Airport lounge access is a perk I hope to never travel without. Having a comfortable place to relax, eat, shower and perhaps even get pampered makes travel days much more enjoyable.
A Priority Pass lounge membership will allow you to visit over 1,300 lounges around the world and is included as a perk on several credit cards.
There are also bank-sponsored lounges you can access if you hold a premium travel card with Chase, Capital One and American Express.
The lounge experience varies by airport – some airports have multiple lounge options and others none. If you are loyal to a specific airline it may be worth looking into getting a premium card with that airline that includes lounge benefits.
Deciding which card to apply for will be dependent on several factors including:
- Does your home airport have a bank-sponsored lounge?
- Does your home airport have any Priority Pass experiences or restaurants?
- Do you need guest access for your traveling companions? How many?
- Can you open a business card?
Some cards will allow the cardholder to bring two guests into the lounge for free. Other cards will only allow the cardholder.
If you are traveling with more than 3 people, at least 2 members of your traveling party will need to have a card that includes lounge access.
Keep in mind that cards that include lounge access tend to have high annual fees. If you use the perks and benefits included on the card it can be easy to justify the annual fee. If you only travel a few times a year be sure you’ll be able to utilize any other card benefits to make the annual fee worthwhile.
I’ll go into details below on how to choose the best option for you and your family, but if you’d like a personalized recommendation scroll to the bottom and I will be happy to help.
BANK-SPONSORED LOUNGES
Let’s look at bank-sponsored lounges first.
American Express, Capital One and Chase all have their own series of airport lounges. These are some of the nicest lounges in the United States. If you travel from an airport that has a bank-sponsored lounge it may be worth applying for a credit card that gives you access to that lounge.
NOTE: Cards that give you access to these bank-sponsored lounges also include a Priority Pass lounge membership.
NOTE: Of the 3 bank lounges, the Chase Sapphire Lounges are the easiest to bring guests into – more detail below.
AMERICAN EXPRESS OPTIONS
CENTURION LOUNGES
Centurion Lounges tend to be best suited for solo travelers. Guest access is allowed if you spend $75,000+ on the card each year or you can opt to pay a $50/adult guest fee per visit ($30 for children 2-17).
The two cards that give you access to the Centurion Lounges are the American Express Platinum Card® and the The Business Platinum Card® from American Express.
You can add an authorized user to the American Express Platinum card for $195 per year and/or the Business Platinum for $400 per year and they will have lounge access.
PRIORITY PASS WITH AMERICAN EXPRESS
The American Express Platinum cards and the Marriott Brilliant card allow access for 2 guests into Priority Pass Lounges, Plaza Premium Lounges and Escape Lounges.
CAPITAL ONE OPTIONS
CAPITAL ONE LOUNGES / LANDINGS
Cardholders of the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card and the Capital One Venture X Business card have access to Capital One branded lounges. Capital One lounges also have limited guest privileges.
If you’d like to bring a guest into a Capital One lounge there is a $45 fee per adult guest ($25 for children 2-17).
If you spend $75,000+ per calendar year on either Venture X card you can bring two complimentary guests into Capital One lounges and one guest into Capital One Landings.
NOTE: Authorized users on both Venture X cards can have unlimited Capital One and Priority Pass lounge access with a $125 annual lounge fee. If you add someone be sure they will use the Capital One lounge at least 3 times to make it worth it (for a child under 17 they would need to use the lounge more than 5 times to make up for the $125 annual fee).
PRIORITY PASS WITH CAPITAL ONE
Priority Pass guest access will cost $35 per visit on the personal Venture X card as of February 1, 2026.
The Venture X Business card still allows up to 2 guests into Priority Pass lounges.
NOTE: Authorized users on the Venture X cards can have unlimited Capital One and Priority Pass lounge access with a $125 annual lounge fee. If you add someone be sure they will use a Priority Pass lounge at least 4 times to make up for the $125 annual fee.
You can read all about the Capital One cards HERE
CHASE OPTIONS
SAPPHIRE LOUNGES
If you travel from one of the airports that has a Chase Sapphire Lounge consider opening the Chase Sapphire Reserve® personal or the Sapphire Reserve for Business℠. Both include two complimentary guests.
Chase Sapphire Reserve cardholders will also have access to select Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounges and Air Canada Cafes when flying on any Star Alliance airline (Air Canada, ANA, Avianca, Singapore Airlines, United and more). This currently includes U.S. lounges in LAX, SFO and LGA.
PRIORITY PASS WITH CHASE
In addition to the Priority Pass membership included on the Chase Sapphire Reserve cards, they also include access to additional experiences like Gameway, XpresSpa, Minute Suites, Be Relax and more. Getting a massage is a nice treat before a flight and even if you don’t plan to play any video games in a Gameway location you can still pop in and get your free drink and snack to go.
I’ll share more about these Priority Pass experiences below.
ADDITIONAL CHASE OPTION – BEST FOR FAMILIES
The most generous lounge option for families is the The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card. This card is not available for new applications but is an upgrade option after you’ve held a Chase Marriott card for at least one year. The reason this card is advantageous is that it allows you to add authorized users for FREE and they each get their own Priority Pass lounge membership with guest allowance.
If you don’t currently have a Chase Marriott card that you’ve had at least a year, you can apply now and use alternative lounge options until you can upgrade the Chase Marriott card to the Ritz-Carlton card and rely on the Ritz-Carlton card for your lounge access going forward.
PRIORITY PASS EXPERIENCES
There are over 1,300 Priority Pass lounges around the world. The Priority Pass program includes traditional lounges and non-lounge locations like restaurants, spas, game rooms and relaxation rooms.
Not all credit cards give you access to these non-lounge airport experiences.
The easiest way to know what an airport offers is to search by airport on prioritypass.com and take note of the type of experience offered. When you know what type of experience you want access to you’ll be able to determine which credit card to apply for.
Some cards have already transitioned to the new Priority Pass+ app which has tabs across the top for each of the location types – Lounge, Refresh, Rest and Unwind as shown below.
If you are using an older version of the Priority Pass app, the examples below will likely reflect the format you will see.
TRADITIONAL LOUNGES
All credit cards that include a Priority Pass membership will give you access to over 1,300 locations labeled as “LOUNGE”
EXPERIENCES
Priority Pass experiences can be labeled as either “REFRESH” “UNWIND” and “REST” – these are non-dining and non-lounge locations. You’ll be able to see what is included on each of these under the location terms. Getting a massage is a nice treat before a flight and even if you don’t plan to play any video games in a Gameway location you can still pop in and get your free drink and snack to go.
RESTAURANTS
Dining at Priority Pass airport restaurants was a perk we enjoyed for several years. Sadly, that has been removed from most credit cards. There are a few cards that still include this perk; however, they are with rewards programs that are not as valuable as other credit cards so you would likely be opening the card primarily for the restaurant access. Be sure it is worth the 5/24 spot, any applicable annual fee and that you will be traveling through airports that include Priority Pass restaurants.
These are labeled as “EXPERIENCE” or “EAT” and typically include a $28 dining credit for you and your guests. Some locations limit you to one guest and others will allow more. Be sure to read the terms for what is included before ordering. I always have the server scan my Priority Pass app before ordering to make sure everything goes through as expected.
Cards that include Priority Pass Restaurants:
The U.S. Bank Altitude® Connect Visa Signature® Card ($0 annual fee, 4 Priority Pass visits per year)
U.S. Bank Business Altitude™ Connect World Elite Mastercard®($0 annual fee for the first year, then $95; 4 Priority Pass visits per year)
Bank of America® Premium Rewards® Elite ($550 annual fee, 4 Priority Pass memberships with unlimited guests)
ADDITIONAL OPTIONS
If you are not interested in any bank-sponsored lounges then you have some additional options to consider. All three cards below include a Priority Pass membership that allows you to bring up to two guests with you.
Send me a DM if you would like any additional information on these cards or any others mentioned previously.
Bilt Palladium – The Bilt 2.0 program is new and more complicated than it needs to be, but worth considering if you would like to earn points on your rent or mortgage.
Citi Strata Elite℠ Card – In addition to a Priority Pass membership with guest access, the Citi Strata Elite also includes 4 Admirals Club passes each year. These passes can be used by anyone and each adult using a pass can bring up to 3 children under the age of 18 into the lounge for free. The pass is valid for 24 hours so you may be able to use it multiple times within that period.
Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant – Cardholders of the Brilliant card are allowed to bring 2 guests into Priority Pass lounges. In addition, there are a handful of experiences included in this particular membership – I’m mostly seeing the option to access the Minute Suites which allows you to bring up to 3 guests into the private room with you.
CREDIT CARD LOUNGE ACCESS COMPARISON
IN SUMMARY
As you can see there are several factors to consider when choosing a credit card for lounge access. If I had to pick a favorite I’d choose the following:
TOP PICK: Ritz-Carlton Credit Card
In general I would say my top pick for lounge access with guest privileges is the Ritz-Carlton card with the ability to add free authorized users that each have their own lounge membership with guest allowance.
Send me a DM for more information on the best card to apply for that will be upgradable to the Ritz-Carlton card after a year.
RUNNER UP: Chase Sapphire Reserve®
The Chase Sapphire Reserve was recently revamped and has an elevated welcome offer of 125,000 points after spending $6,000 in the first 3 months. You are eligible for this bonus if you have never earned a bonus on the Chase Sapphire Reserve card and you can apply even if you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred card.
This card is loaded with travel perks and additional credits and coupons that if used can make up for the high annual fee.
NEED HELP?
It is 100% easier to look at lounge access on an individual basis vs. writing (or reading) a detailed post focused on the masses.
If you’re interested in a FREE personalized recommendation send me a DM with the following info and I’ll be happy to help you narrow it down. If you include your email address I’ll reply via email which will be easier, but if you’d prefer I send via DM that works too.
- Do you currently have lounge access?
- How many guests do you want to bring?
- Can you open a business card?
- What airport do you travel from most frequently?
Holly @onpointwithholly is part of an affiliate network and may receive commission when you support her efforts to continue to provide FREE content, resources and guidance. Send me a DM if you have any questions or would like help deciding the best credit card strategy for you!
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