with the staff member who would be coming around to your table so I’m not sure how everything is typically set up.

Final word

Visiting airport lounges is still not the same due to the pandemic which has altered the dining experience. With that said, I enjoyed my visit to the Escape Lounge. With free entry from the Platinum Card, it felt nice to enjoy a lounge that was not overcrowded and that had some decent food offerings.

Daniel Gillaspia

American Express Hong Kong Centurion Lounge (HKG) Review

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The American Express Centurion Lounge at Hong Kong International Airport is one of the newest Centurion Lounges to open. It’s got a different vibe from many other Centurion Lounges as it’s very open and build more like a cafe than a lounge. I had the chance to check it out recently and here’s my review of that experience.

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American Express Hong Kong Centurion Lounge

The American Express Hong Kong Centurion Lounge is a “true” Centurion Lounge and not merely an international Amex Lounge. The difference is that the international lounges aren’t typically as nice and equipped as the Centurion Lounges are. For example, they are often smaller and may not have the same level of food and drink options.

You can find the locations for all true Centurion Lounges below:

Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW)
- Location: Terminal D, opposite Gate D17 on the mezzanine
- Hours: 5:30am to 10pm
Intercontinental Houston Airport (IAH)
- Location: Terminal D, access via elevators near Gate D6
- Hours: 5:30am to 9pm
Las Vegas McCarran International Airport (LAS)
- Location: Concourse D, opposite Gate D1)
- Hours: 5am to 11 pm
Miami International Airport (MIA)
- Location: Concourse D, near Gate D12)
- Hours: 5am to 11 pm
New York’s LaGuardia Airport (LGA)
- Location: Terminal B, pre-security, on the upper level),
- Hours: Sunday – Friday 5:30 am to 8 pm, Saturday 5:30 am to 6:30 pm
Philadelphia International Airport (PHL)
- Location: second level at Terminal A-West, near gate A14)
- Hours: 5am to 9pm
San Francisco International Airport (SFO)
- Location: Terminal 3, near Gate 74
- Hours: 5am to 11pm
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA)
- Location: Concourse B, opposite Gate B3
- Hours: 5am to 10pm
Hong Kong International Airport (HKG)
- Location: Terminal 1; take the escalator just before Gate 60
- Hours: 5:30am – 12:30am

American Express Hong Kong Centurion Lounge Access

You can get access to the American Express Hong Kong Centurion Lounge if you have one of the following Amex cards:

Personal Platinum Card
Business Platinum Card
Corporate Platinum Card

The personal Platinum Card is one of the best cards for frequent fliers and comes with the following perks.

60,000 miles after spending $5,000 within the first 3 months (75K offer in Google Incognito and there are even methods to get 100K offers)
$200 annual airline credit
$200 annual Uber credit
$179 CLEAR credit
$200 Hotel credit
$300 Equinox credit
$240 Entertainment credit
Priority Pass access for you and two guests
Centurion lounges access for you and two guests
Delta SkyClub access when flying with Delta
Hilton Honors Gold elite status
SPG Gold Preferred elite status (and therefore Marriott Gold and Ritz-Carlton Gold), and rental car status as well
5X on airfare and 5X on hotels booked through the Amex Travel portal
TSA Pre-Check/Global Entry $100 credit
Annual fee: $695 (NOT waived first year)

Guest Policy

You’ll be allowed to bring in two guests with you on a complimentary basis if you have the Platinum Card. Centurion members may enter with up to two guests or immediate family (spouse or domestic partner, and children under 18) at no additional charge.

Platinum Card and Centurion Members may purchase a day-pass for any additional guests for $50 USD at the time of entry.

Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge Location

The Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge is located in Terminal 1. Take the escalator just before Gate 60 and you should have not problem finding the lounge, which is near the Plaza Premium Lounge and the United Club Lounge There are plenty of signs in the area to help guide you along the way.

Cathay Pacific First Class Lounge The Pier at HKG 49 — Terminal 1 map of HKG.

Cathay Pacific HKG Terminal 1 map.

Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge Hours

The Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge will be open 5:30am to 12:30am.

The Pier

We made our way to the Amex Centurion Lounge after visiting Cathay Pacific’s first class lounge, The Pier. On our way over to The Pier, we saw the sign for the Centurion Lounge so it only made sense to give it a visit, especially since The Pier is nearby by Gate 63.

Because The Pier was the far superior lounge, we spent the vast majority of our time in that lounge. There, we were able to try out some great dining and experience the day suites and nice bar area as well as lounge around in the cozy seating areas.

The service at The Pier was a bit lackluster, though, and to be honest I felt like we received better service at the Centurion Lounge. However, with that said, I’d still say The Pier is much better and that I just probably caught it on an off day when it came to the service.

Entering the lounge

The entrance to the lounge has the signature Centurion look with blue tinted door and a wall of greenery but it is a bit different from some of the other Centurion Lounges. Many Centurion Lounges are discrete and private but this lounge was wide open to the terminal. Personally, I love the open feel of the Hong Kong lounge more than the closed-off feel of some of the other Centurion Lounges.

Amex Centurion Lounge Hong Kong — The entrance to the Hong Kong Amex Centurion Lounge.

We checked in using our Amex Platinum Card as usual and were given the wifi password and asked if we needed to be shown around the lounge. We politely declined and then started to check out the lounge on our own accord.

As soon as you enter the lounge there’s a small business center/meeting room with a work table and a couple of computers along with a printer and a collection of newspapers. This room felt like a great place to set up shop and get some work done if you wanted to be away from the open area of the lounge.

Business center at the Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge.

It also had a TV built into the standard Centurion shelf display. It was cool to see the Centurion design juxtaposed to something different with the decor on the walls.

There’s a small meeting room that you come to next, and I liked the semi-privacy glass walls.

Meeting room at the Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge.

Next, there’s a small room for taking phone calls with the same semi-privacy shading on the glass.

Phone room at the Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge.

Once we made our way past the meeting and phone room, we came across the signature American Express signage and it started to feel a little bit more like a Centurion Lounge back home. Although, with the area wide open to the terminal below it definitely had a different vibe to it.

Entrance to the Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge.

Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge Bar

We then made our way to the main area of the lounge with the bar/cafe area. It’s one of the more spectacular looking bar areas I’ve seen at an airport lounge or even just in general. It’s definitely different from every other Centurion Lounge and it’s a cool place to grab a drink or enjoy your meal as there are a few tables.

As you’d expect from a Centurion Lounge, there’s a wide selection of spirits for you to choose from on a complimentary basis. You can also order your espresso from the bar if you don’t wish to make it yourself. They also had both San Pellegrino and Acqua Panna water.

There are multiple juice stations in the lounge.

Centurion Lounges are known for their specialty cocktails and they had some of the common cocktails you find at the Centurion Lounge like the amazing “Blue Door.” We tried out the Rickshaw and thought that it was really great. You could also select from a number of wines.

Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge cocktail menu.

There’s an open seating area that has a few tables with chairs and some pretty good views of the tarmac/runway. While I thought the area was impressive from a design and views perspective, it certainly lacked in size compared to other Centurion Lounges.

Seating area at the Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge.

The seating area is definitely not on the same level that many Centurion Lounges offer in the US. It wasn’t just the size of the seating, either.

Centurion Lounges usually have much more comfortable/cozy seating options great for hunkering down for hours if needed. The seating here is more suited for shorter visits and there’s no true area to “lounge” in — it’s much closer to a cafe feeling, in my opinion. So the lounge (relaxation) element of the Centurion Lounge is missing a here and that is one of the drawbacks to the lounge.

There is also no family room at the Hong Kong Centurion Lounge.

Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge Views

The views from the lounge are great. You’re pretty high up and can watch these birds make their way to the runway.

You’ll probably see mostly Cathay Pacific/Dragon Air but we caught some good views of some others as well.

With the mountains in the background, this is really a beautiful spot to plane spot.

There’s another seating area with stools lining a long bar where you can enjoy the views while being a little more secluded from the crowds. This area also had power outlets so you can get some work done there as you admire the view.

The chairs/stools in this area looked kind of crazy in this area but I did like them. They were another element that gave off more of a cafe vibe than a lounge vibe, though.

Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge food

The food at the Hong Kong Centurion Lounge is located in the back of the lounge located near the large and iconic American Express logo seen below.

There was a lot of hot food to choose from, including locally inspired items.

I’d already eaten at The Pier earlier and was trying to save room for our Cathay Pacific first class flight so I didn’t partake in trying out any of the dishes. But here’s a look at some of the items they were serving up, which included shrimp dumplings, pasta, fried fish, pork, mushroom, and a number of cold items like salads, and deli meats.

It looked like a decent spread but keep in mind you’re competing with Cathay Pacific lounges like The Pier at HKG and those amazing noodle bars Cathay has. So again, I definitely wouldn’t prioritize my meal here if I had access to other Cathay Pacific lounges.

There was also a nice little dessert section.

Some breads were also available. There’s also an expresso machine, soft drinks, tea, and an area for juices, too.

Overall, the food selection was nothing extraordinary. For US lounges it would be pretty good but given the competition of other lounges at HKG, it was not anything special.

Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge bathroom

The bathroom was small but very clean and high quality. In the past I’ve been embarrassed for Amex by the sight of the bathroom at the IAH Centurion Lounge, so it was nice to see such a clean Centurion bathroom.

There is a shower suite at the lounge so inquire with the front desk if you’re interested in that.

Amex Hong Kong Centurion Lounge bathroom.

Final word

The Amex Centurion Lounge at HKG is a cool twist on the Centurion experience. It doesn’t offer quite the comfort that lounges back in the US offer, but it’s a very cool looking airport lounge with great drinks and perfect views great for plane spotting. I think it’s a solid plan to combine a Centurion Lounge visit with a visit to another lounge at the airport but I wouldn’t prioritize the Centurion Lounge over Cathay Pacific lounges.

Daniel Gillaspia

Admirals Club Houston IAH (Terminal A) Review

I’ve visited a lot of lounges at IAH but I had yet to ever visit the American Airline Admirals Club lounge. Recently, we finally flew American Airlines to Cabo and so since we were flying out of Terminal A, it just made sense to give the lounge a visit.

Here’s a review of what you can expect to encounter at the Admirals Club in Terminal A at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston (IAH).

Related: United Explorer Anniversary One-Time Club Passes Guide

Getting through security

We arrived at IAH Terminal A bright and early around 4:30am and found our parking spot in the parking garage. I did what I usually do and snapped a photo of where we were parked as a reminder and then we were off to the terminal.

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I had never flown out of Terminal A at IAH that I can remember but we found our way to the check-in area via an underground passage with some cool looking corridors.

We then made our way up to the check-in terminal area to find a pretty sizable crowd lined up for TSA.

Luckily, we had TSA Pre-Check which was available at the Terminal A North security checkpoint, where the line was much, much more manageable (CLEAR was also available). We made it through security in a jiffy and then were off to the Admirals Club, near Gate A25. (It only took about 15 minutes to get through security to the lounge.)

Admirals Club IAH hours

4 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

One advantage to the Admirals Club is that it opens up at 4am, well before the United Club Lounges open at 5:00/5:30am/7:30am and before the Amex Centurion Lounge opens (at 5:30am).

This Admirals Club opened in 2017 after IAH didn’t have an AA lounge for 15 years, so it’s a newer lounge. And since I’d never experienced an Admirals Club before and since we were flying to Cabo on American Airlines, I thought it would be a good time to give it a visit.

I purchased two day passes for the Admirals Club for $59 each using my Amex Gold Card, which activated the $100 airline credit. This day pass would give us Admirals Club access at IAH and then access later for our connection at DFW as well, so I thought it was well worth paying an effective $18 for the two of us.

Admirals Club access

Here are all of the ways you can get access to the Admirals Club:

Purchase an annual membership
Purchase a day pass
Hold a card like the Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite MasterCard
Have certain types of elite status
Qualifying First or Business Class ticket
Be a Military member

The above are all subject to certain restrictions. If you want to find out more about access rules and policies to the Admirals Club you can click here.

Entrance to the Admirals Club at IAH, Terminal A.

The Admirals Club experience

In the entrance area, there were two screens with flight information, including departures and arrivals. And of course, there were some ads for AAdvantage cards on display.

They also had some storage areas with rods to hang your garments on. I’m guessing you could inquire with the staff about using the lockers, too.

At the main entrance on the right there was a wall lined with literature, including American Way, Men’s Journal, the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and others.

We then made our way into the main lounge area, which only had a couple of passengers in it. It’s definitely on the smaller side, especially compared to the Admirals Club we’d later visit at DFW.

The lounge felt modern and fresh and I liked the wood accents found throughout with splashes of bright colors in the artwork and some furniture. It looked like just about every seat had outlets built in to it or very close and most seats also had at least a little bit of counter or table space.

There were a couple of small areas with semi-private partitions offering nice compact areas to relax in.

Again, I was a big fan of the interior design and the bold, refreshing artwork featured in these areas.

American Airlines Admirals Club Houston IAH

There are also other seating options that offer a little more privacy, especially when facing the windows. These come in odd cube-like shapes but they could be good spots for the solo traveler who wants to get some work done.

Seating options with a little bit more privacy.

There’s also a row of seats lining the bar at the windows with outlets and a little bit of floral decor. Since it was dark and early, I really didn’t get a sense of the views from the lounge.

In the back of the lounge are two more areas offering better privacy.

One room has more seating and I believe it also has work stations. Since this mysterious area was dark when I visited, I cranked up the ISO on my Canon to get the shot below but didn’t notice the work stations. I liked the Houston-inspired photography on the wall, though I wasn’t sure why this room was not properly lit (I’m guessing it was just too early).

Then there is the business conference room. There’s a table with six chairs and a total of six chairs lining the wall. There’s also some counter space, a TV monitor, and presentation area. You can pay to rent these out and you can find rates for these here.

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The Admirals Club buffet

The buffet area was in a long hallway-like section of the lounge, located between the dining area and the lounge seating area. You can also find a few tables in there.

They had a selection of water, infused water, and I believe orange juice.

For food they had Oikos and Chobanil yogurt along with a selection of fruits including pineapple, cantaloupe, melon, and mixed grapes — no berries. They also had hard-boiled eggs which tasted a little funky to be honest.

For cereal lovers, they had Kashie GoLean cereal (looked like Cheerios), Froot Loops, and low-fat granola, along with 2% milk and oatmeal.

Next to the oatmeal were three bins of bagels along with a toaster and fruit.

Toward the end of the counter was the espresso machine, tea bags, and soda machine.

The Admirals Club bar and dining area

The Admirals Club also has a small dining and bar area in the lounge with a few tables. It’s a nice little area but I’d imagine that it gets pretty packed at times.

Admirals Club dining room and bar area at IAH.

The bar was closed during our early visit but you can see the liquor bottles they serve and the beer on draft.

The buffet and some drinks like certain domestic beers are complimentary but you’ll have to drop a little bit of cash for other items. For example, a Bloody Mary would cost you $10 and an imported beer would cost $8. I’ve included the full menu below.

Admirals Club bathroom

The bathroom was small but very clean and smelled fresh during my visit.

The bathroom had C.O. Bigelow hand wash and hand lotion. C.O. Bigelow claims to be the oldest apothecary in America, established in 1838.

The lounge does not offer showers.

Final word

Overall, I enjoyed my first ever Admirals Club visit. I had adjusted my expectations to expect the “US domestic carrier” lounge experience and it was about what I expected. I liked having the option to oder hot food items (even though I’d have to pay) and I liked the overall look and feel of the lounge’s design.

I would still prefer the Amex Centurion Lounge over the Admirals Club any day though due to its hot food selection and seating options. Also, while crowds were not an issue on my visit, I could see them being a problem at times due to the size of the lounge.

Daniel Gillaspia

American Express Las Vegas (LAS) Centurion Lounge Review

Offers contained within this article maybe expired.

I have finally visited a Centurion Lounge! After three years of holding the American Express Platinum Card, I went to an airport that had a Centurion Lounge. While, I have been through HKG, LGA, IAH, and SFO during the last three years, I always had access to better lounges or arrived just in time for boarding.

I always heard Centurion lounges were very crowded. That alone made me not care about visiting them. So, I took the opportunity to visit the Centurion Lounge in Las Vegas and wow, it felt like I was at the commons building at my university, but I would visit again.

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American Express Las Vegas Centurion Lounge

The American Express Las Vegas Centurion Lounge is a “true” Centurion Lounge and not merely an international Amex Lounge. The difference is that the international lounges aren’t typically as nice and equipped as the Centurion Lounges are. For example, they are often smaller and may not have the same level of food and drink options.

I highly recommend you can check out our article about Centurion Lounges here.

You can find the locations for all true Centurion Lounges below:

Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW)
- Location: Terminal D, opposite Gate D17 on the mezzanine
- Hours: 5:30am to 10pm
Intercontinental Houston Airport (IAH)
- Location: Terminal D, access via elevators near Gate D6
- Hours: 5:30am to 9pm
Las Vegas McCarran International Airport (LAS)
- Location: Concourse D, opposite Gate D1)
- Hours: 5am to 11pm
Miami International Airport (MIA)
- Location: Concourse D, near Gate D12)
- Hours: 5am to 11pm
New York’s LaGuardia Airport (LGA)
- Location: Terminal B, pre-security, on the upper level),
- Hours: Sunday – Friday 5:30am to 8pm, Saturday 5:30am to 6:30pm
Philadelphia International Airport (PHL)
- Location: second level at Terminal A-West, near gate A14)
- Hours: 5am to 9pm
San Francisco International Airport (SFO)
- Location: Terminal 3, near Gate 74
- Hours: 5am to 11pm
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA)
- Location: Concourse B, opposite Gate B3
- Hours: 5am to 10pm
Hong Kong International Airport (HKG)
- Location: Terminal 1, take the escalator just before Gate 60
- Hours: 5:30am – 12:30am
- Read our review here

Fun fact: Las Vegas Centurion Lounge was the very first Centurion Lounge to open!

American Express Las Vegas Centurion Lounge Access

You can get access to the American Express Hong Kong Centurion Lounge if you have one of the following Amex cards:

Personal Platinum Card
Business Platinum Card
Corporate Platinum Card

The personal Platinum Card is one of the best cards for frequent fliers and comes with the following perks.

60,000 miles after spending $5,000 within the first 3 months (75K offer in Google Incognito and there are even methods to get 100K offers)
$200 annual airline credit
$200 annual Uber credit
Priority Pass access for you and two guests
Centurion lounges access for you and two guests
Delta SkyClub access when flying with Delta
Hilton Honors Gold elite status
SPG Gold Preferred elite status (and therefore Marriott Gold and Ritz-Carlton Gold), and rental car status as well
5X on airfare and 5X on hotels booked through the Amex Travel portal
TSA Pre-Check/Global Entry $100 credit
Annual fee: $550 (NOT waived first year)

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Guest Policy

Platinum Card and Centurion Members may purchase a day-pass for any additional guests for $50 USD at the time of entry.

Amex Las Vegas Centurion Lounge Location

The Amex Las Vegas Centurion Lounge is in Terminal 1 Concourse D (also known as D Gates) near gate D1. D gates are served by American, Delta, Air Canada, Frontier, Hawaiian, Sun Country, Thomas Cook, and United. If you’re flying Southwest, you’ll be flying out of Terminal 1, B and C gates.

The Las Vegas airport is easy to navigate, unless you’re hungover from your time in Vegas. 😉

Once you take the Blue Line Tram or Red Line Tram from Terminal 1 or 2 to Concourse D, you will find yourself on level zero. Go up the escalators and follow signs for gates D1. Right across from gates D1 you will see the pure white Centurion wall with their beautiful blue doors.

To connect to other Concourses it’s only accessible by the tram after security. It takes about 5 minutes in each direction. The tram connects D Gates to A, B, C Gates and Terminal 3 E gates.

Amex Las Vegas Centurion Lounge Hours

The American Express Las Vegas Centurion Lounge is open between:

5am to 11pm every day.

Amex Las Vegas Centurion Lounge experience

About 9:00 in the morning I arrived in Las Vegas and made my way to Concourse D to visit the Centurion Lounge. I arrived and saw the beautiful blue doors and white walls with no sign about capacity. Full marks to Amex on the white walls with the blue doors, I love the contrast and minimalistic look.

The photo was taken when I was leaving the lounge, as you can see the lounge has the special sign out limiting lounge access.

I walked in and found myself greeted by 3 check-in attendants. I verified if I could access the lounge even though I was arriving. The lounge attendant explained how they weren’t at capacity and that I would be allowed in.

When they are limiting guests, there will be a sign at the entrance that will typically read that you can only access the lounge 3 hours before departure and cannot access the lounge as an arriving passenger.

After scanning my boarding pass, checking my Platinum card and ID the attendant gave me the wifi and feedback card telling me to enjoy the lounge.

The shape of the lounge is a quarter of a circle; this allows lots of natural light in most areas of the lounge except the dining area. Even when I was in the dining area, I didn’t feel like I was in a cave because of the lack of natural light. Otherwise, the lounge is lovely if you want to plane spot.

When you first walk in the main part of the lounge, you see tables with chairs and some different seating options. The main part of the lounge is long and goes from the very entrance to the end of the lounge. Then you will see the dining room in the middle divided by a wall.

To the left of the check-in desk, you will find the member services desk for all your Amex needs. This is where you can ask them anything or act like a concierge of some sort.

Right across from the check-in desk you will find the membership desk.

Amex Las Vegas Centurion Lounge member services desk.

The rest of the lounge is a mixture of different seats everything from tables and chairs to lounge chairs. Power outlets with USB ports are available throughout the lounge, and I didn’t have a huge issue finding one, even when it became busier throughout the time I was in the lounge.

Across from the member services desk, you will find the kids room, some different tables and chairs, and then the dining room with half booths.

Towards the back of the lounge, you will see different style of seating that provides lots of privacy.

You will find the drink station and more seating at the end of the lounge.

The variety of seating in the lounge doesn’t end.

Amex knows people work and eat at lounges, so it’s easy to find a place where there is a table.

The lounge has workstation desktops readily available for guests.

A communal table with power outlets all over it.

Probably my favorite type of seat is the black chairs with the tall side walls or the wall benches that were so comfy (as seen below). They are secluded and offer lots of comfort from all the throw pillows. Each one has power outlets and of course a table. This type of seating is nice since the fabric will cut out some of the noise in the lounge.

Another thing that is great about the type of seating at the Las Vegas Centurion Lounge is how most seats can fit a couple, like in the wall benches or the black chairs.

My favorite type of seating in the Amex Las Vegas Centurion Lounge.

You will notice one theme throughout the lounge; it’s crowded. Wow, it’s been a long time since I have visited a lounge where it was this crowded and noisy.

Yes, there are still seats available. Yes, I didn’t have an issue finding a seat during my two hours staying in the lounge, but the noise level of the lounge is the issue. Without noise canceling headphones you easily hear people chatting it up with others or on the phone. It feels like I am back at my university, which is not something I want to experience at a lounge.

Where are the phone rooms?

When I visited the JAL Sakura Lounge at NRT earlier this year, it was super crowded, probably worse than this. The noise level at the JAL Sakura Lounge was very minimal, and there were kids all around, especially in the dining area. However, it’s built so noise won’t bounce off the walls as much, there are phone rooms, there are different areas, not just one long room.

The Las Vegas Centurion Lounge is the complete opposite; the noise level is annoying without headphones. This is of course not only with Centurion Lounges themselves, but it seems to be a common problem that isn’t addressed at lounges. Add a phone room, and it could help reduce the noise from people talking on their phone.

But then there is the problem of how clean the lounge is.

Cleanliness

Stained seats, food all over the seats, stained tables, and dirty bathroom are just a few things that make this lounge one of the dirtiest lounges I have been to. Yes, dirtier than lounges within China.

When was that cleaned?

There is food, crumbs all over, and then white and brown stains. Some of which is sticky… don’t worry after touching that sticky stuff I used my hand wipes. No matter where you sat on this bench you will find it dirty and stained.

What are those stains on the table? I cannot remove them from the table at all. I tried to wipe them off with a wet wipe, but nothing happened.

And no, it was multiple tables that had this stain issue.

Where are all these stains coming from? I was amazed at how many benches were stained, chairs are to lesser of a degree dirty but still wowed me. Tables are even stained, but tables can be easy to replace.

The bathroom was dirty as well. I was standing in a puddle of liquid when using the toilet… (no I didn’t take a picture while I was in the bathroom since others were in there).

Amex, please clean.

Amex Las Vegas Centurion Lounge dining and bar experience

This is where this lounge shines. During my visit to the lounge, they had a good amount of hot and cold food out. It was breakfast, so they had food like french toast, eggs, hash, and oatmeal.

The lounge offers one wall where the hot and cold food is and the other wall you will find a full-service bar with a bartender. The bar isn’t too big, and I never waited for a drink while at the bar. The bar is where you will get soft drinks and acholic beverages. There are no cocktails till 10:30am, so I ended up only getting prosecco. I am in Vegas don’t judge me. 🙂

Right outside of the dining room, you will find an espresso machine and self-service water with 2 other juices besides it.

What is nice is they have a TV displaying all the flights departing in the dining room.

Everything in the lounge is proper tableware.

I ended up getting french toast, eggs, and charro hash with water. All of which were good for buffet style lounge food! I then got some prosecco later.

The lounge attendants were very attentive and cleared plates and glasses within minutes of finishing, but were not intrusive at all. When someone leaves a table, the lounge attendants usually do a quick wipe of the table. However, later on, the lounge got busier, and they wouldn’t wipe it off all the time since people were immediately stealing that table.

Actually, all the lounge attendants were friendly and pleasant. They always had a smile, chatting with guests sometimes.

During my 1 hour in the dining room, they refreshed the food when it got more than half empty. They also made sure the food looks presentable, which makes a huge difference in my opinion.

Amex Las Vegas Centurion Lounge WiFi

The wifi isn’t too bad for a lounge that is crowded. It’s on par with 4G speeds, which isn’t anything special though.

Final word

Crowded, noisy, and dirty. Why would I come back? Well, there are tons of outlets, and it’s easy to find a seat with a table to do some work. Some fancy seating for two people, which is nice while traveling with someone. Then there is the food, which is not the best lounge food but certainly very good. I still think it’s like a university commons area, but with a good pair of headphones, for the most part, you can ignore the noise. Just bring some hand wipes and find a clean seat. 😉

This article was originally published by Steve Smith.

Daniel Gillaspia

Los Cabos International (SJD) Priority Pass Lounge (Terminal 2) Review

I have to be honest. When traveling through Mexico or the Caribbean I generally have very low expectations for Priority Pass lounges. Heck, even when I’m in the States the lounges are usually nothing too special.

However, the Priority Pass lounge at Los Cabos International (SJD) Terminal 2 was actually a nice surprise. It’s not your typical boring, small airport lounge that you might expect to find. Instead it’s actually a pretty cool and refreshing place to relax in (unless you need to visit the baño). In this article I will review my recent experience at the Los Cabos International Terminal VIP lounge and show you what you can expect.

Getting to the airport

We left the all-inclusive Hyatt Ziva Cabo after a great three night stay and then made our way toward Los Cabos International via a Chevrolet Suburban. The Hyatt Ziva originally picked us up in a Cadillac Escalade so this ride was not quite as fancy but still pretty luxurious.

The drive over to the airport from San Jose is very scenic and it was nice to have some views to admire along the way. It only took us about 20 minutes to get to the airport which was very nice. However, if you are coming from Cabo San Lucas, it will take closer to 35 to 40 minutes.

We pulled up to Terminal Two and then made our way to the American Airlines premium check-in and received our boarding pass. This flight was my lucky day and I was hit with the “quad” aka SSSS. If you don’t know about the dreaded SSSS, I suggest that you read my article here to find out more about it. (In the end, it wasn’t that bad but still — it’s just never a fun experience.)

The type of boarding pass that you don’t want.

Once we were issued our boarding passes we simply followed the signs to departures, up the escalator.

Once up on the second floor there was a sign pointing us towards the VIP lounge, which will be towards your left.

We were flying on July 4 and the terminal was pretty packed, so I was expecting to find a pretty full lounge. But lucky for us that would not necessarily be the case.

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Getting to the lounge

The terminal is pretty small and it only took us a couple of minutes to find our way toward the lounge which quickly became visible at the end of the terminal. The lounge has a really cool futuristic façade that is very different from an ordinary boring airport lounge.

You will know that you are at the right lounge because it is clearly marked “VIP Lounge.”

Check-in

There was no line at check in so we got in quickly using our Priority Pass membership that we get with the Chase Sapphire Reserve. We also have Priority Pass with the American Express Platinum Card but when traveling through airports we choose to use the pass from the Sapphire Reserve now since it offers access to the airport restaurants.

At the check-in desk there is a small journal where you can sign in and leave some comments and it sort of reminded me of being in the Lufthansa First Class Terminal (except not). I meant to leave some notes but I ended up forgetting.

Los Cabos International Priority Pass Lounge

The lounge has two different floors. On the bottom floor you will find a large counter/bar area where you can pick up food and get complementary alcohol served.

This lounge is a little bit fancy in that they actually have display of their food items so you can know what to expect. Not all of the foods looked that appetizing but I appreciated them keeping it real.

During our time at the lounge they were serving cereal, sandwiches, salad, toast, and a couple of other dishes and soups. They also had other snacks like fruit, cookies, and healthy vegetable snacks like celery.

I noticed right off the bat that there were outlets and USB ports in many of the seats which was really nice.

There were a few places to eat and some semi private areas to take a seat, although some of the areas felt a little cramped.

The bottom level had a decent amount of people in it so I wanted to go upstairs and check out what the second floor was all about. I’m very glad that I did and if you are ever at this lounge I highly recommend going upstairs.

You can get to the second floor via a small elevator or stairs. The stairs are quite narrow especially when trying to bring luggage up or down so sometimes there are bottlenecks. (If you have some large luggage, you are probably better off with the elevator.)

The second floor has an interesting mid century modern set up. There is a dining area that is just a really cool looking area. Again this lounge did not feel like your typical Priority Pass lounge which was refreshing. It was also nice just to see the crowds so thinned out on the second floor.

The food and snacks were pretty much the same that were offered on the bottom floor. Here’s a look at some of the items that they were serving.

I wasn’t too impressed with their sandwiches until I tried a fresh batch that they brought out (pictured below) which were much better. Still basic but much better.

Overall, I would say that the food selection was decent and enough to get you carried over until your flight but nothing special.

The upper deck had a lot of modern seating options.

While these modern seats did not have outlets in them you could find outlets randomly on the floor. I also thought that the lounge did a pretty good job of supplying tables for the seats.

And one thing that I like about this lounge is that it had great views of the surrounding mountains. Cabo really is just a beautiful place.

There was a section in the back of the lounge that I think was designed for families. Inside this room were two very large and comfy looking recliners.

The recliners looked very relaxing but that room also got very loud with kids running around so I’m not sure it was the best place to put recliners….

There were a number of TVs in the lounge playing Wimbledon and there were a few racks where you could pick up different types of literature.

Ultimately, we found a spot over by the windows that was pretty quiet and that’s where we settled.

The lounge also had a VIP area with some sofas lining the wall (that was only for reservations). There was also a business meeting room that was filled to the brim during my stay.

I do want to say that the crowds did start to pick up after we had been there for about an hour and a half. So I think this lounge can get quite busy but for the most part it was very low-key during most of our stay.

Dónde está el baño?

The biggest issue with this lounge is that the bathrooms were broken. Yes, the men’s and women’s bathroom on both floors were out of service during our entire stay.

This wasn’t that big of a deal for me because I was able to exit the lounge and go to the bathroom found directly next to the lounge. However the women’s bathroom right next door was also out of service and I saw many frustrating women trying to figure out where to go. This lounge also does not have any showers.

Final word

When traveling through Mexico or the Caribbean I usually have pretty low expectations for Priority Pass lounges. I found many of them to be very basic and small and often times extremely crowded and hot places I just don’t care to be. However, at this lounge was an exception to that.

It was a beautiful mid-century lounge that never got too packed and while the food wasn’t gourmet, there were some decent offerings. So if you are traveling through Cabo I think you should look forward to using your Priority Pass membership. I wouldn’t say to arrive super early just for the lounge but if you do like to arrive extra early, you’ll have a nice spot to relax in.

Daniel Gillaspia

Air New Zealand International Lounge at Auckland (AKL) Review

After a fun few days exploring Auckland and the surrounding area, we were getting ready for the next major segment of our round the world trip back to the US from Sydney. But before making our way from Auckland to Sydney, we checked out the Air New Zealand International Lounge at Auckland Airport (AKL). Here’s a review of our early morning visit to the lounge, which was refurbished in 2015.

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Access to the Air New Zealand International Lounge

You can get access to the Air New Zealand International Lounge if you are: Airpoints Elite, Gold, Elite Partner and Koru members or if you are a business class passengers departing on Air New Zealand flights. Since we had booked Air New Zealand tickets with Aeroplan miles, we had access to the lounge.

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Getting to the lounge

After finishing up a five day stay at the Hilton Auckland, we made our way back to the Auckland Airport very early in the morning to return our rental vehicle to Avis before our flight over to Sydney. The lounge opens up at 4:30am and we were arriving just after opening.

We were supposed to fly the Air New Zealand Dreamliner over to Sydney but due to 787 engine issues our aircraft was swapped for a leased Hi Fly A340, which had an old Emirates cabin on the inside.

We still went through the check-in procedure for Air New Zealand though, which meant we were able to utilize the special check-in areas for premium passengers.

We were the only ones in the check-in area when we arrived (around 4:45am) and it was one of the sleekest and nicest check-in areas I’ve seen for business class check-in.

The Air New Zealand agent had us sit down in a little private section while he arranged for our bags to be checked and printed out our boarding pass. The seats were comfortable and even had wireless charging for our phones built into the side table.

After our luggage was taken care of, we were escorted to the fast track security line which we got through very quickly since there were hardly any other passengers in line. And then we navigated our way to the Air New Zealand International lounge.

After you get through security and customs, It’s pretty easy to find the lounge as you wind your way around the duty free shops and up the escalator to the lounge. There should be a couple of signs to guide you along the way.

We were among the first passengers to show up at the lounge and it was pretty empty for the first 20 to 30 minutes that we visited, although it did start to fill up pretty quickly after that.

As we first strolled through the lounge, I thought the aesthetics were very impressive. I could tell that there was a lot of seating and lots of different types of seats as the lounge has a capacity at 375 guests.

Air New Zealand International Lounge seating.

Some of the seats do have New Zealand outlets, you just have to be on the lookout for them.

It’s a very modern vibe throughout the lounge and really just well-done.

I really liked these benches built into the wall with some artwork and mood lighting.

I also really liked these chaise lounge seats that came with a decent amount of privacy and small tables.

The chaise lounge at the very end of the row would have been perfect for a nap/re-charging.

They have some areas that can function more like work stations, too.

We then made our way toward the very back of the lounge to check out an area that had some tarmac views and a lot of comfy seating. This area opens up as a covered outdoor terrace (with a retractable roof) which is an impressive feature though it remained closed during our visit. There’s also a fireplace so that the room can be opened up during the colder months.

Some of the seating was pretty interesting like these suspended chairs

This area definitely had an Amex Centurion vibe going on with all of the greenery hanging on the wall.

There wasn’t much going on outside given how early we were but the lounge really does has some great views for plane spotting.

The lounge had a pretty decent breakfast selection to choose from, which was set up in front of an impressive assembly of monitors. There’s also a theater area which I didn’t get a photograph of.

Air New Zealand International Lounge dining area.

They had a self-serve pancake machine along with all of the fixings for your pancakes. I believe that during busier times they have a chef who can prepare cooked to order meals but there was not a chef during our visit.

There was a variety of bread and a toaster available.

They had a variety of yogurts and fruit salads set up, as well.

Air New Zealand International Lounge breakfast.

They also had some whole fruits.

They also had a decent selection of pastries.

As for the hot items, they had scrambled eggs with chives, roast potatoes, and Italian breakfast sausages, all of which were pretty satisfying though the potatoes were by far the best item to me.

The also had some other dish with mushrooms and chickpeas but I didn’t try it out.

Overall, the food selections were pretty decent as was the quality of the food. I wouldn’t say it was the best I’ve had at a business class lounge but still quality enough to do the trick.

There’s a sleek cocktail/espresso bar area and in the morning it was mostly set up for water glasses and the ordering station for coffees.

Air New Zealand International Lounge bar.

One of my favorite parts to the lounge was the self-order tablet where you can customize your coffee order exactly as you’d like — you can even choose to have it in the lounge or take-a-way.

Air New Zealand International Lounge espresso bar.

Simply select your style of drink and then input your name and then the tablet will tell you when to expect your order.

The line to the tablet was short when I ordered but when we got ready to leave, the line started to get pretty long.

I went with a decaf cappuccino, which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Air New Zealand International Lounge coffee bar.

They had a few juices to choose from like apple juice, orange juice, and tomato juice.

Air New Zealand International Lounge fruit juices.

There was also a coffee maker.

Air New Zealand International Lounge coffee.

And a decent selection of beers and sparkling wine to choose from.

Air New Zealand International Lounge drinks.

Air New Zealand International Lounge soda machine.

Air New Zealand International Lounge glassware.

Air New Zealand International Lounge magazine selection.

The bathrooms were nice and clean.

Air New Zealand International Lounge bathroom.

There are showers at the lounge, but I didn’t get a photo of them.

Where the **** is my wallet?

After getting all of my photos for the lounge and then enjoying the decaf cappuccino, we were getting ready to head to the gate… until I realized that I didn’t have my wallet in my pocket. I searched all through my bags and still couldn’t find it and that’s when it clicked that I’d left it in the Avis rental car.

At that point, I didn’t feel like I’d have enough time to run back to the rental car desks and make it back to the gate for departure. Since we had a somewhat tight connection in Sydney for our award flight on Virgin Atlantic to LAX, I didn’t want to risk missing that flight at all.

So we made our way to the gate and then had agents call the Avis desk to see if they could get it. But nobody would pick up the phone. We even called some of the nearby stores and they said nobody was attending the Avis desk.

This was the beginning of one of the most frustrating experiences I’d ever had with a rental car company, as it would take about six weeks to get my wallet back. I literally contacted every department within Avis over that time multiple times but Avis kept dropping the ball over and over again by doing things like cancelling my case file or assigning people to my case who were on sabbatical. It was downright infuriating at times.

Luckily, one worker in New Zealand finally took the initiative and sent it over on her own accord which I was extremely thankful for. When I received my wallet, all cards and cash were still intact, so I’ll give them props for that.

I definitely learned my lesson to make a complete sweep of every rental car before I turn it in. I think I’ll also be avoiding Avis in the future whenever I can.

Emirates first class?

Although it didn’t feel too great to be boarding a plane with a missing wallet, we were able to experience what I’m pretty sure is the old Emirates first class on an A340. The crew was ran by all Hi Fly crew members except for one Air New Zealand flight attendant.

My string of great luck was still going strong and it turns out that my seat didn’t work so I had to get bumped to business class. I got some vouchers out of it so I didn’t mind — I was just happy that our flight was going to be on time and that we’d be able to experience Virgin Australia for the first time.

Final word

The Air New Zealand International Lounge is a solid lounge. Aesthetically speaking, it’s beautiful and modern with plenty of different types of ways to relax depending on what you need to get done. the breakfast line-up was solid though not extraordinary in any way but I really loved the self-order coffee bar. My ultimate test for a good lounge is if it’s worth arriving early for and I would say that this is a lounge arriving a little early for.

Daniel Gillaspia

Plaza Premium Lounge TPE Terminal 1 Review

Plaza Premium Lounges have interested me for a while. Many of them are part of the Priority Pass lounge network and you can also get admission into them with the lounge access from the American Express Platinum Card. I’d heard somewhat mixed things about these lounges for a while, so I was excited to finally try one out and see how it measured up to other lounges. Here’s my review of the Plaza Premium Lounge at Terminal 1.

Plaza Premium Lounge access

I was given access to the Plaza Premium Lounge with my business class boarding pass for Thai Airways on the 777-200. That was an interesting experience on a pretty dated aircraft and you can read about that flight here.

After getting through security, I followed the VIP lounge signs and made my way over to where many of the lounges are located in Terminal 1.

There are four different Plaza Premium Lounges at TPE — two of them are in Terminal 1 and the other two are in Terminal 2. In this case, I was headed to the Plaza Premium Lounges in Zones C and D. These are located very close to each other as you can tell by the map below.

I made my way up the stairs to the fourth floor and first saw the Cathay Pacific lounge and then the entrance for the first Plaza Premium Lounge. This Plaza Premium Lounge was not open at the time, however and it had a sign pointing me (both ways), so I just kept walking down to to check out the other lounge and that’s the one I entered, which I believe was the Zone D lounge.

According to the map above, there’s also a Thai VIP Lounge but I don’t recall that being open when I visited.

Plaza Premium Lounge TPE (Terminal 1)

The Plaza Premium Lounge is a relatively small lounge but feels very cozy. When I entered, I went directly to the seating area on the left side of the lounge. There were several comfortable chairs there with tables that came with power outlets and lamps.

I really liked the homey vibe at the lounge and it was also nice that crowds were never an issue and I basically had an entire third of the lounge to myself.

Some of the seats have ottomans in front so you can really get comfortable on them. I also appreciated the coffee tables when working from the laptop.

Some of the seats had international outlets built in to the seat, along with USB ports so the seating was very functional.

I also noticed a reserved section that was completely empty. I thought I read something about being able to pay to reserve a spot in this section but I’m not sure how accurate that was.

Plaza Premium Lounge TPE reserved section.

The front area of the lounge has about ten little pods that you can work in or enjoy your meal in. These also have outlets in them. The set up reminded me of a miniature version the Korean Air First Class lounge. While these cubbies were not very tall and looked a little cramped, they did offer a fair amount of privacy.

Plaza Premium Lounge TPE semi-private pods.

There’s a partition in the middle of the lounge that divides the cubby area from the dining area.

Dining

After locking down a comfortable chair in the corner, I then ventured over to the dining area. The lounge offered a decent selection of hot dishes to choose from and they had items for Eastern and Western breakfasts. You can sit at one of the two tables for eight or at some of the tables on the perimeter of the dining room. There was a good flow of people in the dining area when I first arrived but it thinned out after about 30 minutes or so.

I thought the lounge offered a pretty decent variety of hot-food options. Here’s a look at the food offered for breakfast.

There were plenty of options for beverages including a soda machine, espresso, wine, beer, tea (with hot water machine).

There were also canned beverages but I didn’t know what they were.

They also had some snacks including cereal, nuts, cookies, and a couple of baskets of apples.

The bread was also popular with a lot of people.

Additional features

On either side of the lounge, there was a large tv with literature.

You could also find a screen with flight information.

I believe that this lounge did have a shower but I didn’t end up checking it out.

Final word

Overall, I’d say this was a pretty solid Priority Pass type of lounge. It had comfy seating areas, options for privacy, and a good variety of hot-food items, and not to mention pretty decent wifi. I loved that crowds weren’t an issue so I’d say this was a great lounge experience (considering what type of lounge this is).

Daniel Gillaspia

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