A learning moment, perhaps? For the lounge agent and maybe for me too? I was denied access…at least initially…to the oneworld lounge in Amsterdam despite holding a boarding pass for a oneworld carrier (Finnair) in business class.
I Was Denied Access To oneworld Lounge In Amsterdam For A Very Stupid Reason
After stepping off my Cathay Pacific flight, I went through a security checkpoint and walked over to the new-ish oneworld lounge. I was excited to try this lounge not only because I had never visited it, but because it had barista coffee…my favorite way to start my day.
I walked upstairs to the lounge (Amsterdam Schiphol oddly numbers lounges and this is Lounge 40) and approached the check-in desk, which is shared by both the oneworld Lounge and the next-door Apsire Lounge.
A friendly woman at the desk greeted me and scanned my boarding pass. A frown spread over her face.
“This is a non-Schengen only lounge. You must go to the Aspire Lounge 26.”
I was taken aback…the oneworld lounge entrance rules do not specify that entrance is only limited to non-Schengen flights. Yes, the lounge is on the non-Schengen side of the airport, but I was here now…with a valid boarding pass…and the oneworld access policy is clear: I had access.
And no, I did not fall under any of the exceptions either:
Rather than start arguing, I handed her my Cathay Pacific boarding pass and explained I was just arriving from Hong Kong. Maybe that would help?
She still shook her head and said I would not be allowed in.
I approached one of her colleagues at the shower desk (a separate desk on the other side of the lobby). He scanned my boarding pass, welcomed me to the lounge, reminded me that I would need to go through passport control before my Finnair flight, and handed me a shower key…
Ok, then. Problem solved.
The first lady was at least polite..but wrong. I had four hours and was not about to go to the Apsire Lounge 26, a horrid, crowded lounge (I would have rather stayed in the gate area or gone to the observation deck). The whole reason I connected in AMS over CDG was to visit this lounge.
Just be on the look out for lounge gatekeepers making up rules (not just at this lounge, but at any lounge)…or maybe she was just following orders. Either way, I was not willing to accept “no” for an answer. Thankfully, I found another way into this lounge without much drama.
Oh yes, and the lounge had the Finnair logo on the entrance…
> Read More: Delta Denies Me Sky Club Access On International Business Class Ticket
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Nice. Could or did the lounge dragon (who denied access) see you approach her colleague and enter the lounge? (Almost expecting to read that she chased after you to have you expelled.) Did receiving a shower key obligate you to go directly to a shower room, coffee before or after shower room? Did you “hide” in the shower room the entire time you were “in” the lounge? Thank you.
I did take the shower first, but I spent three hours in the lounge!
Maybe the first person was anti-man and would have let you in if you were a woman?
The Schengen/non-Schengen excuse was uttered to me at a MUC lounge, but fortunately the “correct” one was just down the hallway. Unfortunately, they required quite a time commitment to get to the other terminal….
Common mistake on the part of travellers. You were attempting to use the lounge as an arrival lounge instead of a departure lounge. Your departure was Schengen. MUC, AMS, OTP, to name a few, are classics for this due to mixing of arriving and departing passengers. CDG and BRU, it is not possible to access the “wrong” lounge. Worded a different way. You showed up at a non-Schengen lounge, with a Schengen boarding pass. This is not a B-concourse when departing from C-concourse in ATL thing.
No. I knew where I was going, I knew which lounge Finnair directs its passengers to, but I wanted to use this one and my Finnair boarding pass allowed access. The agent was wrong and you are wrong. I did not try to gain access with my Cathay Pacific boarding pass…I presented my Finnair boarding pass and showed the Cathay Pacific boarding pass merely as a way to help the confused agent understand why I was in the non-Schengen area. The Schengen, non-Schengen distinction is not a real rule or policy…
@bankops. A confident reply, and slightly condescending, but utterly, utterly wrong.
Appreciate you took your time to write this much but regrettably it’s all wrong.
He was using it as transit lounge not an arrivals lounge, which is perfectly logical and reasonable to do.
You are obviously not experienced or savvy enough to comprehend this, and clearly don’t travel that often.
Some of us may be slow, but I have no idea what “Non-Schengen” means, and it was not explained in your story.
Non-Schengen is basically travel outside the EU member nations. In a super simplistic way, think of as domestic travel in the U.S. vs. INTL travel. Finnair in Helsinki maintains 2 lounges, and one is Non-Schengen, while other is Schengen, I guess you could (maybe a stretch) say one is the equivalent of an Admirals Club/United Club, while the other is Polaris lounge/Flagship lounge..
The Schengen Area is a zone of 27 European countries that have abolished internal border controls, allowing visa-free movement for travelers within the area for up to 90 days in a 180-day period. This is why you don’t need to show a passport when moving crossing the border from, say, France to Germany.
Schengen area is formed by either EU countries, and 4 non-EU countries, and mentioned 90 days over rolling period of 280 days it’s general rule, when You have right of free movement, without usually need to register your presence… However, You are entitled to stay beside initial 90 days, just need to register your presence/residency with local authorities (usually police). And even if You don’t, you will be not extradited back to your country 🙂
However, back to article.
I do, in the past, accessed both KLM Crown lounges, on my stopover to Amsterdam, without need to really wory if that was schengen or non-schengen lounge, just when Iaccessed that “another” one, oe “wrong”, agent on desk make me aware, as I still need allocate time to go through the passport control and give me information what is actual waiting time in line, and remind me, as there is “fast track” or “short connection” line available..
Aspire don’t give damn, which lounge I want to access, whilst I was utilised my Lounge pass from my bank and they get paid for my visit, as long as I had any outbound leg on my ticket.
OneWorld was, same as with Author, onmly one, who has problem and trying to direct me to the “right” lounge…
And no, this is NOT utilising lounge on arrival, as long as you have another leg on your boarding pass and using that as part of entry. It will be, if You flown in as business and continue with economy, that moment, they will see it as use of Arrival lounge, whilst your outbound leg do not qualify for a lounge. And even here, if You hold status, you will still gain access, because this prevalent booking class of your ticket.
Good example on asking several people until someone with a sense of the rules answers you. I never take no for an answer.
I once flew EZE-FRA-LHR in LH J. I held a UK issued Amex Platinum which allows me to access the Senator Lounge when travelling in J, and business lounge when travelling in Y.
Anyway, I was very excited about this, rocked up to the Senator Lounge with the J boarding pass and my Amex, only for both agents to refuse entry. I had to get the Amex website out to show them the rules and then they let me in. Bear in mind this is in Frankfurt, the home of Lufthansa. I wonder how many people they turned away, people who did not want to or were not able to argue their case.
Like you said in your article, it happens and it’s good to be prepared for it, knowing exactly where you stand so you can teach them their own rules.
I said you presented a Schengen boarding pass to a non-Schengen lounge. I did not say you presented your Cathay boarding pass. My comment about arrival lounge was because you arrived from Non-Schengen and tried to access a non-Schengen lounge. At most European airports that permit arrival passengers to mix with departing passengers you will be met with this kind of rule from the lounge. To use the lounge associated with your type of travel. At airports where mixing arriving passengers with departing is not possible (like CDG), the question is not even on the table as you cannot physically get to the lounge in that direction. Though if you do try it in the reverse (Schengen lounge on non-Schengen boarding pass) they will remind you that you are in the wrong lounge, but if space is available, will still.let you in.
If my comment was taken as condescending it was not my.intention, but this “rule” is quite common across.many airports and many lounges. So I am at a loss how it is noteworthy and why it is considered not coherent when it makes perfect sense. In many airports there are contractual agreements between lounges and airlines that require a particular lounge to make passengers use a different lounge like this. If you were Aspire in AMS, you would not be happy if the passenger volume you get paid for never showed up.because they went to the “wrong” lounge. Messes up.their business model and budgets.
Can you point anyone to where this “rule” is written down?
The author included the rules for the lounge he was trying to access, which did not include the “rule” you say exists.
@Bankops You are dead wrong.
I’d thought at this point, the entrance process would be fully automated and that it wouldn’t be at the whim of the agent; especially so for the 3 alliances. That said, automation denied me access to the Schengen *A affiliated lounge at BRU. Agent suggested I try the non’Schengen lounge and that worked.
@CRS This lounge dragon deserves no break!
My word. Give the lady a break people. Perhaps she was new, misinformed or just unaware. No need for the name calling and the radical theories. Thanks for giving her dignity in the article Matthew. You do good work.
This lounge dragon deserves no break!
“making up rules”.
Provides no evidence of malicious intent.
The agent seems to have been reading the computer display, based on your writing. Doesn’t seem to be making anything up. Could be old programming or wrong programming. Perhaps exceptions don’t display on the computer but are instead taught.
No, she was not.
Because I looked at the computer when the other agent checked me in for the lounge/shower and there was no warning to turn me away.
I have lounge membership at a number of airlines plus I travel internationally first class. These days I usually opt for a nice airport restaurant just to avoid the entitled people line this who don’t take no for an answer and insist they always know better. I refer to them as lounge lice.
Even the terminal areas are better that this collection of lounge deplorables who ruin travel for the rest of us. Can’t you just make things pleasant and simple I stop being classless, demanding and obnoxious ?
So glad you make it a point to avoid lounges. As you said, too many entitled pricks like you in these lounges already. It was delightful not to see you there.
Haha
Touche
What a useless boast blended with a whiny entitled rant!
I fly “first class” so you plebs need to listen to me.. Get a chip or 2 picked up from your shoulder champ.
Plus.. anyone they say they travel “First class” have zero understanding of how most of us land or take off odd hours with no restaurants open or no recliners/ quiet spots to sit or charge your devices and that lounges remain the only option for hours of layovers between flights…
Try hoarding a restaurant for 6 hours or longer and see how comfortable you feel!
“Prick” is the nicest word to describe this douche unfortunately
By failing to correct the errant lounge agent you ensured others will face the same problem. You missed the opportunity to correct the agent on proper policy as well as the importance of not insulting honored business class customers of the airline. Why spend money on business class just to be insulted?