Have you ever wondered – what is Priority Pass?
Priority Pass is an airport lounge membership scheme that gives its members access to a huge network of airport lounges all over the world for a discounted rate.
Priority Pass also gives members other benefits such as discounts at airports and on transfer services, hire cars. There is also access to some special lounges such as a dedicated gaming lounge.
Priority Pass is a great way to upgrade your airport experience and enjoy a little oasis of calm, along with free food and drinks before you take your flight.
The fab thing about Priority Pass is that it is open to anyone. That means even if you are taking a budget flight, or flying in economy on a scheduled flight, you can enjoy a bit of luxury at the airport before your flight.
What Is Priority Pass Cost?
Priority Pass is a membership scheme that offers 3 levels of membership. Once you have paid your membership fee you are able to access over 1300 airport lounges all over the world.
Standard membership costs £69 per year and then each visit to a lounge costs £24 for the member and for each guest.
Standard Plus Membership is £229 per year and includes 10 free lounge visits for the member, with all further lounge visits and all guest visits costing £24.
Prestige Membership is £419 per year and includes unlimited lounge visits for the member. All guest lounge visits cost £24 each.
Some lounges carry an additional charge over and above the £24. These are super VIP lounge such as the Clubrooms experience where full meals are served to the table.
The only other additional charge is a £6 fee to book the No.1 Lounges. These lounges are extremely popular and this fee guarantees entry.
(If airport lounges are very busy they may deny Priority Pass members entry. However, the network is so big that there are often several lounges available to members at each airport, which helps to minimise the chances of this happening.)
It really depends on how often you are planning to use airport lounges whether Priority Pass is worth it.
As a general rule if you are using airport lounges less than 6 times a year it is probably likely to be cheaper to pay as you go and book a cheap lounge deal online.
Check out my guide to working out the cheapest lounge access based on your travel plans.
What is Priority Pass Membership?
Priority Pass Membership gives you access to the network of airport lounges in the Priority Pass network.
Most of these lounges are operated by other companies. They allow Priority Pass members to access their lounges using their membership card or via the app.
There is no need to book in advance. That said it is recommended to book the No.1 Lounges as these are very popular. You can book these through Priority Pass by paying an additional £6 fee on top of any visit fee payable.
Priority Pass membership provides other benefits such as discounted transfers, hire cars as well as restaurant and food deals at airports.
Priority Pass is able to give its members access to cheaper airport lounge access because of the number of members it has in its network.
Standard Plus and Prestige memberships are the best value for frequent travellers.
For Standard Plus membership 10 lounge visits a year works out at £22.90. This is great value and will generally beat online deals too.
Further Reading
If you have found this ‘What Is Priority Pass?’ article useful you might also like;
Airport Lounge Membership Scheme Comparison – find the perfect scheme for you
Priority Pass Membership – a guide to all the benefits
Find lots more reading on my dedicated Airport Lounges page
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