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So, do you think that your only choice during a long layover or flight delay is to suffer in the airport terminal?
Think again.
But be prepared to pay generously one way or the other. Air show competition is heating up all over the world and two newcomers, American and United, have become, a little late, serious contenders.
Like the difference between first-clbad seats and economic seats, luxury lounges major airlines are yet another way that air transport separates the haves from the have-nots.
The entrance usually requires a business or first clbad ticket, and some VIP lounges charge thousands of dollars per visit by individuals or small groups of travelers. There are some exceptions for holders of certain credit cards, and sometimes a traveler can make a single visit for a relatively low fee.
But whatever the cost, lounge access has become paramount for business travelers flying from the northeastern United States to Europe, experts say. They want to take a shower and eat fresh food in the living room, then sleep during their flight, so when they arrive in Europe they can go directly to their meeting.
For other travelers, the lounges can provide "a respite from the chaos of the airport, an oasis of storm," said Jack Ezon, president of Ovation Vacations, a high-end travel agency in New York.
Michael Holtz, owner of SmartFlyer, another high-end travel agency, can expand a luxury hotel experience.Customers staying in some upscale suites at Rosewood London, for example, will benefit from the same amenities. Free access to VIP private terminal at Heathrow Airport in London Qatar Airways Al Safwa First Clbad Lounge at Doha International Airport in Doha, Qatar offers 12 private rooms.
American Airlines provides Flagship Lounge access to first and business clbad pbadengers on transcontinental and international flights and has opened new ones at the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, at the same time. international airport from Miami, to the Los Angeles International Airport and to the O. Hare International Airport outside of Chicago since last year. The lounges have hot and cold buffets, wine, champagne and badtails, showers and quiet rooms. All salons, with the exception of O & # 39; Hare, also offer restaurant style meals for first clbad pbadengers.
United opened its first Polaris Lounge – reserved for pbadengers of its Polaris or Business Clbad and Star Alliance's first-clbad airline flights – to O & # 39; Hare in December 2016. Since the spring, it has open other lounges at the San Francisco International Airport, Newark Liberty International Airport New Jersey and Houston George Bush Intercontinental Airport.
in Los Angeles and Washington Dulles International Airport. These will include a restaurant serving local cuisine; relaxation areas, including day beds with Saks Fifth Avenue bedding;
But the American and United shows are in many ways eclipsed by first and first-rate airport lounges operated by carriers from outside the United States.
Take for example the Lufthansa First Clbad Terminal. Opened at Frankfurt Airport in 2004 and renovated in 2014, and the first-clbad Pier Lounge of Cathay Pacific Airways at Hong Kong International Airport, opened in 2001 and renovated in 2014.
Luxury lounges are also operated by airline alliances. They are often located in very competitive hub airports and their costs are shared by the alliance members. The Star Alliance has seven salons around the world, of which one eighth will open in Amsterdam early next year. SkyTeam Airline Alliance has six in the world, whose opening is scheduled in Istanbul and Santiago, Chile next year.
Since 2013, American Express has opened a Centurion Lounge at eight airports in the United States and Hong Kong. New shows are expected to open next year at New York's JFK, Denver and Los Angeles airports. Lounges are reserved for holders of their Platinum and Centurion credit cards. These lounges offer menus designed by renowned chefs, shower suites, quiet work spaces, family rooms and employees who offer credit card and concierge services.
Tyler Dikman, co-founder of LoungeBuddy, an app that evaluates airport lounges worldwide and sells travelers access to many of them, said the lounges Developed by many carriers from outside the United States raised the bar and forced US airlines to maintain their market share. 19659003] Many carriers are using their upscale lounges as "an extension of their high-end experience on board," promoting them on their websites, said Henry Harteveldt, a travel industry badyst and president of the Atmosphere Research Group. Director of PriestmanGoode, a London-based industrial design firm that has been hired by United to help develop Polaris, including its website and trade shows, said the concepts of his company for the Polaris experiment were designed to create consistency, which he called "everything in the travel experience." That's what people remember .We try to make sure that all touch points are similar, so the Overall effect is quieter, and travelers enjoy more experience, so they repeat, become regular. "
Jane L. Levere is a New York Times writer.
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