Comparing Credit Cards with Airport Lounge Access

Which credit card has the best lounge access for you?

Airport lounge access has been a complete travel game changer for my family. I can still remember the very first time we accessed an airport lounge and how pleasant of an experience this was (2017, Houston airport – seriously a weird core travel memory!).

Since 2017, we have visited airport lounges hundreds of times. And it’s something I never plan to give up.

What’s so great about airport lounges? Usually they have comfortable seating with built in charging stations, clean bathrooms (OMG, why are airport bathrooms to gross and have 10 people in waiting in line!), and food & drinks are complimentary. This was great when my son was younger and would just “pick” at his food. But it’s even better now that he’s a teen and has a huge appetite.

When you are considering what credit card is worth getting for lounge access, there’s a few things you should consider.

1. What is your home airport? Which lounges are at that airport? This in my opinion is probably most important. It’s reasonable to assume you’ll visit your home airport more than any other airport.
2. Do you mostly travel solo or as a family? Access usually varies for guests of the primary cardholder – there will be a fee to bring your family into lounges with you in many cases.
3. Do you like the “experiences” that are available with some cards? Some lounge access also includes experiences at Be Relax Spas & Gameway.

Here are my 4 top picks {with more details below}:
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card
Chase Sapphire Reserve®
American Express Platinum Card® (rates & fees)

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.

As you can see, each of these cards comes with a hefty annual fee.
BUT!!! All 4 of these cards also come with other benefits. So it’s really important to look at ALL of the features of each card and decide which is right for you.

Lounge access via Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card

Lounge access for Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card will change 2/1/26. The info here reflects those changes. Until 2/1/26, there is NO charge for up to 2 guests at Capital One lounges and Priority Pass lounges, after enrollment.

After 2/1/26, access for guests will change significantly.
Lounge access must knows:

• Primary cardholder can access Capital One lounges and Priority Pass lounges for no charge
• For Capital One lounges, you’ll need to pay to bring guests – $25 for under 18, $45 for adults
• For Priority Pass lounges, you’ll need to pay to bring (up to 2) guests – $35 per guest
• Authorized users have the option to add annual lounge access for $125
• Lounge access via spend – primary cardholder spends $75K in calendar year and can then bring up to 2 guests into Capital One lounges at no charge

Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is best for:

• If your home airport is DEN, DFW, IAD or LAS I would seriously consider this card. There are Capital One lounges in each of these airports.
• You want lounge access for a small family. This card has 2 main perks that essentially wipe out the $395 annual fee – The $300 travel portal credit you get EVERY year and the 10K Capital One miles you get EVERY anniversary. The 10K miles could be cashed out for $100. Or of course you can often get much more value when transferring them. But either way, the $300 credit + $100 in points essentially wipes out the $395 fee. So then if you and your Player 2 (spouse/partner) each had your own card, you’d each have complimentary lounge access. And if you only have 1 or 2 children (under 18) you need to pay lounge access for, the $25 (1 child) or $50 (2 children) would still usually be cheaper than a family of 3 or 4 eating at the airport food court.
• Capital One lounges have a very generous selection of take away food. You’ll usually find 3 or 4 different sandwich options, a couple of salad options, trail mix and sparkling water. This is a BIG one for us because we fly Southwest often and there are no real food options on their flights.

Why Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card a keeper for me:

• Excellent travel protections when you use this card to purchase travel.
• Easy to earn more miles! If you have a Venture card you can access the “Capital One Shopping Offers” after you login. This their shopping portal where you can earn a TON of Venture miles on things you already planned to buy!
• My home airport means I will have a lot of opportunities to visit a Capital One lounge.

Lounge access via The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card

Let’s chat about the most important thing first. This card is not open to new applications. BUT! Here’s how my husband and I both opened one:

1. Apply for the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card
   

   Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card

   3 50K Free Night Certificates

   Earn 3 Free Night Awards after spending $3,000 on eligible purchases within 3 months of account opening

   Learn how to apply »

   Terms Apply
2. After 1 year of having this card, you can call Marriott and ask to “product change” to The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card

Lounge access must knows:

• Primary cardholder has complimentary access to Sapphire lounges, Priority Pass lounges AND Priority Pass Experiences
• Guests are unlimited and NO charge for accessing Sapphire lounges and Priority Pass lounges (I have heard some Priority Passes will limit guests to 2)
• It is free to add authorized users to this card and authorized users on this card get the same generous lounge access as a primary cardholder

The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card is best for

• If your home airport is BOS, LGA, JFK, PHL, PHX, SAN. Or if your home airport has a Priority Pass lounge – because this card gives incredible access to those also.
• If you have a big family. With unlimited, free guest access – this card is hard to beat for big families wanting lounge access.
• Your home airport has Be Relax Spas & Gameway experiences.

Why The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card is a keeper for me

• Annual 85K Marriott free night certificate. You can top off Marriott cards with up to 15K Marriott points meaning you could potentially use this certificate for a night that costs up to 100K points. This is my favorite perk of this card and we often use it to stay in hotels that would cost $800+/night.
• $300 annual travel credit. I like that this card isn’t tied to one specific airline. And there’s a lot of freedom in how to use it. The $300 travel credit that can be used for checked bag fees, seat selection fees, lounge day pass or annual lounge membership, seat upgrades, inflight entertainment/food/drinks. **This credit is not automatic. You’ll charge the expense to your card, then either call or send an email to alert them to this charge and have it credited. It’s easy to do and only takes a few minutes.
• Excellent travel protections when you use this card to purchase travel.

Lounge access via Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Lounge access must knows:

• Primary cardholder has complimentary access to Sapphire lounges, Priority Pass lounges AND Priority Pass Experiences
• Primary cardholders can bring 2 guests into Sapphire lounges and Priority Pass lounges and Priority Pass Experiences at no charge
• Add up to 4 authorized users for $75 (each) and they will get same lounge access as primary cardholder

Chase Sapphire Reserve® is best for

• If your home airport is BOS, LGA, JFK, PHL, PHX, SAN. Or if your home airport has a Priority Pass lounge.
• Your home airport has Be Relax Spas & Gameway experiences.

Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Other benefits that make this card a good choice

• The $300 travel credit. Very easy to use. You pay for something that codes as travel and it will automatically be credited.
• DoorDash membership & $25 monthly DoorDash credit.
• Excellent travel protections when you use this card to purchase travel.

Lounge access via Platinum Card® from American Express

Learn how to apply

Lounge access must knows:

• Primary cardholder has complimentary access to Centurion Lounges, Escape Lounges, Plaza Premium lounges and Priority Pass lounges
• Primary cardholder can pay to bring up to 2 guests into Centurion Lounges – $50 adult, $30 under 18
• Primary cardholders can bring 2 guests into Escape Lounges, Plaza Premium lounges and Priority Pass lounges
• Primary cardholder gets 10 visits to Delta Skyclub lounges each year when flying eligible Delta flights
• Add “additional Platinum card” (NOT Platinum “companion” card) for $195 and they’ll have same lounge access as primary cardholder
• Lounge access via spend – primary cardholder spends $75K in calendar year and can then bring up to 2 guests into Centurion lounges at no charge

Platinum Card® from American Express is best for
(rates & fees)

• If your home airport is ATL, CLT, DFW, DEN, IAH, LAS, LAX, MIA, JFK, LGA, PHL, PHX, SFO, SEA, DCA
• If you fly Delta often
• Your home airport has Escape lounges, Plaza Premium lounges

Why The Platinum Card® from American Express is a keeper for me

• Up to $200 annual airline incidental statement credit
  You have to choose an airline to use this with. Each year I choose Southwest. Many times I’ll pay the taxes/fees for a Southwest flight or for Early Bird with this card and that also triggers the credit. You can also use this credit for checked bags, seat selection, food/drink/entertainment during flight, airport lounge fee & annual membership fees.
• Up to $600 annual Fine Hotel & Resort program statement credit
  Amex’s Fine Hotel & Resort program is a bougie favorite for me! They have a select list of luxury hotels you can book via this program. And when you book, you’ll get breakfast for 2, early check in/late check out, usually $100 food/beverage/or spa credit, and an upgraded room when available.
• Up to $15 in Uber Cash each month plus up to $20 Uber Cash in December
  We use Uber a ton when we travel. So we easily use these each month. Pro tip: If you and your Player 2 (spouse/partner) have this card/credit, add both of your cards to ONE Uber account so that you’ll get the combined credit on one Uber account each month.
• Up to $209 CLEAR® Plus statement credit (annually)
  I LOVE having Clear and TSA Precheck®. 80% of the time, this combination helps us get through airport security in under 10 minutes.
• My home airport has a Centurion lounge.
• Walmart+ subscription. The free shipping that comes with the subscription is why I love having this benefit.
• Up to $50 semi-annually Sak’s Fifth Avenue statement credit
  I can always find something to buy with my credit 🙂
• Up to $400 Resy statement credit
  Our #1 favorite restaurant in our town is the only Resy restaurant in our town. Works out perfectly!
• Up to $300 lululemon statement credit
  Easy to use!
• Up to $300 Digital Entertainment statement credit
  We have Hulu, Disney+, Peacock – so this works great!

My Take

As you can see, my husband AND I both have THREE of these cards. That is definitely overkill. But our home airport (Denver) has Capital One and Centurion lounge. And I LOVE the 85K free night certificate that comes with the Ritz card so I’m never giving that up.

If you aren’t used to paying annual fees, it can seem ridiculous to pay these very high fees. But these are truly all amazing travel cards – giving incredible travel protections and benefits/perks. And if you travel a lot and will use them, then I think you’ll really enjoy the lounge access that comes with these cards.