JetBlue flyers, you now have lounge access — with the right credit card

Though JetBlue Airways offers a well-regarded Mint business class, the carrier doesn’t operate any airport lounges.

Travelers seated in Mint business class, as well as the airline’s Mosaic elite members, need to wait with everyone else at the gate before their JetBlue flight — unless you have the right credit card.

Some of our top recommended cards include access to Priority Pass lounges, American Express Centurion lounges or Capital One lounges, regardless of which airline you’re flying.

However, did you know that you can also use the American Airlines Admirals Club before your next JetBlue flight?

Indeed, as of late April, JetBlue flyers are now eligible to use the Admirals Club, regardless of where you purchased your ticket, your airline loyalty and your class of service.

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Access Admirals Clubs when flying JetBlue

Instead, travelers flying on JetBlue who are Admirals Club members can use the lounge by simply flashing their membership card and JetBlue boarding pass.

This is unlocked thanks to the Northeast Alliance, the tie-up between American and JetBlue that’s focused on growth in New York and Boston. Though the alliance mostly covers the Northeast, it also includes a handful of networkwide passenger benefits, including reciprocal mileage earning, elite perks and lounge access.

Perhaps the best way to access the Admirals Club is by holding the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®. The card includes a complimentary membership to American’s lounges, as well as some other noteworthy perks when traveling with American, like priority boarding and discounted inflight purchases.

And if you do hold the card, then you can use the Admirals Club whenever you fly on an eligible flight, which includes any departing or arriving flight that is operated by American, a Oneworld member airline or JetBlue.

Admirals Club access is also included for those who are authorized users of the Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard. Both primary cardmembers and authorized users are entitled to bring in their immediate family or up to two guests.

The primary cardmember can add up to 10 authorized users without paying anything on top of the $450 annual fee.

The only carve-out for lounge access is for JetBlue’s London flights, which aren’t covered as part of the Northeast Alliance. Every other JetBlue flight technically confers access to the Admirals Club, assuming that you have a way in.

You can even purchase an Admirals Club one-day pass for $59 or 5,900 AAdvantage miles if you’re looking to use the lounge before a JetBlue flight. In that case, all you’ll need is your JetBlue boarding pass and a valid credit card or AAdvantage account.

One-day passes include guest access for up to three children ages 18 and under.

Unfortunately, Admirals Club access only extends to those who are members of the club or purchase a one-day pass. You can’t use the American lounge on account of flying in JetBlue Mint or by being a Mosaic or Mosaic+ customer (at least not yet).

Which Admirals Clubs are convenient for JetBlue flyers?

Now, just because you can access an Admirals Club before your next JetBlue flight doesn’t mean that it’ll be convenient. In some airports, American and JetBlue are co-located in the same terminal, meaning you don’t have to reclear security to use the Admirals Club.

This includes Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS), Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

At other airports, the trek between terminals likely won’t be worth it, unless you’re arriving super early or facing a significant delay.

Some examples include New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), where you’d need to take a bus between terminals, and Orlando International Airport (MCO), where you’d need to take a train between terminals (until the new Terminal C opens later this year).

There are Admirals Clubs in 32 airports worldwide, and JetBlue operates out of 23 of those 32 airports.

At five airports, American’s and JetBlue’s operations aren’t connected airside, namely Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), Nashville International Airport (BNA), Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX), Tampa International Airport (TPA) and London’s Heathrow Airport (LHR).

Note that London flights are excluded from lounge access as mentioned above, and construction work at Boston and Nashville should soon allow for airside connections between the American and JetBlue terminals.

Getting between the American and JetBlue concourses at the other 18 overlapping airports (listed below) should be possible via airside connections, but remember that it could still require a trek.

• Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL).
• Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS).
• Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT).
• O’Hare International Airport (ORD).
• Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW).
• Denver International Airport (DEN).
• George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH).
• Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
• Miami International Airport (MIA).
• John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK).
• LaGuardia Airport (LGA).
• Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR).
• Orlando International Airport (MCO).
• Philadelphia International Airport (PHL).
• Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT).
• Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU).
• San Francisco International Airport (SFO).
• Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA).

Featured photo by Zach Griff/The Points Guy.