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There’s a better-than-ever chance that your trip could include a stop in an airport lounge if you’re flying soon.
Thanks to a proliferation of premium credit cards that include lounge access, more travelers than ever are passing through the frosted glass doors and taking advantage of their local airport’s more secluded spaces.
According to Airport Dimensions’ 2024 Airport Experience survey, 52% of frequent travelers use lounges on at least some of their trips, and 70% of travelers say more options for lounge access would improve their experience.
As credit card companies and airlines hold out lounges as a must-have perk and try to one-up each other on experience, the lounges themselves have had to change to meet the needs of a more diverse visitor base.
I spoke to some experts about how we got here and where lounges are headed, and here’s what they said to expect as airport lounges continue to evolve.
The target audience for airport lounges has changed over time. As a result, so have their layouts and amenities.
How lounges started
American Airlines was the first carrier to open a lounge when it cut the ribbon on its first Admirals Club at LaGuardia Airport in New York in the late 1930s. Since then, American has been at the forefront of lounge evolutions, becoming the first airline to open separate, dedicated premium lounges when it introduced its first Flagship lounge decades later.
In the early days, lounge access was limited to travelers on premium tickets or was only available by direct invitation from the airlines, and the interiors and amenities were pretty basic.
“The Delta lounge looked the same no matter where you were, the American lounge looked the same no matter where you were,” David Loyola, design director and principal at Gensler, told me. Loyola’s portfolio includes airport terminals and lounges.
“The food could have been very basic,” he added.
Experts previously told me the refreshments were, for a long time, more like the breakfast offerings in a mid-tier hotel lobby than the menu at an upscale restaurant.
And for a long time, that was fine. Travelers didn’t expect luxury from the lounges, exactly, just an escape from the scrum in the regular terminal.
When things started to change
When credit card companies started opening their own lounges and providing access with their airline partners through co-branded credit cards, the demographics of travelers who used the lounges started shifting, and their expectations followed.
“We know that our co-brand customers, second to earning miles and points, lounges are one of the most important things for our Citi cardholders,” Heather Garboden, chief customer officer at American Airlines, told me.
American Express opened the first Centurion Lounge in Las Vegas in 2013, and that, too, was a turning point for lounge offerings.
“They’re in a different game,” Loyola said.
American Airlines’ Flagship lounge in Philadelphia.
While airlines’ own lounges have a dual focus on creating an oasis for their passengers and providing an extra level of customer service when something goes wrong, credit card and other lounges are all about the experience alone.
That meant customers across all the lounges have come to expect more from the experience.
“I would say over the last 10 years there’s been more change than the prior 80 or 90 years,” Garboden said. “The food piece is incredibly important … Premium customers have really come to expect that.”
What travelers expect now
For most travelers, a cookie cutter lounge experience just isn’t enough anymore.
“People want experiences,” Garboden said. “The younger generation is expanding their participation, not only in just flying but as cardholders. We are trying to be really thoughtful about making sure our customers having a really good experience, whether they’re cardholder members or someone who paid for a business class seat.”
For many in the new generation of lounge users, that means better food, more and different kinds of seating options, and a sense of place when you’re in the airport.
“It has shifted to a much younger generation of travelers,” Loyola said. “If you compare lounges where they were to where they are now, trying to appeal to a broader audience that wants them to be less stuffy.”
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He added that a big focus is on providing options for different kinds of spaces within the lounge, and locally inspired design accents.
“Does this person want to sit in a lounge chair? Do they want a dining table? Do they want to sit at the bar? It’s providing a variety of seating types where people can decide ‘I want to do this today,’” he said, adding that it’s important for people to be able to orient themselves easily.
“Make it intuitive. There’s exploration, but it shouldn’t be cumbersome.”
What’s next in the lounge evolution
Garboden said American continues to plan for the future of its lounges. Especially as Flagship First Class phases out on its long-haul flights, its lounges will have to shift to cater to a slightly different set of travelers.
She said she anticipates food to be an even more important focus going forward, both for full-scale dining and a faster grab-and-go concept.
“One of the differentiators for Flagship First is Flagship Dining,” she said. “We’re focused on how we can expand that to all of Flagship, rather than just Flagship First. … The ala carte dining is something I anticipate will be expanding.””
(American brands both its long-haul first and business class cabins as Flagship, and is planning to phase out Flagship First in the coming years.)
Garboden added that the airline’s new Provisions Admirals Club locations have also gotten positive feedback from customers.
“Ultimately, it’s a grab and go. The goal isn’t for you to come in and lounge for an hour, but we have really great food and beverages for you to bag up and bring to your flight,” she said. “We’re actually shocked at how successful and how positive the customer feedback has been on it.”
A cheesemonger station at the Capital One lounge.
It sounds like lounge operators are poised to further stratify the options on the ground, just as airplane cabins have been segmented in the air.
If companies simultaneously invest in more high-end table service-style dining experiences and quick hit prepackaged meals, lounges will be positioned to cater to more kinds of flyers with a more diverse set of needs and expectations.
How can I get airport lounge access?
The most common ways for most people to get airport lounge access are as a perk of either a credit card or airline loyalty status. Many of the credit cards that provide lounge access do so through a partnership with Priority Pass.
American Express, Chase and Capital One all have premium credit cards that include lounge access, as do many airline co-branded credit cards.
If you don’t have lounge access as a perk of whatever’s in your wallet or your airline status, you can also often buy a day pass at the lounge check-in desk. You can also purchase a Priority Pass membership separately.
Airport and airline websites will usually list lounge availability and restrictions, so check before you get to the terminal.
Zach Wichter is a travel reporter and writes the Cruising Altitude column for USA TODAY. He is based in New York and you can reach him at zwichter@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Airport lounges are changing fast, filling up faster: What to expect