Dear American Express,
I’ve been a cardholder for 12 years and a Platinum cardholder for six. I am a strong advocate for American Express and have helped dozens of friends and family members also sign up.
Last week you announced some changes to the American Express Platinum card. In exchange for raising the annual fee from $450 to $550, you added a couple benefits like $15/month in Uber credit and the ability to bring in two guests when using Priorty Pass. While I would have preferred the status quo, the changes were acceptable.
Today, View from the Wing broke news that your network of Centurion Lounges would begin to limit guests to two per primary cardholder on March 30, 2017. Currently, you allow either two guests or the immediate family of a cardmember. Put another way, you don’t charge for children or parents accompanying the cardmember.
It is my understanding that under the new access policy if I wished to bring in my spouse and two children, I would have to pay $50 for one of the children. I can tell you, as nice as I find your Centurion Lounges, I would never fork over $50 for a visit. That seems excessive for a child.
You have built these great playrooms in your Centurion Lounges–
But they are going to remain empty if you think you can charge exorbitant entrance fees to larger families .
I ask you to reconsider your guest access policy in the following way: count all children (up to age 18) in a family as a single guest. Absent that policy modification, your apparent disdain for traveling families will result in the cancellation of my card. I know I am just one person, but I guarantee you others share my sentiment.
If crowding is what you are worried about, simply stop selling access to non-Centurion or AMEX cardholders. If the issue is revenue, don’t label it a crowding issue.
Thank you for your consideration,
Matthew
+100000000
Agreed! Count mine cancelled as a father of two kids.
So did you cancel yet?
I only have one kid. So, no.
Are you a model parent? Can you guarantee that your kid won’t be running around screaming and ruining the experience for the other users of the lounge ?
You want a family-friend policy just as others want the tranquility of a lounge. And don’t pull the “this is a shared space, deal with it” excuse that I see many parents use.
It’s not kids and families who are shitting up the Lounges. The worst behviour comes from drunk men in the 40+ age bracket. The overcrowding comes from the excessive ease in getting a platinum card and the fact that all those drunk dudebros are bringing their buddies along.
I agree
right … because you’ve never been drunk in public ever in your life, right ?
Right, cause being a loud drunk is more acceptable than having kids? Cool dude. Awesome comeback.
Really? I’d wager more than half the world has never been drunk in their life, leave alone drunk in public. That’s not a badge of honour.
I completely concur that both in lounges and on planes, bad behaviour by drunk or boorish adults outnumbers that by uncontrolled children probably 5 to 1.
Loud drunks are certainly a problem too (personally I would like to see the bartenders be more aggressive about cutting people off when appropriate) but it has nothing to do with the issue of unruly kids. If your kids are well-behaved (and you are monitoring them and ready to step in and actively parent them should they stop being well-behaved) I couldn’t care less how many kids you bring into the lounge. However, what I’ve seen far too often is parents who drop their kids in the playroom as if it were a daycare service and act as if they no longer have any responsibility. I recently saw a parent bring in two children and proceed to sit down and work on his laptop while completely ignoring the fact that his children were sprinting around the lounge screaming at each other
I couldn’t agree with you more.
Parents love to claim their children have model behavior and don’t cause any disturbance. My experience with lounges has been the exact opposite. It’ll be great having people cancel their cards to free up space for the rest of us. If you don’t want to follow the new rules, there’s an easy solution: fork over the $175 to add your wife as an authorized user. Problem solved.
I agree.
I may be in the minority but I think that overcrowding has become an issue and this is one way to help that out. As a single person with no kids, I get less out of the card than a family with 5 kids. That family takes up a lot more space than I do. It makes sense for them to pay more.
I am all for subsidizing families in our society, but for this, an extreme luxury, I am okay with asking families to pay more.
I think this is both a money grab and a way to reduce some traffic in the lounge. As a single guy I don’t mind the strict 2 guest limit. While i think $50 for a young kid is nuts, I think adding the AU alleviates the issue for family’s that have 4 kids. I think as a compromise Amex could offer a discounted price for kids under 12, since they take up space, but won’t take advantage of the food/drink to the extent older kids/adults would.
+1 on making families that generally take up more space in the lounge pay for it. Granted, I think $50 is excessive for a child.
Agreed. I think the $50 fee is justifiable for adults since the selection and quality of complimentary alcohol is significantly better than most US airline lounges but while I have no problem charging for children above the 2 guest limit the price should be lower than adult guests since they won’t be taking advantage of this amenity.
Spot on. Anyone who’s ever been in a Centurion lounge knows that it’s NOT the families that make it a mess. It’s the overwhelming # of cardholders (and AU’s) who all bring along their travel mates/new travel companions.
Will shred my card if this isn’t changed. $50 for my 7 yr old is absurd.
Then please go ahead and shred it. Less people like you means more tranquility for the rest of us. My tax dollars already subsidize your spoiled brat; my card membership shouldn’t also have to.
Lol, your tax dollars. Jesus dude. Great personality on this one here. Solves the mystery as to why you didn’t procreate. Who would want to spend extensive time with your charming personality.
BTW, my tax dollars subsidize your business travel, so we’re more than even.
The same way about when pro-Hyatt bloggers brag about “free breakfast for 4”, which is dogwhistler code-word for “we’ll reward your loyalty with the Disneyland during springbreak experience”
What does this even mean? I had breakfast last month at the Blue Duck Tavern with 4 people. It’s got a freaking Michelin star. Was blissful and free. What does that have to do with Disneyland or kids?
I also don’t understand the comment and also recently enjoyed complimentary breakfast at Blue Duck–it is why I love Diamond:
http://liveandletsfly.boardingarea.com/2017/01/25/review-update-park-hyatt-washington-dc/
AMEN
Yeah right, so the family who has four young brats under age 10 all playing and goofing around making noise with them should be able to have all four count as one? Not a chance. Do me a favor, sit next to that obnoxious family for more than 10 minutes and tell me you wouldn’t rethink your stance.
I’ve sat next to a group of drunk businessmen who were more annoying and offensive than any family I’ve ever encountered. So can we ban them too?
Yes, if someone is drunk to the point where they are disturbing others they should be asked to leave. If this becomes a regular occurrence they should have their access revoked.
Matthew-I’m not sure I understand where you’re coming from with the letter as I thought you only had one child. Is there an announcement you wish to make? As for counting all children up to 18 as a single guest, that’s a bit much. Approach it as the airlines do with early boarding, count all children under two as one guest (or no guest).
I only have one. I’m just planning ahead.
Personally I think building the playrooms in these lounges was a mistake to begin with. It would have been better to utilize the space for more seating. The lounges exist mostly for business travelers and having a playroom in them sends the message that it’s okay to bring as many children as you want. While they might see some cancellations, I would think that the majority of their Platinum cardholders will appreciate the less crowded lounges.
To the people who say that children are obnoxious, I happen to agree with all of you. Except, you are missing one point.
There is a play room in the lounges that the children can use. To have the children play in that room will enable the older folks to have a relaxing lounge experience. So I agree, it is inappropriate for AmEx to not only raise the prices and offer meager benefits (please do not tell me that $15 of uber credit a month is not pathetic) but also taking them away.
Excellent point.
I fly a few hundred K miles per year and always am in a lounge of some sort whether AAdmirals, Amex, United Club, Priority Pass, etc. I honestly cannot remember the last time I even saw kids in a lounge, MUCH LESS obnoxious ones.
My experience as well.
Dear Mr. Klint,
Thank you for whining. Please note that there are many more cardholders who feel this is a fair restriction and that lounges are overcrowded already. If you have a large family, you need to pony up for the additional expenses.
Your friendly neighborhood centurion lounge user
“large” = two kids?
\So tell me this what us that walk in without kids and see several tables taken by a family with multiple kids, noisy raiding the food buffet using their hands? Now before anyone gets their kilt knotted up I have seen this many many times along with a member bringing in his wife, parents etc taking multiple tables up. I am fine with limiting the number of people that a card member can bring in I mean really.
I am not blaming families, my kids are grown and have their own Amex cards the card companies and airlines have only themselves to blame. in 2002 when AMEX offered me a PLT card over my current Gold they promised me no increases and in 2002 375 was a lot of money well we all know how that ended.
So I’ve only been in the SFO Lounge about 25 times or so in the last couple of years, so maybe my sample size is too small, but I rarely see other children in there, and the several times that I’ve gone to the gate or the United Club in lieu of the Amex lounge, I saw no kids at all, so experience varies on who is causing the overcrowding.
I’m not going to claim that all kids are well behaved, but by the same token not all kids are badly behaved. My kids are experienced travelers who enjoy lounges and know that they are a privilege that will be immediately revoked in the event of poor behavior.
For instance, I always follow them to the buffet.
The principal purpose, though, is not to keep them from handling food inappropriately, but rather to make sure that they use Purcell after they touch the serving utensils used by the many men whom I see elect not to wash their hands after using the restroom before they slop food on their plates.
Disgusting behavior has no age limits…
People able to do so will use the lounge when the marginal benefit they receive exceeds the marginal cost they bear. Many business models involve selling “unlimited” access to a limited resource, and then allowing crowding to serve as the limit. Examples include health clubs and highways.
Amex could charge for use of the clubs and issue credits for the charges that hit Platinum or Centurion cards, just as they started doing with Uber.
I have two kids and they’re a lot more well-behaved than some adults in the lounges. Kids aren’t the problem. Crowding is and it’s why families are part of the problem. I think they should curtail it further by only allowing one guest and then 4-6 guest passes per year. You could even market that as a $200-$300 value. That thins the crowd by halving the free guests and allows families traveling infrequently to use the lounge.
I say good for you Amex. I don’t have kids. Don’t want kids and don’t want to have to deal with your kids. Why should rules not apply to you or your family. If you can bring in the whole damn clan then why should any one be limited. Deal with it. Pay the $50 or don’t come in. No skin off my butt With it then whining noisy obnoxious children I will be able to find peace once again. THANK YOU AMERICAN EXPRESS
Centurion Lounges are now a joke. At all hours San Francisco, Dallas, New York are all stuffed to capacity. Half the space in each appears to have been leased to Gymboree. Food always runs short. Chairs are hard to find. Tables are dirty. Bar lines are long. If Centurion Lounges were all the Platinum card had to offer I would not carry the card. Many Priority Pass lounges are superior. In fact, because of smaller crowds I usually end up in the American of Delta lounge.
but if you get a card for your wife, you can have 2 more children and still bring them for free.
Stop crying. You aren’t even a paying customer lol
Why not get a second card for your wife? Then she can access the lounge on her own and you will be covered for 4 kids or 2 kids and inlaws.
As I understand things there have been instances where huge groups have been presented as family and have stayed for hours. The lounge hosts cannot tell who is family. It seems a reasonable solution and so does getting an additional card for a spouse, especially if it also comes with priority pass
The Centurion Lounge should ONLY be for Centurion card members. Platinum card members should be using their Priority Pass lounge benefits. Whoopee you get a couple of free snacks. This entitlement has to stop!
Entitlement? $550 annual fee…
If they restricted access to Platinum cardholders, there would be so few patrons that it would not be worth the investment from AMEX to keep them open. The Centurion Lounge access is one of the only things that sets the CSR and Platinum cards apart. Not to mention the CSR also provides (superior) Priority Pass access at a lower annual fee.
How many “plain” or non-Plat and non-Centurion Amex holders are paying the $50/guest fee? At least you get a better lounge and food than Untied who dares charge $59!
Dear Amex, I’d prefer you.to limit access to primary cardholder and one guest – and make lounges 18 and over. Stop rewarding people for breeding in an over crowded planet.
I’m going to partially agree and partially disagree with you. I don’t have a Platinum Card and have never been to a Centurion Lounge, but if a decent percentage of visitors are large families, then they ARE contributing to the overcrowding issues. At least AMEX is introducing a uniform policy that applies to all lounges at all times, so there’s never any confusion about how many guests are allowed and the price for extras.
That being said, $50 strikes me as excessive, at least for young children. Something like $15 seems more appropriate. Either that, or apply the charge only during hours of highest traffic.
If you are regularly bringing in more than one person, you should get an additional Amex Plat for one of your dependents. It is not expensive to get an additional card, then you can easily bring the whole family in.
When I went to SFO’s lounge, the dining / bar area was crowded with mostly 35+ aged men (not being sexist just calling what I saw) and the two desktop computers were occupied by two kids playing online games and the family room was in use by 3 kids. Good thing I had a USB key so I could print without interrupting their game.
So who’s crowding the lounges? Everyone.
All you anti-family people….please explain to me how a family of 4 traveling on vacation 3-4 times per year crowds the lounge any more than a business traveler flying weekly for work, in terms of person-hours in a Centurion (not to mention booze consumed). AmEx has rewarded the latter and left the former out to dry. Both pay the same $450 or $550 annual fee.
Think about that for a moment. And then stop with your idiotic ‘entitlement’ rhetoric.
I’d much rather see a policy of spouse + all <18yo family *or* a single guest. Seems way more reasonable to reduce overcrowding.
I respect this a lot :
“Absent that policy modification, your apparent disdain for traveling families will result in the cancellation of my card.”
But, will you actually follow through on it? How long are you giving AMEX to change their policy back? (before you cancel?) Is this just your Platinum AMEX or ALL AMEX products (that you will cancel)? (SPG AMEX etc.)
I personally, do not think it is a disdain for families. I’m also guessing that AMEX has gavin some thought to Delta’s SkyClub guest policy (perhaps, I give them too much credit) and I believe the $$ per guest seems to be working out pretty well for Delta. As an aside, if you use your AMEX Platinum/Centurion to get into a SkyClub you also have to pay for guests. The AMEX Centurion (new) policy is actually nicer than the policy for SkyClub access.
Another point, might be that a lot of families only have one kid. So perhaps, AMEX is taking that into account. Perhaps, they feel the number of families with >1 kid is a minor subset of cardholders in relation to access to Centurion Lounges. Good business, is pushing things as far as you can… without getting too many customers (cardholders) to cancel. Look at MGM, they managed to push and increase resort fees that people would have said were going to DESTROY their hotel occupancy.. just a few years ago. Guess what, little impact. Perhaps, this is the same type of “gamble” that AMEX is willing to make….