Airport Club Access via Credit Cards: your options and comparison
Dare to go through the boardroom doors...
Airport club membership is often $400 per year or more on its own, but over the last several years airlines have started to bundle club access with premium credit cards. Currently United / Continental and Delta offer credit cards with airport club access while the Platinum Card from American Express offers access to multiple lounge networks.
In each case, you will receive several fringe benefits not available with standalone club membership, though you should be a frequent user to make it worthwhile — a single visit lounge pass can be had for $25-$50…so plan on 10 visits per year to make it worthwhile, or 5 per year with a companion, since passes don’t have guest privileges.
Our take: the Platinum Card is your best bet if you’re not a heavy United / Continental flyer, and want maximum flexibility. If you fly United /Continental, Chase has exclusivity on benefits so only their card will offer you access to United / Continental lounges. Previously the Platinum Card had Continental privileges, but with Chase’s hard line on exclusivity Amex has tried to make up for it by adding American Admirals Clubs, US Airways Clubs, and 600+ Priority Pass lounges for unrivaled access once reserved for ‘Black Card’ holders.
| Platinum Card from American Express | Delta Reserve | Continental / United Presidential Plus | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
|
| Lounges | |||
| American | Yes | No | No |
| Delta | Yes | Yes | No |
| United/Continental | No | No | Yes |
| US Airways | Yes | No | Yes |
| Other | Yes, 600+ via Priority Pass | No | No |
| Free guests | 2 and/or immediate family | 2 and/or immediate family | 2 and/or immediate family |
| Annual fee | $450 | $450 | $395 |
| Other features | > $200 in airline fee credits per year > No foreign transaction fees > Starwood Hotels Gold status > National Car Rental Executive status > 4 hour Hertz car rental grace period | > First bag free on all Delta flights (up to 9 people in reservation) | > First and second bags free on Continental flights > Priority security and boarding > No foreign transaction fees > Hyatt Platinum status > 25% bonus on miles flown if you are an elite member |
| Intro bonus | 25,000 points after $1,000 of spending within 3 months | 20,000 miles, of which 10,000 are elite qualifying | $95 statement credit |
| Point transfer | Yes, to Delta, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Air Canada, Air France, Aeromexico, Singapore, Alitalia, ANA, Frontier, Hawaiian, Iberia | No | No |
| Elite qualifying miles | No | 15,000 elite qualifying miles after $30,000 in spending each year; additional 15,000 after $60,000 | 1,000 flex elite miles for every $5000 in purchases |
| Secure application link | Apply Now | Apply Now | Apply Now |
A few other things to consider…
- If you value bonus elite qualifying miles, then the Delta Reserve or Continental Presidential Plus cards may be right for you
- The Platinum Card offers a $200 annual airline fee credit — that can be used for things like paying for checked bag fees
- American Airlines Admirals Club access for Platinum Card members is comprehensive, but does not include the free WiFi access given to standard Admirals Club members
- You must be flying the host airline of the club to enter Delta and American clubs
- Although the Presidential Plus card is labeled as Continental — you can now freely transfer points between Continental and United accounts, so it doesn’t much matter whether you use a United or Continental branded card to earn your miles
- If you are a high tier elite member of the frequent flyer program (you know who you are), you usually get a discount on club access that makes it cost $250-$300 per year
- American and US Airways do not offer their own credit cards which offer club access — the Platinum Card is the only way to access without a standalone club membership
- If you’re a very frequent flyer, like we are, you may find two cards worthwhile. We carry both the Platinum Card and Presidential Plus to get complete coverage since we fly both United/Continental and Delta frequently.
- PenFed offers a credit card with Priority Pass membership after you spend $15,000, but it’s a limited membership that charges you $27 per visit after your first two. The Platinum Card offers unlimited free visits to Priorit Pass affiliated lounges.
For complete reviews of the cards, follow these links:
United lounges are part of the Priority Pass network. Does AmEx’s access to Priority Pass give you a “back door” into United’s lounges? I asked this question point blank to an AmEx representative and they said it did, but I’m suspicious.
@mike – It’s a bit confusing. So, the Priority Pass card given to people who get it via a credit card like the Platinum Card is called the Priority Pass ‘Select.’ The only difference of the ‘Select’ vs a standalone? No access to the United / Continental clubs. They did that to stop a back door into the lounges for Amex Plat holders.
Now, there are a couple of other smaller back doors. The first — use your $200 airline credit toward the purchase of the United Club membership. People have found Amex is lenient on letting United Club charges get reimbursed due to the loss of those clubs. The other — and this only works for people who have held the card for a while — Amex is sending US Airways Club memberships to people threatening to cancel who had a history of buying United or Continental tickets with their card. A US Airways Club membership gets you into the United Clubs.
There is no where that states that you have to be flying AA to use their Admirals Club if using the Plat AMEX for access. AMEX does not allow access when flying any other airline. That is not clear.
Yes, for AA and Delta that is the case. We added the notation.