Can you Afford an Airline Lounge Membership? Yes!

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Can you Afford an Airline Lounge Membership? Yes!

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Written by Beth B

Saturday, 15 March 2008

by BethB

If you've ever sat through a 6-hour weather delay, you know why you'd like an airline lounge membership. Lounges shelter us from the lines, noise, and chaos of the airport. Even the worst, most crowded lounge is usually more comfortable than the average airport waiting area.

Maybe you've looked at the price for a memberhip and thought "well, so much for that." You're not alone. Most travelers don't realize there are several ways to access the lounges, at a variety of prices.

1. Even new travelers know the first option: buying loung membership at full price, straight from a single airline. If you have several hundred dollars you could go this route. I don't personally recommend it.

2. Instead of buying full access to an airline's club, you can consider a day pass with that airline. Prices run from $25 to $75 and are only good for the single day. If you only travel a couple times a year this might be the right option.

3. Do you carry an American Express Platinum card? If so, you already have access to many lounges run by four different airlines. Platinum cards are only offered to well-established potential customers, and there's a healthy annual fee. If you want the full suite of Platinum card services, this is worth considering.

4. A less expensive option is to get a Diners Club card. They have relationships with a number of airport lounges internationally -- most of which are very well-rated. Unfortunately, at the time of this writing Diners Club has only 5 lounges in the United States.

5. Do you nearly always fly on one airline alliance? If so, you probably have frequent flyer "status" and quality for reduced loung membership prices. Some airlines will let you apply your frequent flyer miles towards the price. I wish I traveled on a single airline enough for this to work for me.

6. Now for the rest of us. For those of us to fly multiple airlines and don't relish shelling out the money for a single-airline membership, the Priority Pass program is a lifesaver. Priority Pass has negotiated access to 500+ airport lounges across 90 countries, in over 275 cities. They have several membership plans, starting as low as $99.

Hopefully you found an airline lounge membership option in the list above that meets your needs. For me, Priority Pass was the right choice. I don't travel a single airline enough to get much of a discount, and am too cheap to pay for the other options. You'll need to weigh your own budget and travel habits to determine what works best for you.

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Still undecided? Make sure you check out Beth B's discussion of the Priority Pass program and why the Priority Pass program made sense for her. Get a totally unique version of this article from our article submission service