United exec details reopening plans for airport clubs, Polaris Lounges
Ten more United Clubs are reopening in the coming weeks, according to the carrier's executive in charge of premium airport operations.
Seven of the 10 outposts are located in United hubs, and the rest are in three of the carrier's busiest outstations. Additional lounges will reopen throughout the summer and fall, bringing the total to nearly 30 locations open by Labor Day.
United will also debut a refreshed food selection for its clubs, including heartier fare like sandwiches and salads.
In an interview with TPG, Alex Dorow, United's managing director of lounges and premium services, detailed the reopening timeline for the United Club and Polaris Lounge network. Read on for the full scoop.
Domestic lounges to reopen by end of the year
United currently has 11 clubs open across its domestic network, ten of which are located in hubs. (The other is in Honolulu.)
Over the next 60 days, the Chicago-based carrier will gradually bring ten more outposts online, as follows:
- Chicago O’Hare (ORD) - reopening at Gate C16, followed by locations at B18 and F4 — all United Clubs open by end of June.
- Houston (IAH) - reopening two more lounges: C South and Terminal B.
- San Francisco (SFO) - reopening in Boarding Area E (Gate E4).
- Washington Dulles (IAD) - reopening near Gate C17.
- Fort Lauderdale (FLL) - reopening near Gate C1.
- Orlando (MCO) - reopening near Gate 43.
- Las Vegas (LAS) - reopening between Gates 33 and 35.
By adding more hub outposts, United hopes to immediately address the demand it's seeing at some of its largest and busiest clubs. "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.
That's why the carrier has picked Fort Lauderdale, Orlando and Las Vegas for the first round of reopenings; the carrier is seeing increased demand for flights to these cities. Cirium schedules show that United's down about 15% in the number of flights from the aforementioned cities in June 2021 compared to the same month in 2019. Networkwide, that number jumps to just over 30%.
United plans to reopen eight additional lounges by Labor Day weekend, including locations in New York LaGuardia (LGA) and Boston (BOS). "We're going to be really excited to bring those back online shortly" after its first batch of summer openings. Dorow referred to those stations as some of the "largest gaps in our network."
Going forward, United will work with a two-month lead to evaluate reopening the remainder of its domestic clubs. "Each month we're working with our service providers, we're working internally with our resource planning teams, our staffing folks, our training folks to ensure that we're already thinking 60 days out with every rotation so that each month or so we'll be coming out with the next batch of lounges to reopen," Dorow said.
Updated — and complimentary — food service
Until now, United has largely been serving pre-packaged nosh in its lounges. This includes snacks like pretzels, tortilla chips, salsa and instant ramen.
Starting later this month, the carrier will improve its food offerings. Dorow is excited about the new menu, telling TPG "you're going to see a much more robust, healthy variety of food options that we didn't have before."
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.
While the carrier is still going to serve everything in individually wrapped packaging, the options are supposed to be much improved, more nutritious — and free.
Unlike American Airlines which just unveiled a new for-purchase food menu for its lounges, United is committed to offering a complimentary selection. "As we reopen, we want to ensure that we provide the right food offerings on a complimentary basis because our customers have told us that food is important," according to Dorow.
The carrier has had "conversations" about what a for-purchase offering would look like, but there are no changes coming right now.
Related: The ultimate guide to United Club access
United is always thinking about the 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 — he detailed some of the considerations that the team is talking through, particularly demand for international travel.
"It's really gonna come down to the international regulations of how vaccinated or non-vaccinated travelers are going to be able to flow across borders. And that's something that we are staying very close to," Dorow said.
Despite waiting for long-haul demand to recover, Dorow's team is actively crafting plans for how to reopen the Polaris Lounges: "my team has already worked as far ahead as they can to map out what remobilization looks like. All of the timelines, all of the action items that are required."
The process of retraining and onboarding the lounge attendants, servers and cleaners "will really begin in the back half of the year... those lounges take a sizable time to reopen, significantly greater than that of a standard United Club."
Why it took so long to reopen
United has reopened far fewer lounges than its Big 3 competitors. American plans to have 27 locations open by Memorial Day, while Delta's CEO promised to TPG that is entire network will open this summer.
As to why it's taken so long for United to ramp up its club operations, Dorow explained that it's because of how the carrier consolidated its hub operations so quickly.
"Take, for example, Houston or Chicago, where we have a relatively large footprint across concourses, or even some cases terminals. And we effectively consolidated the operation to a portion of the airport. And in working with our operations teams, we ensured that the lounges that we kept open are not only the largest ones... but were also most centrally located to support our operation and the reduced staffing that we were experiencing across our airline in the direst of times," he said.
While Dorow would "love to open all our lounges as quickly as possible," he doesn't have a "magic wand." Instead, the reopening process is "really driven by art and science."
The carrier is working as quickly as possible, but he ultimately conceded, "I'm working within the parameters that my team can deliver against."
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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.