How we got airport lounge access for our family of 6 with one credit card!
Last summer, knowing we had a bunch of travel coming up over the coming year, we finally got a credit card with airport lounge access.
We took it for a spin for the first time on our Croatia trip and we LOVED it.
(As we were walking up to one airport lounge, I told Bart, “It’s too bad you’ll never be as excited about ANYTHING in your life as I am about this lounge access!”)
When I was figuring out lounge access, my main concern was “Can we get our family of 6 into an airport lounge?”
Lots of people told me there wasn’t any easy way to make it work with a family and that you’d have to open so many cards to get entry for 6 people that you might as well just buy your own overpriced airport food!
Fortunately, @vfamilytravels told me that all those people were wrong and walked me through the whole process (she’s a wizard with points and miles!) and it turned out to be very simple!
Here’s what I did (and here is my affiliate link if you want to sign up for the Venture X card too!).
I opened a Capital One Venture X card which had a 75,000 point bonus and has an annual fee of $395 (but you get a $300 credit in the travel portal which is very simple to redeem. I booked our rental car for Costa Rica in the travel portal and the $300 applied automatically).
My Venture X card gave me a free Priority Pass membership which lets me and usually 2 guests get into more than 1400 airport lounges world wide.
THEN I made my husband an authorized user which cost nothing and then HE got a free Priority Pass membership and he could get 2 additional guests in with his membership, taking us up to a total of 6 people!
If you’re very serious about credit card points, you’d probably refer your spouse and have them get their OWN Capital One Venture X credit card so they’d get the 75,000 points too but I’m not serious enough about credit card points to care about that.
You can have TWO authorized users on your card, so I could have added another person and they’d get their own Priority Pass membership (note that you have to be 18 to have a Priority Pass membership) and then we could get 3 MORE people in!
When I mentioned this on Instagram, I got an absolute FLOOD of questions about airport lounge access.
I’m definitely no expert, but I’m happy to help!
What even is an airport lounge? Why is it a perk?
It’s basically a private area in the airport with comfortable chairs and free food (it’ll vary by airport lounge what kind of free food you’re talking about – the one we went to in Madrid had hot soups, curries, bagels, breads, tons of drinks, and little snacks. The one in Croatia we went to at breakfast time and there as cereal, pastries, granola and yogurt, coffee, tea, juice, and fruit). And some lounges even have other things like showers or beds. Basically it’s a quiet place to hang out and get a free snack or meal while you wait for your flight.
Are they available in all airports? Or only specific ones? Do most airports have them? US only or international?
Most airports have a lounge but not all. And they’re in both US and international airports – you can see a full list of all the lounges included with your Priority Pass membership here!
Is this for airline specific lounges?
No – the Priority Pass membership won’t get you into a Delta lounge or other airline specific lounges. But your Venture X card WILL get you into the Capital One lounges too (we went to the one in Dallas and it is SO nice. But note that you need to have your Venture Xcard with you to get in!).
Do I get a certain number of airport lounge visits per year?
Unlimited!
What do you need to show to get in?
You’ll need your Priority Pass card (you can just have it on your phone in the Priority Pass app) and then your boarding pass! They’ll check it when you enter the lounge and then you’re good to go!
Do I need to purchase my airline tickets with the Venture X card to get lounge access?
Nope! Doesn’t matter how you paid for your tickets!
Do you get to the airport super early to make this worth while? Or is it better for layovers?
Our home airport (Salt Lake City) actually doesn’t have a lounge that Priority Pass gets you into (they only have a Delta lounge for now) and in general, I wouldn’t go to the airport for lounge access, especially because I just don’t like to get to the airport super early. I plan my trip NOT taking lounge access into account and then if we have time or there is a delay, we’ll take advantage of the lounge access. And definitely they’re great during a layover when you’re just sitting around.
How far was it from your terminal? How long of a layover makes it worth it?
It’ll depend on the airport – sometimes it’ll be super close and sometimes it won’t be very convenient. We spent an hour or more in the Dallas lounges on our Croatia trip whereas when we went to the lounge in Madrid on our layover, we just popped in, grabbed a quick bite to eat and were back out in probably 15 minutes.
I have a Capital Venture X. Do I need to do something to get priority pass access or is it automatic?
You’ll need to register for your free Priority Pass membership here!
I see people running into long wait times or their priority pass not being accepted? Any issues?
The only time we’ve run into a long wait time was in Miami back in November when the lounge was very small and didn’t have space for Bart and me. Other than that, we’ve had no issues so far, although I’m certainly aware there may be issues in the future and I’m prepared for that.
Any other perks with the Venture X card?
Aside from the 75,000 points for signing up for a Venture X credit card, the Priority Pass memberships and the $300 travel credit, you also get an up-to-$120 statement credit if you use the card to pay for your Global Entry or TSA PreCheck.
Any other questions about airport lounge access? I’m happy to help!
Rookie, you can do it with one card, get $300 travel credit and a free posh hotel night (every year)
d:
And this is why there’s a 2-hour wait for all the lounges now. And when you do get in, it’s full of screaming children and parents taking pictures for their socials….
I came here to say the same thing. Ugh. We pay good money for this privilege, so glad people have found ways to get around it.
Lounge access and premium seats are wasted on children. Wasted.
Free food and charging stations. SMH. I want – child free area
I’m not sure if Priority Pass benefits differ depending on the card/bank you get it through (I have mine through a Chase card), but sometimes airports that don’t have lounges have other benefits available. I was disappointed to see that neither of the two airports I flew through on my most recent trip (SLC and LAX) had Priority Pass lounges, but both offer 30 minutes in a massage chair at the Be Relax spas. This isn’t something I’d ever think to pay for out of pocket, but I used my Priority Pass benefit and loved it! I will definitely be arriving a bit early at the airport the next time I fly to get my free massage!