Amex Platinum Airport Lounge Access Guide (2023)

The Amex Platinum offers a variety of useful perks. I’d argue that the single best perk of the card is airport lounge access, so in this post I wanted to go over everything you need to know about accessing lounges with the Amex Platinum. There’s not another card that offers such comprehensive access to airport lounges, in my opinion.

Which lounges can you visit with the Amex Platinum?

The Amex Platinum Card offers access to lounges across the global, thanks to the American Express Global Lounge Collection. In this post I wanted to go over all the details of this, including which lounges are included, how many guests you can bring into lounges, and what you need in order to gain access to these lounges.

With the Amex Platinum you can access Amex Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Clubs, Plaza Premium Lounges, Escape Lounges, select Lufthansa Lounges, and more.

Note that lounge access perks are identical on The Platinum Card® from American Express (review) and The Business Platinum Card® from American Express (review). On top of that, authorized users on the Amex Platinum also get the same lounge access benefits.

I’ll recap all the lounge access opportunities with the Amex Platinum below. If you just want to see which lounges you have access to by airport, you can check out the Amex Platinum lounge directory here.

Amex Centurion Lounges

The Amex Platinum offers access to Amex’s exclusive network of Centurion Lounges:

• You can access Centurion Lounges when flying with any airline, as long as you have a boarding pass for a flight departing within three hours, or you’re connecting (you can’t use the lounge on arrival)
• As of February 2023, you’re no longer be able to bring complimentary guests unless you spend at least $75K per calendar year on the card
• You need to present your Amex Platinum to be admitted; there’s no further registration required

Amex’s network of Centurion Lounges is known for offering great hot food and cocktails. It’s a significant step up over your typical domestic airport lounges. Currently there are over a dozen Centurion Lounge locations in the United States, including in Charlotte (CLT), Dallas (DFW), Denver (DEN), Houston (IAH), Las Vegas (LAS), Los Angeles (LAX), Miami (MIA), New York (JFK & LGA), Philadelphia (PHL), Phoenix (PHX), San Francisco (SFO), and Seattle (SEA).

International American Express Lounges

The Amex Platinum doesn’t just offer access to Amex’s exclusive Centurion Lounges in the United States, but also to the network of American Express Lounges. Note that these are largely being rebranded as Centurion Lounges as well now, though in some locations that’s still a work in progress:

• You can access American Express Lounges when flying with any airline, as long as you have a same day boarding pass
• Guesting privileges vary by lounge, though in line with Centurion Lounges, we’re seeing stricter rules as of February 2023
• You need to present your Amex Platinum to be admitted; there’s no further registration required

American Express has lounges in plenty of international locations, including Argentina, Australia, India, and Mexico.

Delta Sky Clubs

The Amex Platinum offers access to Delta Sky Clubs, with some restrictions:

• You can access Delta Sky Clubs when flying Delta the same day, either on arrival or departure
• You can access lounges up to three hours prior to scheduled departure, or on arrival
• If you want to bring any guests with you, you’ll have to pay $50 per guest
• You need to present your Amex Platinum to be admitted (alternatively you can save your Amex Platinum to your Delta SkyMiles profile, and then you don’t even need to present the card); there’s no further registration required

Generally speaking Delta Sky Clubs are superior to American Admirals Clubs and United Clubs, and have helpful agents, solid complimentary food and drinks, and more. Currently there are over 50 Delta Sky Club locations, including at many major airports around the United States.

Priority Pass Select Lounges

The Amex Platinum offers a Priority Pass Select membership (Enrollment required), which works a bit differently than the rest of the card’s lounge access perks:

• You can access Priority Pass lounges when flying with any airline, as long as you have a same day boarding pass; however, individual lounges may restrict for how long you can access lounges, and also how long before departure you can access lounges (often access is limited to three hours)
• You need to register for a Priority Pass Select membership through your Amex Platinum account, and then you’ll be mailed a Priority Pass card; you’ll then use that card (rather than the Amex Platinum) to access Priority Pass lounges
• You can bring up to two guests with you at no additional cost, though individual lounges may limit guesting privileges beyond that
• Priority Pass Select memberships issued through the Amex Platinum aren’t eligible for complimentary access to some “experiences” lounges, including Priority Pass restaurants

As far as the registration process for Priority Pass goes, just log into your Amex Platinum account, and click on the “Benefits” tab.

Then scroll down until you see the enrollment link for Priority Pass Select. After you make the request, you should receive your Priority Pass card in the mail within 10-14 days.

Priority Pass is the world’s largest network of independent airport lounges, with over 1,300 lounges around the world. You can find all Priority Pass locations here, or you can always search the Amex Global Lounge Collection directory. The quality of Priority Pass Lounges varies greatly — some are great, while others, well, not so much.

Plaza Premium Lounges

The Amex Platinum offers access to Plaza Premium Lounges, with some restrictions:

• You can access Plaza Premium Lounges when flying with any airline, as long as you have a boarding pass for same day travel
• You can bring up to one guest with you at no additional cost
• You need to present your Amex Platinum to be admitted; there’s no further registration required

Plaza Premium Lounges are among the best contract lounges you’ll find out there. Currently, there are around 100 Plaza Premium Lounge locations, with the group being particularly popular in Asia and Europe. Furthermore, most Virgin Atlantic Clubhouses belong to Plaza Premium during select hours.

This benefit is much more valuable than in the past — almost all Plaza Premium Lounges used to belong to Priority Pass, but that’s no longer the case. Fortunately, the Amex Platinum still gets you into the lounges.

Escape Lounges

The Amex Platinum offers access to Escape Lounges in the United States, with some restrictions:

• You can access Escape Lounges when flying with any airline, as long as you have a boarding pass for same day travel
• You can bring up to two guests with you at no additional cost
• You need to present your Amex Platinum to be admitted; there’s no further registration required

Escape Lounges are becoming increasingly popular in the United States, with over a dozen locations, including in Cincinnati (CVG), Columbus (CMH), Fort Lauderdale (FLL), Greenville-Spartanburg (GSP), Hartford (BDL), Minneapolis (MSP), Oakland (OAK), Palm Beach (PBI), Phoenix (PHX), Providence (PVD), Reno (RNO), and Sacramento (SMF).

While not quite as good as Centurion Lounges, I’ve found the food and service at Escape Lounges to be above average.

Select Lufthansa Lounges

The Amex Platinum offers access to select Lufthansa Lounges, with some restrictions:

• You can access Lufthansa Lounges when flying same day on Lufthansa, SWISS, and Austrian
• You can’t bring any complimentary guests into the lounge
• You need to present your Amex Platinum to be admitted; there’s no further registration required

The type of Lufthansa Lounge you can access depends on what cabin you’re traveling in:

• You can access Lufthansa Business Lounges with the Amex Platinum when flying economy class
• You can access Lufthansa Senator Lounges with the Amex Platinum when flying business class

You’ll want to check the Amex Global Lounge Collection directory to see which Lufthansa Lounges are participating at a given point. Well over a dozen Lufthansa Lounges are eligible right now — United States locations include Boston (BOS), Detroit (DTW), Newark (EWR), New York (JFK), and Washington (IAD).

Does the Amex Platinum have the best lounge access benefit?

There are several premium credit cards nowadays that offer airport lounge access. Which card has the best lounge access plan really depends on what you’re looking for.

On balance, I’d say no other card can compete with the Amex Platinum when it comes to the selection of lounges you have access to. Obviously there’s no “one size fits all” card for lounge access, but at a minimum no other card is as well rounded as the Amex Platinum.

Like many cards, the Amex Platinum offers a Priority Pass membership, but what sets this card apart is everything beyond that. Unlike other cards, the Amex Platinum offers:

• Access to Amex Centurion Lounges
• Access to Plaza Premium Lounges
• Access to Escape Lounges

There are no Chase or Citi cards that get you access to those lounges to any of those lounges. The only real downside to Amex Platinum lounge benefits is that you don’t get credits at Priority Pass restaurants.

How do to the two other most popular premium credit cards compare?

• The Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card (review) has the benefit of offering credits at Priority Pass restaurants, which many people will value; while there are also now Chase Sapphire Lounges, these are accessible with any Priority Pass card, so aren’t a competitive advantage for the Sapphire Reserve over other premium cards
• The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card (review) (Rates & Fees) offers a Priority Pass membership without restaurant credits, access to Plaza Premium Lounges, and access to Capital One Lounges; while I love Capital One Lounges, the issue is that only one lounge is open as of now

Tip: Add Amex Platinum authorized users

At the beginning of the post, I mentioned how Amex Platinum authorized users receive the same lounge access perks as the primary cardmember.

This could also be useful if you frequently travel together as a family, but exceed the typical lounge access guesting limits. For example, say you and your family frequently fly Delta. The Amex Platinum offers Sky Club access, but you can’t take any guests with you for free. However, if you make everyone in your family an authorized user, they can each admit themselves into Sky Clubs.

Bottom line

In my opinion, Amex Platinum Card offers the most comprehensive airport lounge access perks of any premium credit card. In addition to a Priority Pass membership (which is pretty standard among premium cards), you also get access to Amex Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Clubs, Escape Lounges, select Lufthansa Lounges, and more.

You can’t beat just how well-rounded the lounge access offered by the card is.

If you have the Amex Platinum, do you value the airport lounge access benefit? Do you think there’s a better card for airport lounge access?