Oasis at the Airport: The American Express Centurion Lounge

I participated in an Influencer Activation Program on behalf of Influence-Central for American Express. I received a thank you item for my participation.

The airport isn’t usually a place I long to be at. It’s an inevitable evil to quickly get from one point to another, either for a business trip or visiting friends and family far away.

Everyone who has been to the airport recently knows what I am talking about. The romance of air travel is pretty much gone. Unless, of course, you enjoy going through security with bare feet while trying to keep your now belt-less pants up while in line. Oh, well. That’s just one of the things we just have to deal with and make the best of since we all want safe air travel.

The American Express Centurion Lounge

It can be a lot better though. And I mean A LOT. You’ll still have to deal with some inconveniences but there’s now an oasis of sorts at the airport. American Express recently opened its fourth Centurion Lounge at San Francisco International Airport (SFO). The other lounges are at Las Vegas (LAS), Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) and New York–LaGuardia (LGA).

The Lounge is an attractive spot for both business and family travelers. The former will appreciate the excellent Wi-Fi connection and workspaces.

For the latter there is a room to keep the kiddos occupied with video games, Disney movies, and much more. When my daughter and I were there, they even had someone performing magic tricks and another one doing face painting. Not sure if this happens all the time or if it was just for our private preview event though.

For people like me, there are sofas in quiet areas of the Lounge to lie down on and catch a few winks. San Francisco is often used to make a stopover between the continental United States, Hawaii, and Asia so this area would be great for some quality downtime. I really like the option to take a shower and freshen up a bit before continuing on another long flight. You can also hop by The Lounge before departure or after arrival.

Cost vs Value

American Express card members can enter the Lounge for $50 per person but Platinum and Centurion members (and their kids) can enter for free. So is it worth it?

I’d say so. Once you’re inside you can make use of everything that’s available at no extra charge. This includes the tasty food on hand that’s prepared by a Michelin-chef. I do wish that, in addition to the fruit, there had more gluten-free options. The assortment of drinks is amazing from the usual hot and cold drinks to beer from the tap, wines, and other spirits.

The American Express Centurion Lounge is located at Terminal 3, just after the security check, where United Airlines is the sole occupant. It’s also connected, and very close to, the airport’s International Terminal. This is definitely a spot you’ll want to check out before your next flight.