American Express is doing something really innovative by opening up their own lounges at airports which their cardmembers frequent most. The footprint is small, but the lounges they do have blow the ones run by airlines out of the water.
Continue reading: Review: AmEx Centurion Lounge Las Vegas Airport
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Flying into LAS in a couple weeks. I can't quite tell if I could access this on arrival if I arrive at a different pier? Flying SWA. Does each pier have its own security or are they connected by train or something? Thanks!
Ben, I visit Vegas 5-8 times a year, and have made the Centurion Lounge a regular stop on my way home. I am pleased it's in the D gates, although selfishly, i wish it were one pier over so it were a bit closer to the Delta gates.
That being said, it's an excellent experience that blows any Sky Club away. I often take (relatively) early flights out of LAS to get back to the east coast, and appreciate the opportunity to stop in for 15 min for a quick breakfast before heading to my gate. Additionally, I got stuck in LAS my last time there in July due to some irrops (there was a medical emergency during boarding which slowed us down considerably, and was going to cause me to misconnect, so I stayed back in LA for 2 extra hours) and found the lounge a perfectly acceptable place to pass the time while waiting for the next LAS-JFK flight.
My only comment/complain would be that I always prefer when there is some sort of self-serve option for soft drinks. I don't drink a ton of soda - but for some reason always enjoy a diet coke when flying, it's just part of the experience for me, and would prefer to grab it myself, similar to the set up they have for the tea and the seemingly rotating fruity drink options, rather than have to wait on a bartender, and usually receive my coke in a pretty small glass and then have to go get a refill.
But i fully admit that that is nit picking, and if that's the worst thing to say about a lounge, then i'm pretty pleased with it.
I was flying from Vegas with AA last month and realised they had no lounge,i entered this Amex lounge and while enquiring anout the condition of admission i was told none of my 11Amex card gave me free access,i have to pay 50$ i asked to have a look and the gentleman at the desk wouldnt let me go alone,he followed me all the way,step by step and to be frank,it was crowded,with so many guest with no manners and as usual as in the US shouting as loud as they can,the food wasnt that good,i finally decided not to stay.
@ James -- You can use it on arrival and I do believe you should be able to connect to it airside.
Not sure if you're only meaning to cover US Centurion Lounges but there's also one at EZE.
I've been twice. It's lovely, plenty of comfy chairs and the food is good.
Maybe it's me, or maybe it's Vegas, but it was super loud both times I was there. Loud music, people drinking and laughing and chatting VERY loudly.
Felt more like Amex/Costco card members than Amex Platinum card members.
I was hoping for a moment of peace in that airport to decompress before a flight, and that wasn't at all the experience.
@ Neil S. -- There were definitely a few Vegasy types, though no loud music for me. 🙂
@James -- you can't automatically get to the D concourse from the areas Southwest operates in (A, B and C), but there is an airside door between the C and D concourses near the TSA checkpoint which some have been successful in asking a TSA agent to open for them.
If you are coming from the A or B concourse it's quite a hike though.
The Flyertalk thread about the LAS lounge has more info.
Having been to the LAS location several times and now the LGA location, I have to say I am blown away each time (after all, I am comparing this to the Admirals Club and SkyClubs), and as an AA flyer, after losing Admirals Club access, the Centurion Lounges are the sole reason I am keeping my Amex Plat. I would venture to say that the food beats most European business class lounges and even some Asian business class lounges. Hopefully Amex will maintain the standards they have established and we don't see the F&B offerings get downgraded down the road.
Deja vu, I was there last week (Sep 2 night 8~11 pm) after checking out from Vdara
It was okay and not as hyped as everyone made it to be, just like a "regular" Asian lounge I find.
The dinner food options were all too spicy for all of us, including kids - spicy chicken, potato (exactly like your photo), less spicy pasta, pumpkin soup. Salad & pudding were the same as yours
It was very quiet at night though, awesome! and with kids, somehow I forgot to take pictures 🙁
I did use the shower room (badly designed as water kept coming out) and the Family room (the nicest perk of the lounge for me), and got a scare when our carry-on got somewhat locked inside the locker (4 of them, next to the entrance) and finally "freed" when they kicked & pushed the door (lesson: don't put too many things inside the locker to block the "lock opening mechanism"....or AMEX should switch to a key locker instead)
The door leading to the Terminal D train is now left open. As you are exiting Terminal C, IMMEDIATELY before stepping onto the escalator down to the baggage claim, turn to the right and you will see the open set of doors with an understated mention of access to Terminal D.
I have always been asked to show a boarding pass, which you wouldn't have upon arriving on WN, but I don't know that they would deny you access without one.
Thanks for the review ...Was just going to go in last Tuesday had a flight at gate D1 But the cost $50 per person (Only have Delta Platinum) was a bit much since I was getting a meal on my flight.
Thanks for giving me a peek inside.
Robert
@James - you can, but you have to be let through a special security door between the two areas (find a tsa person to ask to let you through). DON'T actually leave security or you will be stuck. Was just there a couple of months ago, though I did it backwards (started in D, then went over to C, which is where SW flies into).
My husband and I were just there on Saturday and I totally agree, we thought it was fantastic - heads and shoulders over any airline lounge! Having said that, we have a free membership with my Platinum card, but:
- I'm not sure we would pay $100 for two people for a fairly short layover,
- unless there are a few more than are currently planned, I'm not sure how valuable this benefit is to those who don't often travel via Dallas and New York.
I've spent an inordinate amount of time in this lounge, and I really like it.
At DFW, they do a better job with providing table service, but since I find that kind of offputting (how much do I tip, who do I tip, what do I ask for?), I like the LAS experience a bit better.
In terms of the member services desk, I actually asked about their services on my last visit, and apparently they are kind of like a live concierge. So, if you want show tickets, dinner reservations, day trips, etc, they can do that for you.
The one thing that is somewhat bothersome about LAS is that it gets absolutely ridiculously packed at certain times. I flew out right after CES, which is one of Vegas' biggest conventions, and there was not a single empty seat anywhere. I think they may have capacity controlled it at a certain point.
One more thing - they do ask you for a boarding pass (only one of us had to show one) and we speculated that it was perhaps because AMEX offers this as a travel benefit; asking people for a boarding pass ensures that they are actually traveling that day, not just using the lounge to obtain unlimited free food and drinks.
Bgriff - Was there two weeks ago and the 'bypass doors' between "C" and "D" are now wide open. No longer need to ask TSA to open them (although we never had a problem with them opening the doors for us.)
Love that lounge!
You can enter on arrival from the southwest terminal as mentioned above without your boarding pass. I've done this multiple times. If asked I say I'm going to the Centurion Lounge. Aafter all, you're already security screened so BP shouldn't matter.
I have a flight on E gates, how hard is to get to the lounge? Also I would like to know if I acctualy can bring 2 guests with my amex platinum
Was there last Friday night and as everyone said, the bypass doors between C and D were wide open, though there was a large "Do Not Enter" sign on one of the open doors. We acted ignorant, like we didn't see it. There was a meeting of about 10-15 TSA agents taking place nearby, and they didn't notice us or if they did, didn't care, so we walked through back to C to get to our Southwest flight. Maybe they leave the doors open and just monitor people going through them, but it's a lot more convenient now than it used to be, having to find a TSA agent to open it for you.
I thought the Centurion lounge, for all the hype, was underwhelming, and didn't like the dinner food choices. They also didn't have chardonnay or cabernet sauvignon on their wine menu (we also asked the bartender), which I thought was odd.
I purposefully arranged a 7:30 a.m. arrival in Las Vegas on 9/5 so that I could check this lounge out for several hours before I checked into the Vdara.
After all the gushing reviews, I suppose I expected unicorns and rainbows so I was immediately disappointed by the "West Elm" inspired decor but, after an adjustment of expectation versus reality and ensconcing myself at a corner table triangulated from the bar and above-average buffet, I decided that THIS was a reason to carry the AMEX Platinum versus the United Club Card (at whose excessively, over-crowded lounges I can expect to gorge myself on an endless supply of yogurt pretzels - yum....).
Good job, AMEX, in this new world of where the consumer no longer need to chain himself to a specific airline's "loyalty" program in the hope of receiving superior service.
A truly wonderful, elegant experience. I am a centurion member and find this lounge to be one of the finest-I can not understand what anyone could possibly complain about. If you are reading this-I guarantee you will enjoy as I did. Wonderful food and wine, quiet, peaceful and elegant. The complainers are very clearly loud outliers.
I love it, without a doubt the best airport lounge either in the US or Asia that I have ever visited. A real good reason to have the Platinum card
This is the most welcome addition in Vegas, for me at least. It seems every time I'm in the airport waiting to leave Vegas, I want to do ANYTHING but wait at the gate. This changes everything.
Pro tip: if you have a black card you get a FREE Johnny Walker Blue with your entrance.
Good review, this is a game changer for me in my Vegas travels.