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United accelerates lounge reopenings, aims for end of summer

July 02, 2021
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4 min read
United Club Zach Griff - 1
United accelerates lounge reopenings, aims for end of summer
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United is elevating the airport experience with an accelerated lounge reopening timeline.

On Friday, a carrier spokesperson shared the news that the airline would quickly ramp up operations across its domestic United Club network throughout the summer.

In a statement shared by the airline below, the carrier cites the stronger than expected demand as the reason for reopening much faster than originally anticipated. Domestic travel among leisure flyers has largely recovered to 2019 levels, with some routes even outperforming historical precedent.



Given the remarkable volumes projected for summer, approaching and exceeding 2019 volumes, we are expediting our domestic reopening plan to be completed by the end of September. With nearly all hub United Club locations reopened, focus now turns to bringing our line station locations back online.

The accelerated domestic United Club reopening plan is as follows:

  • Now open
    • Austin (AUS)
    • Honolulu (HNL)
    • Orlando (MCO)
  • Opening in July
    • Cleveland (CLE)
    • Fort Lauderdale (FLL)
    • Las Vegas (LAS)
    • New York/LaGuardia (LGA)
    • San Diego (SAN)
  • Opening in August
    • Atlanta (ATL)
    • Boston (BOS)
    • Washington Reagan National (DCA)
    • Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW)
    • Raleigh-Durham (RDU)
    • San Antonio (SAT)
    • Orange County (SNA)
  • Opening in September
    • Minneapolis/St. Paul (MSP)
    • New Orleans (MSY)
    • Philadelphia (PHL)
    • Portland (PDX)
    • Seattle (SEA)

In May, Alex Dorow, United’s managing director of lounges and premium services, detailed the reopening timeline for the United Club and Polaris Lounge network. At the time, Dorow shared a sixty-day strategy for bringing ten more outposts online, many of which are secondary locations in hub airports.

As for the outstation locations, United was hand-picking ones with the strongest demand. “We’re starting with the locations where we have some of the greatest need, and we’re supporting the network growth that is projected here as we enter the summer months,” he said at the time.

(Photo by Zach Griff/The Points Guy)

That’s why the carrier picked Fort Lauderdale, Orlando and Las Vegas for the first round of reopenings; the carrier saw increased demand for flights to these cities.

However, now that the travel recovery is well underway — in July, United's slated to be cash positive for the first time since January 2020 — the carrier is seemingly seeing enough demand to warrant reopening much of its domestic lounge network.

Along with the reopenings, the carrier is improving its food offerings. Dorow is excited about the new menu, as he told TPG that “you’re going to see a much more robust, healthy variety of food options that we didn’t have before.”

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This includes sandwiches, wraps, salads, fresh fruit, yogurt and overnight oats. Some locations will also feature regionally inspired offerings, like mini hot dogs in Chicago and a churros bar in Houston.

Though United's focus is on club locations, the carrier is also working behind the scenes on preparing to reopen its top-notch business-class-only Polaris Lounges.

Though United doesn’t yet have a firm reopening timeline for its business-class-only Polaris Lounges — Dorow’s “babies,” in his words — one of the major considerations that the team is talking through is demand for international travel.

According to an internal memo viewed by TPG, "plans are in motion to begin reopening our Polaris Lounges and international United Club locations later this year."

United's lounge reopening timeline is a bit behind that of its Big 3 competitors. With the opening of the brand-new Delta Sky Club in Fort Lauderdale in late June, all of the Atlanta-based carrier's lounges have now reopened.

American is continuing to reopen its entire domestic Admirals Club network by August 2021, except for the Honolulu (HNL) outpost which will reopen at a later date. Additionally, the carrier will reopen its premium Flagship Lounges starting in September.

Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.

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  • Intro Offer

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  • Annual Fee

    $325

  • Recommended Credit

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Why We Chose It

There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits. (Partner offer)

Pros

  • 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
  • 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
  • Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
  • Solid welcome bonus

Cons

  • Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
  • Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
  • You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
  • Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
  • Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
  • Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
  • Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
  • Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
  • $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
  • $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
  • $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
  • $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
  • Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
  • No Foreign Transaction Fees.
  • Annual Fee is $325.
  • Terms Apply.