Welcome

Friends,

Sometimes, the best upgrade is simply staying home.

Other times, it is nice to go somewhere.

No matter what time it is, stopping in at an airline lounge is among my favorite things to do. We are going to dive a little deeper there today, together.

Let’s get going.

Links

Love this Delta captain’s preflight announcement.

Concerning near-miss at MDW yesterday: great pilotage by the Southwest crew.

The search for MH370 resumed this weekend after 11 years.

New Waikiki pod hotel opens May 1st.

Story

American no longer has an Admirals Club at Tokyo’s Narita Airport, which makes sense—they now only operate flights 60 and 61 there.

But I grew up going to the one in terminal 2, which had a fantastic view out over the tarmac. American had a much larger presence at the airport then. And that lounge framed their silver 777s well as they sat quietly while being prepared for the long journey back across the Pacific to North America.

For me, transiting in Tokyo was how I spent almost a decade going to and from East Asia. That Admirals Club served as a last feeling of “home” before catching an onward flight. It also marked the beginning of the familiar on journeys back to Texas.

I loved sitting in that lounge thinking about all the other people who were there too, transiting between adventures of their own that spanned the massive Pacific Ocean.

I have come to find there are a lot of materially better airline and airport lounges out there than that Admirals Club at Narita airport. I just started typing out a list and it was too long to include in this column.

Anyways. Airport lounges can be special.

And were it not for being in an airport, a lounge would be fairly unremarkable. I mean, why else would you spend an extended period in a semi-well appointed room full of chairs with your hand luggage? Airport lounges are fun because they are a space within the space between the place you are going and wherever you are coming from.

There are three primary ways to get into an airport lounge, and what I find is most people assume the first and third but fail to remember the second. So let’s talk about them, real quick:

1. Class of service*: airlines have lounges for passengers flying their premium cabins, and this both straightforward and generally a great thing. Business class on British Airways gets you access to their Galleries lounges at Heathrow, whereas first class on Lufthansa provides access to their First Class Terminal in Frankfurt. Flying in a premium cabin on an international route? Yahtzee! Make sure you visit the lounge.

2. Frequent flier status*: this one is my favorite, because frequent flier status at the right levels provides access to specific lounges no matter the cabin flown. Lounge access with status can be a real game-changer if you fly economy with any frequency (and I do—so no shame in that) which is how I had access to the Admirals Club in Tokyo. Thanks, AAdvantage Platinum!

3. Membership: whether with your credit card or just a paid-in membership, there are literally thousands of lounges around the world that the right membership will get you into, no matter the airline or class of service you are flying. In 2025, many credit card lounges are superior to many airline-branded ones, so research and choose wisely.

^{*For U.S. readers: As a general rule of thumb, this only works on international tickets. Drop me a quick message by hitting “reply” if you want to know how to use airline status for lounge access on domestic itineraries.}

Beyond the views, the biggest benefit of airport lounges is the assistance they provide when things go wrong. You usually can find friendly, knowledgeable help that is faster than calling or waiting in line in the terminal when your flight is delayed, canceled, or you just want to change seats.

I find the best lounges are those operated by airlines for their premium passengers (think American’s Flagship lounges or the Qantas First Class lounge). And if you do not fly in premium cabins all the time, the best way to get in is with your frequent flier tier.

That is how I like to do it, at least

Big Picture: Airline lounges are relatively easy to access with the right ticket, tier, or membership and I find they materially improve a travel experience. Do some research before your next trip—let me know if you agree!

Happy flying.

Forward

Do you know someone else who likes airline lounges?

If you answered yes (I know you did), will you forward this to them?

Remember, this life you are living has meaning. Be well today.

-Tommy