ATTENTION: Lounge Club is not affiliated with LoungeBuddy. Please note that the Lounge Club lounge membership program has been discontinued and is no longer in operation. Any questions about your membership should be directed to your card issuer.

What is Lounge Club?

Lounge Club is an independent airport lounge program that provides its members with access to airport lounges around the world. Through enrollment in the Lounge Club program, members and their guests can gain entrance into any of its large network of independent airport lounges, often at a discount when compared to the price that a visitor would have to pay for a day pass directly from the provider.

Rather than operating these lounges directly, Lounge Club grants their members entry into lounges operated by their partners, a list that includes airlines, independent airport lounge operators, and other third parties. While relatively few airline-operated lounges are a part of the Lounge Club directory, some exceptions exist.

Which lounges do I get access to with Lounge Club?

Lounge Club membership provides access to over 700 airport lounges in over 200 airports worldwide. Some of the more notable lounges to join the network include The Club at DFW, the Aspire Lounge at HEL, and No. 1 Gatwick (North and South) at LGW.

Aspire Lounge (41) at Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS)

Similarities to Priority Pass

Those who are familiar with Priority Pass may notice the many similarities between Lounge Club and Priority Pass. In fact, both are owned by the Collinson Group, a British company, as a part of the Priority Travel Group, a division that specializes in the international travel clubs and services sector. With offices in Dallas, Hong Kong, and London, the Priority Travel Group has over fifty years of experience in providing quality products and services to frequent travelers.

In 2011, the Priority Travel Group established the Lounge Club membership in order to allow their business partners, US based financial institutions, to reward its most valued members with access to airport lounges. While similar to Priority Pass, Lounge Club differs from its more established counterpart in one significant respect. While Priority Pass provides members with access to over 1200 lounges, Lounge Club provides access to over 700. Of these 700+ lounges, virtually all are a part of both the Lounge Club and Priority Pass networks.

What are the benefits of Lounge Club?

Because it can open doors to over 700 lounges in over 200 airports around the world, ownership of a Lounge Club card can be very useful for frequent international travelers, especially economy class travelers who do not otherwise qualify for complimentary lounge access.

For its members, Lounge Club offers the ability to find a quiet space to relax or get work done and escape the hectic environment of the airport terminal. With amenities like free Wi-Fi, full business facilities, complimentary snacks and beverages, conference rooms, comfortable seating, and even showers at select international locations, Lounge Club's partner lounges have plenty to offer for business and casual travelers alike.

King Amlet Lounge, Billund (BLL)

Some Basic Membership Information

Membership in Lounge Club is typically for a one year period, starting the day you receive your membership card. Some memberships are renewed automatically, while others require action on the part of the cardholder; it depends on your credit card provider.

According to Lounge Club, the basic membership package is valued at around $99 per year. Because many credit card companies also offer 2 free visits (valued at $27 each) to Lounge Club members each year, this bumps the value up to approximately $150 per year. Members, however, will rarely have to pay such a fee, as virtually all of the credit cards that offer Lounge Club will subsidize this cost in full, as long as members pay the credit card's annual fee. Considering the full price, even with a lower than average estimate of $40 for a day pass, it would only take 8 paid lounge visits (8*($40-$27)=$104) for one to break even, which is easily doable for frequent business travelers.

Regarding the two free visits per year, these can be applied to both the individual member and guests. For example, this can consist of one free visit for both a member and a guest or two separate lounge visits by a member alone. As an individual may have more than one Lounge Club affiliated credit card, it seems to be possible to obtain an additional two passes for each membership acquired.

Royal Jordanian Crown Lounge at Amman (AMM)

Terms of Access for Members, Guests, and Children

In order to receive Lounge Club membership, an individual must be at least 18 years of age. While most lounges will grant access to members who meet this requirement, some individual lounges will only grant access to members who are at least 21 years old. According to Lounge Club's official website, most lounges in the network will allow any number of guests for an extra $27, though you might want to check beforehand whether an individual lounge limits access to a certain number of guests. In addition, you might want to take a look at an individual lounge's policy regarding children. While some clubs require children over 2 to pay the full guest price, others offer free admission to children under 12. More information can be found here.

Typically, no cash transactions occur at the lounges. Instead, the lounge attendant would swipe your Lounge Club card once for each visit for you and your guests, and the $27 for each visit after the 2 free passes have been utilized will be added to the credit card account statement associated with the Lounge Club membership.

IMPORTANT: Presenting your credit card at the lounge's front desk is not sufficient. Lounges will require that your present your LOUNGE CLUB membership card, so be sure to always carry your LOUNGE CLUB card with you whenever you travel.

What are the prerequisites for Lounge Club membership?

Unlike Priority Pass, the option to purchase membership directly from Lounge Club does not currently exist. In fact, you are only eligible to become a member once you have signed up for one of a limited number of credit cards offered by JP Morgan Chase, Merrill Lynch, City National Bank, and American Express (UK only).

The majority of these participating credit cards are issued by Chase, including the Chase Ritz Carlton Visa Signature Rewards Card, the Chase JP Morgan Palladium Visa Signature Card, and the Chase Fairmont Visa Signature Card.

While the annual membership fee is a bit more expensive than the other cards, the City National Bank Crystal Card, JPMorgan Palladium Card, and the Visa Black Card undoubtedly provide the best deal, offering members and guests unlimited complimentary access to any of Lounge Club's partner lounges, along with free annual membership each year.

The Merrill Lynch Accolades Amex Card and the Merrill Plus Visa Signature Card provide free annual membership and ten free visits for members and their guests, with the $27 fee coming into effect once these complimentary visits have been exhausted.

Meanwhile, with City National Bank's Crystal Visa Card, City National Bank will enroll a maximum of 2 of the Crystal Visa account cardholders, including the primary member. Guests are presumably welcome at no additional charge, though additional information about this card seems to be difficult to come by.

For individuals in the UK, the American Express Preferred Rewards Gold Card offers free annual membership and 2 free lounge visit per year, with a 15GBP fee for each additional visit.

How does the application process work?

Once you are a member of one of these eligible partner credit cards, you can contact your credit card provider and ask for an activation code to apply on the Lounge Club website.

Once you have applied for the card, you should receive a package in the mail consisting of a membership card, welcome letter, and an informational brochure. Application processing time varies: for Chase Ink cardholders, this will ordinarily take about 10-14 business days, while Merrill Plus Visa Signature cardholders can expect up to 4 to 6 weeks.

For all other cards, please contact your credit card provider for more information, as the process may differ.

Additional Information

To learn more about Lounge Club's partner lounges and airport lounges in general, be sure to check out the LoungeBuddy App, which is currently available for iOS and Android. With coverage on over 1000 airports and 2500 lounges, LoungeBuddy is the most complete directory of up-to-date information on airport lounges around the world. Simply input your trip information and any elite statuses, credit cards, or lounge memberships (including LOUNGE CLUB) that you may have, and LoungeBuddy will generate a customized list of lounges that are available to you, with reviews, photos, descriptions, directions, amenities, and much more!

Lounge Club Contact Information

Additionally, Lounge Club can be reached 24 hours a day, seven days a week by mail, telephone, fax, or email at the following locations:

United Kingdom - London
PO Box 3312, Croydon CR2 1DR England
Tel: UK +44 (0)20 8827 0089
Fax: UK +44 (0)20 8688 6191

Hong Kong SAR
GPO Box 9411, Hong Kong SAR
Tel: Hong Kong +852 2907 0097
Fax: Hong Kong +852 2907 0600

USA - Dallas
PO Box 700907 Dallas, Texas 75370-0907, USA
Tel Toll-Free in USA/Canada/Mexico: 877 458 2822
Tel Elsewhere: USA +1 469 467 1747
Fax Toll-Free in USA/Canada/Mexico: 800 352 2863