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The American Express Centurion® Lounges are some of my favorite spaces while traveling. They offer great food, drinks, comfy seats, fast Wi-Fi, and other amenities that vary by location. When I was flying to LaGuardia weekly, a chocolate chip cookie was the way I ended each trip to the lounge. You can read more about these lounges here.
Currently, guests who hold The Platinum Card® from American Express may enter with up to two guests at no charge. Back in 2021, it was announced that this policy would change and that cardmembers that did not make $75,000 or more in purchases during a calendar year would need to pay $50 for each guest they brought into the lounge.
I’m happy to report that I made the cut. I received an email from American Express today. This will save me hundreds of dollars as otherwise I would have to pay to allow my husband, family, or friends to come with me into these lounges.
The email details what to know at check in. It states:
- You’ll need to show your Platinum Card, boarding pass, and government-issued I.D. to check into The Centurion Lounge®.
- You will be charged $50 for any additional guest (or $30 for children ages two through 17, with proof of age) beyond your two complimentary guests.
I make it a point to always book my flights with The Platinum Card® from American Express as I earn 5X Membership Rewards® points when I purchase these directly from the airline or American Express Travel. I also use the card for Uber rides and to take advantage of the many offers that pop up for the card throughout the year. This was enough to push me past the $75,000 threshold and grant my guests free access to these fabulous lounges through 1/31/24.
Anthony’s Take: I’m glad that I crossed the threshold to allow up to two guests to accompany me at no charge. These lounges are some of the best and I look forward to visiting many of them in 2023.
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Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links above This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
13 comments
Unless it’s all airfare, you’d have to be a dummy to put $75k on that card. Sorry. Enjoy your……bragging rights?
Yes. The majority is airfare, some Uber rides, and then taking advantage of some good Amex offers.
Okay good…you had me worried for a moment
And you aren’t bragging or condescending about your ‘superior’ grasp of the Amex benefits gaming? Why do so?
Rather than spend 75k to bring 2 guest in for “free”… why not just spend 175 bucks and get authorized user cards? They have access to the lounge
I’d have to spend the $175. The majority is airfare here, some Uber rides, and then taking advantage of some good Amex offers.
I think the use case here is that he will often have different guests, so using AU cards may not be suitable. Since he’s UA GS, he is already traveling extensively and $6,250/month spending average with a few business trips per month is not extraordinary for this group. Two guest entries would be $100 per visit. In an edge case, a Primary card holder plus 3 AU’s could enter a CL with 8 guests which would cost $400 per visit.
If you spend $75k on airfare you should have top status in 1 or more airline programs, and their lounges would be a bet than the overcrowded Amex lounges.
Does airline status get you into any domestic airline lounges?
I can get into the United Clubs with my Global Services membership.
I still find the Centurion Lounges better than the domestic airline lounges.
Good news for you, for you? so what?! It’s an article to share that you spend $75k last year on your card… It’s ridiculous, if you can comfortably spend that amount, paying some money at airport outlets should not be a big deal.. Pointless article…
I’m sorry that you feel the article is pointless. I was simply pointing out that one of the upcoming benefits (that I’m excited about) will hopefully reduce crowding in the lounges.