This seems like a win-win for the lounge operator and customers, though I can’t imagine that Priority Pass has given its blessing…
In this post:
Priority Pass lounge finds creative way to generate revenue
Priority Pass lounge crowding has become a huge problem in recent years, probably coinciding with the popularity of premium credit cards, which is how many people in the United States get such a membership. Nowadays, many people are happy if they can simply get into a lounge, regardless of the quality, since being turned away due to capacity controls has become common.
Along those lines, one Priority Pass lounge in the United States seems to be getting creative, as shared by a reader. I won’t name the lounge, because I don’t necessarily want them to get in trouble, and I personally like the idea.
The concept is that the lounge turns away guests due to capacity controls over certain hours, but it’ll offer Priority Pass members a bag with goodies (in exchange for registering you as having visited). This includes a bottle of water, a can of soda, a couple of whole fruit, a bag of chips, a small package of cheese and crackers, and cookies.
It’s certainly nothing to get excited about, but if you’re not paying anything incrementally for accessing Priority Pass lounges, then I think just about anyone would take something over nothing. Besides, with the cost of drinks at airports, you’ll save at least several dollars.
I can’t imagine Priority Pass would be happy about this
I’ve gotta say, this lounge is running a smart side hustle. If it can’t accommodate Priority Pass guests, it simply gives them a bag with a few dollars worth of stuff, and gets a Priority Pass swipe out of it, which probably gets the lounge operator somewhere around $25 in revenue.
Since those with unlimited Priority Pass visits aren’t paying per lounge visit, consumers are probably also happy about this, since they’re getting something rather than nothing.
That being said, I have to imagine that this isn’t a Priority Pass approved concept, or else we’d see a lot more of this. The economics of Priority Pass are a bit complicated, given that the company sells lounge memberships directly, and also works with credit card companies on lounge memberships.
For those who get a membership through credit cards, we’ve mostly seen them cut credits at Priority Pass restaurants. You’d think that it wouldn’t matter to a credit card company whether the cost of a visit goes toward a lounge or a restaurant, but presumably it’s about limiting incremental costs. That’s why I imagine that Priority Pass wouldn’t approve of this concept, because it’s just too easy.
If this were allowed, I have a great new lounge concept. I’m going to set up a global OMAAT Flagship Polaris One Lounge network, consisting of kiosks at high traffic airports where I’ll give out a few bucks worth of packaged food in exchange for some swipes. 😉
Bottom line
One Priority Pass lounge in the United States has found a sneaky way to generate some extra revenue when the lounge is at capacity. Rather than just outright turning away guests, the lounge is offering to swipe guests for entry, and then instead give them a grab & go selection of food and drinks, which they can take with them.
Assuming guests don’t pay per incremental visit, it’s a win-win for guests and the lounge, as they’re getting a few dollars worth of stuff for nothing, while the lounge is generating quite a bit of revenue. However, I can’t imagine Priority Pass would be down for this, if it knew.
What do you make of this sneaky Priority Pass scheme?
Strictly speaking this sounds like fraud.
The Trump mind virus definitely has taken over this blog. Now practices which are amoral are declared entrepreneurial. I can‘t take this blog serious any more.
AF lounge at SFO did this a few years ago when they were under renovation
I hate it, because my expectation of a lounge is, in order of importance: secure place to leave my bag while I pee, quality business-grade WiFi, snack and/or cup of tea. Since I can easily get the snack and the tea for $10 outside the lounge, and I can't get the good ad-free WiFi or the security anywhere outside the lounge at any price, a paper bag with an apple in it doesn't actually deliver...
I hate it, because my expectation of a lounge is, in order of importance: secure place to leave my bag while I pee, quality business-grade WiFi, snack and/or cup of tea. Since I can easily get the snack and the tea for $10 outside the lounge, and I can't get the good ad-free WiFi or the security anywhere outside the lounge at any price, a paper bag with an apple in it doesn't actually deliver value.
Maybe credit card lounges will evolve into tiers, with varying co-pays. Branding will identify the tiers (and therefore the co-pays): JetMiles® Elite Legend® Lounge YQX "A PriorityPass Exalted Titanium Lounge" will charge $30pp, whereas the DenB® BasiComfort lounge NCE "A PriorityPass CommonSense Value® Lounge" will charge no co-pay, unless you want to sit on a chair, or lock the restroom door while inside.
Can't wait.
Honestly, this trend of treating lounges like restaurants/bars is really annoying me. I appreciate good foods and drinks of course, but they are first and foremost meant to be comfortable places to wait for the flight and that purpose is slowly fading away. If only every airport had one lounge that would be a real lounge with just some water, tea and maybe soda...
And it's a vicious circle, because when lounges only make sense...
Honestly, this trend of treating lounges like restaurants/bars is really annoying me. I appreciate good foods and drinks of course, but they are first and foremost meant to be comfortable places to wait for the flight and that purpose is slowly fading away. If only every airport had one lounge that would be a real lounge with just some water, tea and maybe soda...
And it's a vicious circle, because when lounges only make sense for food, you eventually start to primarily get customers who come for that. Which are people who create a lot of cost in F&B and usually also come early (you need few hours to get drunk enough to justify the cost!) causing more crowding. Lounges raise entry fees, people who don't come for F&B stop coming and get replaced by even more people who came to eat the entire buffet and so on...
We’ve noticed the recent buzz about a lounge in the United States offering grab-and-go bags to members when capacity is reached. We want to clarify the company’s position on this type of practice. Priority Pass is built on delivering consistent, high-quality experiences to our members around the world. Each lounge in our network is carefully selected and contracted to provide a standard of service that our members have come to expect. That standard includes access...
We’ve noticed the recent buzz about a lounge in the United States offering grab-and-go bags to members when capacity is reached. We want to clarify the company’s position on this type of practice. Priority Pass is built on delivering consistent, high-quality experiences to our members around the world. Each lounge in our network is carefully selected and contracted to provide a standard of service that our members have come to expect. That standard includes access to comfortable seating, refreshments, and amenities that define the Priority Pass experience.
While we understand the entrepreneurial spirit behind the idea of providing packaged food in lieu of full lounge access, this is not an approved or sanctioned practice within our network. Allowing ad hoc solutions like this would create inconsistencies, compromise the member experience, and conflict with agreements we maintain with credit card partners. These agreements are carefully structured to balance member access with predictable costs, and creative workarounds undermine that balance.
That said, the report highlights a real and growing challenge: lounge crowding. We are actively exploring multiple strategies to manage high-demand periods. These include enhancing our reservation systems, partnering with lounges to expand capacity, and testing new models for high-traffic airports that preserve the quality of the experience while ensuring that members are never left empty-handed. Any solutions we implement will be fully aligned with our brand standards, our financial agreements, and our commitment to global consistency.
We appreciate the ingenuity of lounge operators who want to serve members creatively, but we must ensure that all initiatives fit within the Priority Pass framework. Members can be assured that any experience they receive in our lounges—whether in New York, Los Angeles, London, or Hong Kong—is carefully designed to meet the high expectations they associate with our brand.
At Priority Pass, innovation is always welcome, but consistency, quality, and member trust are never negotiable.
What kind of AI slop engagement farming is this
@WHS At this point AI slop is pretty indistinguishable from corporate jargon-filled word salads. For what it’s worth, the name checks out on LinkedIn like @jallan pointed out.
In case anyone is wondering, according to LinkedIn Andrea Giraido is a marketing manager for Priority Pass.
A couple years from now, expect this or the “grab and go” concept to be the norm for many people with “priority pass” or similar credit card benefit status. I wouldn’t put it past banks and lounge networks to make “grab and go” a defined lower tier of “membership” for less-lucrative credit card holders, and then reserve the actual “sit in a lounge” experience for the higher revenue customers and cardholders. It was never going...
A couple years from now, expect this or the “grab and go” concept to be the norm for many people with “priority pass” or similar credit card benefit status. I wouldn’t put it past banks and lounge networks to make “grab and go” a defined lower tier of “membership” for less-lucrative credit card holders, and then reserve the actual “sit in a lounge” experience for the higher revenue customers and cardholders. It was never going to be sustainable to offer tens of millions of people lounge access, and this would be a form of enshittification that is to be expected.
Gift bag needs a couple of gin minis or gtfo!
The ones that will likely be truly unhappy about this are the airport operators. They know that every lounge guest is removed from their retail and F&B options, and so calibrate the rents they make lounges pay on their capacity.
If lounges start "hosting" more and more passengers with a scheme like this, then the airport loses out on more F&B revenue (or their share of it via agreements with concessions) than they had calculated based on lounge capacity.
If you have "experience" (e.g. restaurant) access with Priority Pass, the Gameway Lounges at LAX do this as well. You don't have to sit there looking at other peoples' high scores - they can just give you a snack and water and you go on your way.
I used to have an affinity for Chex Mix and overpriced water that I don't pay for, so I confess I've done this repeatedly in terminals 3 and...
If you have "experience" (e.g. restaurant) access with Priority Pass, the Gameway Lounges at LAX do this as well. You don't have to sit there looking at other peoples' high scores - they can just give you a snack and water and you go on your way.
I used to have an affinity for Chex Mix and overpriced water that I don't pay for, so I confess I've done this repeatedly in terminals 3 and 6.
Sadly, US Bank only limits it for 8/year, so I now save my visits for Mustards in the SFO G gates.
"I can’t imagine Priority Pass would be happy about this"
As long as the card originates with a bank, Priority Pass benefits, the more swipes the more revenue for both Priority Pass and for the lounge.
Priority Pass wants swipes, which is why they added restaurants and spas and other activities (but that drove up costs for banks, which is why many restricted non-lounge visits from eligibility).
At this point, finding a quiet gate in the terminal is preferable to visiting the vast majority of airport lounges.
AF lounge at SFO does this
Haven't been in a while, but a bag of snacks is better than what they used to serve