How Does Lounge Access on the American Express Platinum Cards Work?

The American Express Platinum Card and the Business Platinum Card from American Express are marketed as premium travel rewards cards, and one of the benefits that makes them worth their salt – despite their $799 annual fees – is the unlimited airport lounge access that cardholders enjoy.

The lounge access rules on these cards, however, can get quite confusing to people trying to make use of these benefits. While it’s certainly complex, it’s useful to understand the eligibility rules, access fees, and guesting privileges on the Canadian-issued Amex Platinum cards so you can make the most out of the perks.

Lounge Access on the American Express Platinum Cards

One of the key benefits of being a cardholder of the American Express Platinum Card or the Business Platinum Card from American Express is that you get unlimited lounge access through the American Express Global Lounge Collection.

This means that you can access over 1,400 lounges in more than 500 airports and 140 countries around the world. In practice, it shouldn’t be too difficult to find a lounge to relax in during your travels around Canada or all over the world.

The complicating factor is that the benefit isn’t just simply access to one set of airport lounges. Rather, the Platinum cards bestow many types of lounge access, all of which are treated as part of the American Express Global Lounge Collection:

1. 1. Priority Pass
   2. Plaza Premium Lounges
   3. American Express Centurion Lounges
   4. International American Express Lounges
   5. Delta Sky Club
   6. Lufthansa Lounges
   7. Miscellaneous lounges (Aspire, Escape, Swissport, YQB Jean Lesage)

With each of the seven types of lounge access provided through your American Express Platinum Card or Business Platinum Card from American Express, there are different nuances that it’s important to be aware of, which we’ll explore in detail below.

If you’re wondering if you’ll enjoy lounge access at any particular location, the easiest way to find out is to head to the American Express Global Lounge Collection website and enter an airport of your choice.

Then, the results page lists all of the lounges available to you at the airport you entered in, separated by terminal. 

Clicking on a lounge will display all of the important information you need to know, including the lounge’s location, hours, guesting privileges, and more.

With the above in mind, let’s now turn our attention to breaking down the information about each type of lounge access you get as a Platinum cardholder.

1. Priority Pass

Both the American Express Platinum Card and the Business Platinum Card from American Express provide you with a complimentary Priority Pass Select membership, which grants free, unlimited access to worldwide Priority Pass lounges.

However, it’s important to note that a “Select” membership excludes most restaurants and experiences, such as game rooms and sleeping pods, which are also available through the Priority Pass program.

Also included is complimentary access for one guest per lounge visit.

The “prevailing retail rate” is currently $35 (USD) for every additional guest, which will be automatically billed to your credit card.

There are over 1,200 Priority Pass lounges worldwide, so this perk should guarantee you some form of lounge access on the vast majority of your travels, especially if you don’t always fly in business class.

Included in the roster of Priority Pass lounges are the well-regarded Chase Sapphire Lounges, which despite being branded by a competing financial institution, are open to any Priority Pass member. 

Keep in mind, however, that for Chase Sapphire Lounges in the US, non-Chase Priority Pass members may only access each lounge once per calendar year without a guest. Any subsequent access is billed at $75 (USD) per person, per visit. The Chase Sapphire Lounge in Hong Kong, however, doesn’t have any restrictions.

If you’re a Platinum or Business Platinum cardholder, be sure to get in the habit of looking up which Priority Pass lounges you’ll be able to visit prior to your trip. You’re better off doing so through the Priority Pass app, where your membership is registered, so you know exactly which lounges are included with your Select membership.

To access Priority Pass lounges, be sure to have your physical membership card or your membership QR code on the app in hand, as your American Express card cannot be used directly for access. If you need to enroll, simply phone American Express and they’ll help get you set up. 

2. Plaza Premium Lounges

If you hold either the American Express Platinum Card or the Business Platinum Card from American Express, you have unlimited access to Plaza Premium lounges within Canada and internationally for yourself and one guest.

What are Plaza Premium lounges? While Priority Pass is a global lounge network, Plaza Premium is more like a “franchise” or a “brand” of airport lounges, which started in Hong Kong back in the 1990s.

Plaza Premium lounges have a decent footprint in Canada, with lounges in Vancouver, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto, and Montreal. At the time of writing, there are 160 Plaza Premium Lounges around the world.

For the most part, Plaza Premium lounges certainly aren’t luxurious by any stretch of the imagination, but they’re solid enough and sure beat waiting at the gate. Plus, many lounges are being revamped and refreshed, and the newest ones are actually pretty good.

Internationally, Plaza Premium lounges can be quite competitive indeed. Some lounges have showers, and you’ll usually find that the food selection is much better than in many of the North American lounges.

To access Plaza Premium Lounges, simply hand over your Platinum Card directly with your boarding pass, and you’ll be good to go.

3. The Centurion Lounge

American Express is a global company, and in order to reinforce the premium image of their Platinum line of credit cards, they’ve opened special lounges in airports worldwide specifically for Platinum cardholders, known as Centurion Lounges.

Holders of Platinum or Business Platinum products, issued in any country, can access these lounges.

Centurion Lounges are located in the following US and global airports:

United States

• Atlanta (ATL)
• Boston (BOS), opening in 2027
• Charlotte (CLT)
• Dallas (DFW)
• Denver (DEN)
• Houston (IAH)
• Las Vegas (LAS)
• Los Angeles (LAX)
• Miami (MIA)
• Newark (EWR), opening in 2026
• New York-JFK (JFK)
• New York-LaGuardia (LGA)
• Philadelphia (PHL)
• Phoenix (PHX)
• Salt Lake City (SLC), opening in 2025
• San Francisco (SFO)
• Seattle (SEA)
• Washington DC (DCA)

Global

• Hong Kong (HKG)
• London (LHR)
• Tokyo Haneda (HND), opening in 2025

Alongside some of the top-tier Priority Pass locations, the Centurion Lounges are probably some of the best lounges that your Platinum credit card can unlock.

In general, you can expect top-quality food and drink inspired by regional tastes and stylish interiors drawn from local design principles. Centurion Lounges are typically very pleasant places to spend time and relax prior to your flight.

The best part about the Centurion Lounge benefit is the generous guest policy: each Platinum or Business Platinum cardholder is allowed to bring in two guests for free!

This is fantastic for families travelling together, although the downside is that Centurion Lounges can get rather crowded during the peak hours of the day.

Note that the US-issued Platinum cards implemented changes to their guest access policy as of February 1, 2023: guest access is longer allowed, and you’ll instead be charged at $50 (USD) per guest (or $30 (USD) for children aged 17 or under).

4. International American Express Lounges

In addition to Centurion Lounges, there are also a handful of lounges around the world that are operated under the American Express banner, but are not part of the Centurion Lounge network.

You can find these lounges in the following cities:

• Buenos Aires (EZE)
• Delhi (DEL)
• Melbourne (MEL)
• Mexico City (MEX)
• Monterrey (MTY)
• Mumbai (BOM)
• Stockholm (ARN)
• Sydney (SYD)

The Pontus in the Air Lounge (now known as American Express Lounge by Pontus Frithiof) in Stockholm is quite memorable in particular, since it offers a generous complimentary à la carte dining option to lounge guests, despite being housed in a makeshift partitioned-off area within an airport restaurant.

Meanwhile, the Buenos Aires Amex lounge has ice-cream sandwiches as well as plenty of liquor, but it doesn’t have any hot food. So, you may want to choose the Star Alliance Lounge next door, which is also available on Priority Pass, for a better experience.

In general, expect the international American Express lounges to be relatively high-quality lounges, although perhaps a step below the flagship Centurion Lounges in the US, London, and Hong Kong.

Platinum and Business Platinum cardholders are allowed to bring at least one guest into the international American Express lounges – the exact guest policy varies from location to location.

For example, while the Stockholm location allows one guest only, the Buenos Aires lounge actually allows one complimentary guest plus any children under the age of 16.

5. Delta Sky Club

American Express Platinum cardholders enjoy complimentary access to Delta Sky Clubs when in possession of a same-day boarding pass with Delta Air Lines.

If you’re on a departing flight, you can access the lounge for up to three hours; however, if it’s part of a connection, there’s no time limit.

Unfortunately, Platinum cardholders travelling on a same-day Delta-operated flight with Basic Economy (E) fare tickets will not have access to the Delta Sky Club or to Grab and Go.

They generally offer some light snacks, beverages, and lighter food options, as well as TV, newspapers and magazines, and free Wi-Fi. In general, Delta Sky Clubs aren’t going to blow your socks off, but are pleasant enough places to kill some time before your flight.

Since Delta Sky Clubs are primarily meant to cater to Delta and SkyTeam elite members, the guest access policy for Platinum cardholders are stricter than the other lounges.

While it’s not specified on the Canadian or American Amex Global Lounge Collection pages, the Delta Sky Club site specifies the following guest access policy:

As a Platinum cardholder accessing a Delta Sky Club before your Delta flight, you’re not entitled to bring in any guests for free, but rather have the option of paying for their access at $50 (USD) per person.

Note that any guests must also be travelling on a Delta flight departing on the same day.

6. Lufthansa Lounges

Platinum cardholders (and Centurion Members) may access select Lufthansa lounges as part of the American Express Global Lounge Collection. Lounges that are included can be found using the Amex Lounge Finder tool.

This perk includes access to Lufthansa Business Lounges with a Lufthansa Group (Lufthansa, Austrian, or Swiss) ticket in any class, as well as access to Lufthansa Senator Lounges with a Lufthansa Group business class ticket.

The guest policy varies by lounge, so be sure to check the policy either on the Lounge Finder website, at the lounge, or on the American Express app. 

To access these lounges, simply present your Platinum card, government-issued photo identification, and a confirmed boarding pass with the Lufthansa Group. 

7. Miscellaneous Lounges

Lastly, there’s a handful of miscellaneous lounge networks that are also signed up with American Express to provide access to Platinum cardholders. These include:

• The Escape Lounges in Bradley (BDL), Brisbane (BNE), Bristol (BRS), Cairns (CNS), Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky (CVG), Columbus (CMH), East Midlands (EMA), Edinburgh (EDI),Fort Lauderdale (FLL), Greenville-Spartanburg (GSP), Kansas City (MCI), London Stansted (STN), Manchester (MAN), Minneapolis/St. Paul (MSP), Northwest Arkansas (XNA), Oakland (OAK), Palm Beach (PBI), Phoenix-Sky Harbour (PHX), Portland (PDX), Reno-Tahoe (RNO), Rhode Island (PVD), Sacramento (SMF), and Syracuse (SYR)

• The Swissport Executive Lounges around the world

• The VIP Lounge by Club Med at Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport

These are basically additional contracts that Amex has secured in order to provide high-quality lounge access at a few airports where coverage is otherwise lacking.

Conclusion

Worldwide lounge access is a key benefit on both the American Express Platinum Card and the Business Platinum Card from American Express. This benefit affords cardholders a more comfortable experience at the airport before a flight.

With so many different lounge providers, the lounge access policies are definitely more opaque than they need to be.

It’s useful to keep the American Express Lounge Finder around as a handy bookmark, which should help you identify the lounges at a certain airport that you have access to as a Platinum cardholder, as well as the relevant access and guesting rules.