AFAR partners with CreditCards.com and may receive a commission from card issuers. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Compensation may impact how an offer is presented. Our coverage is independent and objective, and has not been reviewed, approved, or endorsed by any of these entities. Opinions expressed here are entirely those of the AFAR editorial team.
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® and Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card are two of the best travel cards available, thanks to the valuable Chase Ultimate Rewards points they earn, the travel protections they offer, and their valuable travel credits, which reset annually. Those earnings and benefits are often considered best in class for high-fee and low-fee travel credit cards, respectively.
However, The Platinum Card® from American Express beats Chase—by far—as the best credit card for airport lounge access, thanks mainly to Amex’s collection of highly coveted Centurion Lounges. To up its lounge game—and in the spirit of competition—Chase announced in June 2021 plans for its own collection of branded airport lounges. One year later, details are finally emerging on the arrival of those Chase airport lounges—dubbed Chase Sapphire Lounge by the Club. Here’s what we know so far about how many lounges will open (and where), plus cardholder accessibility.
Introducing Chase Sapphire Lounge by the Club
While design details are scarce and exact dates unknown, consensus in the points blogosphere is that Chase’s new lounge concept, Chase Sapphire Lounge by the Club, will debut before the end of 2022. Most likely that first location will be either at Boston Logan (BOS) or Phoenix Sky Harbor (PHX).
We do know with certainty that Chase plans to open at least nine airport lounges. It has revealed the locations of six so far. They are:
- Boston (BOS), located in Terminal B to C Connector
- Hong Kong (HKG), located in Terminal 1
- Las Vegas (LAS), located in Terminal 1, C Gates
- New York (LGA), located in Terminal B
- Phoenix (PHX), located in Terminal 4 South 1
- San Diego (SAN), located in Terminal 2 West
What to expect at Chase Sapphire airport lounges
Chase’s foray into the airport lounge arena is a collaboration with Airport Dimensions, which currently operates the existing airport lounge group, “The Club.” (Hence, the name Chase Sapphire Lounge by the Club.) “The Club” lounges are currently in 16 U.S. airports and two U.K. airports and are accessible to Priority Pass members. Having visited several existing locations of “The Club” and finding them just meh (or standard Priority Pass fare, shall we say), we initially approached the Chase-Club partnership with trepidation. However, Chase has stated that its lounges “offer a fresh approach to the lounge experience,” indicating its newcomers shall be more elevated than current locations of “The Club.” It’s anticipated that the Chase lounges will include facilities of a higher-end lounge, such as showers and wellness areas in addition to appealing food and beverage offerings.
In terms of lounge size, current plans range from the boutique sized 3,500-square-foot lounge in Phoenix to a more generously spaced 12,000-square-foot lounge in Boston.
How to access these new Chase Sapphire airport lounges
The entire new network of Chase Sapphire Lounges by the Club will be part of the Priority Pass network. Chase Sapphire Reserve provides cardmembers with Priority Pass Select membership, meaning with certainty that Reserve cardholders will have access. It’s not yet known whether a Reserve Card alone is enough for entry or if a Priority Pass will need to be shown.
Besides the upcoming Chase lounges, Priority Pass membership grants entry to more than 1,300 airport lounges around the world in its network. Members can enter lounges on their flight date, regardless of airline or class flown. Recall that Priority Pass membership is not a Chase exclusive. It’s a benefit of numerous high-fee cards, including Capital One Venture X Rewards Card ($395 annual fee), Chase Sapphire Reserve® ($550 annual fee), Citi Prestige ($495 annual fee), Hilton Honors Aspire Card ($450 annual fee, see rates and fees), Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card ($450 annual fee, see rates and fees), and The Platinum Card from American Express ($695 annual fee, see rates and fees), as well as the low-fee Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card ($95 annual fee, see rates and fees). All this to say, expect the Chase lounges to be filled with plenty of non-Chase customers.
It’s unknown how or if Chase Sapphire Preferred cardholders will be able to access the Chase lounges, for free, a standard fee, a discounted rate, or even at all.
Takeaways
The first Chase Sapphire Lounge by the Club should debut by the end of 2022, followed by another eight. Chase Sapphire Reserve cardholders will have access to the new lounges as will others with Priority Pass memberships, even if those memberships are obtained through non-Chase credit cards. We’re cautiously excited to experience the new Chase-branded lounges and will update this post with more information as it becomes available.
While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they are subject to change at any time, and may have changed or may no longer be available.
All information about Hilton Honors Aspire Card has been collected independently by AFAR.
