The Philadelphia airport has arguably the worst American Express Centurion lounge. It’s small. The food isn’t very good or attractively presented. There’s nothing relaxing about the space.
I visited recently and went into the app to request an entrance code. You can add yourself to the waitlist virtually, copying something that Capital One did first with its lounges. However you don’t know the status of the lounge in advance.
- You may get a code for entry right away – no wait!
- It may take an hour, you just don’t know!
- And you never know your place on the list.
In contrast, Capital One estimates wait times and also shows you where you are on the list at all times. Much friendlier process. And when you get inside of a Capital One lounge, it feels less busy, even when they’re on a waitlist. You aren’t generally wandering the lounge looking for seating, or behind scores of people trying to get service at the bar.
There was no wait when I landed, so I had 10 minutes to reach the lounge before my entry code expired. That was fine – since there was no wait, it didn’t much matter if I reached the lounge in time. You can also remove yourself from the list and re-add yourself a few minutes later. And the 10-minute grace you’re given isn’t actually firm. I’ve run out the clock on that after showing up at the lounge, but standing in a long line to get checked in, on more than one occasion. Nobody batted an eye at that.
If you circled long enough you could find seating. But I think what I generally find stressful about this lounge is all of the people zipping past you once you’re seated, and that there’s not a lot of space for circulation, so you’re dodging and weaving people walking around as you meander through the lounge whether looking for seat, heading to the buffet or bar, or returning from the bathroom.
I tend to think that the food here really is not better than about a gate away at the terminal A-West American Airlines Admirals Club. Overall Capital One lounge food is better than Chase lounge food and both are better than Centurion lounge food.
Perhaps the lounge experience was best captured by the woman sleeping in the entryway just past the check-in desk. She was still there when I left.
While there was no wait when I first arrived at the lounge, when I passed by later after leaving (around 5 p.m.) there was a 60-minute wait. The virtual queueing meant that the only lines were to join the queue with an employee at the entrance, rather than standing in line waiting to enter.
Still, I couldn’t imagine waiting an hour for this lounge – though I suppose if you had an especially long layover and just needed a change of scenery, waiting within 10 minutes’ range of the lounge and entering when it’s your turn is fine. But there’s nothing relaxation or ‘premium’ about the experience.
No one ‘loves’ PHL, but they’re trying to make it ‘better’ with the new AA Flagship and that new Chase Sapphire, both of which I am yet to try, personally, but the reviews are good (thanks Gary!) Perhaps, Philadelphia and the airlines should have opted for a complete redo, like LGA, rather than incremental improvements. Oh well.
I agree, this has always been the Centurion Lounge I like the least, and I never spend much time there. Often I will just pop in to get a drink and then decamp for an Admirals Club. Problem is that, perhaps due to the small size and limited capacity to begin with, they just let too many people in so it’s always a complete cluster once you enter. (In comparison, there is almost always a wait at the Vegas CL, but when you actually get in, there are often enough empty seats that it’t not an issue finding someplace to sit, and the general atmosphere is calmer.)
Philly is for losers.
Hey “Manhattan Superiority”, if you want my come back, you’re gonna have to scrape it off the back of your moms teeth.
PHL is quietly getting a pretty good lounge scene. Chase’s PHL Lounge is the best credit card lounge in the country, possibly. The recently reopened Admiral’s Club in Terminal A is as good as you can reasonably expect.
Until recently, the Amex Lounge was PHL’s best lounge but it is now middle-of-the pack. If the B/C Admiral’s Club gets a facelift, The Amex Lounge would become subpar by PHL standards.
For myself I never bother with the lounges anymore and I travel internationally for my job at least 6 times a year. They are all like this. Whats remarkable to me is sites like this and others when they do Business Class reviews yall must book your tickets for optimum lounge time as I very rarely will encounter one that is not packed. Not only do I have access to all the lounges via Amex Platinum, Delta Reserve but I fly business class. It is 100% better to simply walk around some check out duty free then find a place for a bite to eat then sit in a quite gate with no one their and break out the Kindle.
Lounge reviews are a joke as its all broken. How about reviewing that concept..fix the lounges.
I can’t think of a worse existence than spending your life in US airport lounges. None are worth seeking out, paying $700, or waiting hours for. Early on, sure, but those days are long gone.
Hi, PHL is our home airport and I’ve been an Amex Plat member for about a decade, just to use the lounge. It is now a colossal waste of money — you just can’t even get in. I’m swapping my Amex for the new Chase, and have been in that lounge (PHL) and it’s marvelous. It’s not as convenient, in D, but it’s worth it….
@Manhattan Superiority — Oh, come now. I’m a Manhattanite, but I still think Philly’s pretty cool.
@Mantis — Ah, yes, those who use their lounge access literally ‘spend our lives in US airport lounges…’ You’ve clearly not experienced the newest iteration of DeltaOne, Flagship, Polaris, Sapphire, or CapitalOne lounges. Get your head out of the circa-2015 SkyClub, and join us in 2025.
Try the new American flagship lounge…..might be the best lounge in the entire country
I fly out of PHL often. I uses my PP card to get a one time pass to the Chase Lounge. After seeing the Chase lounge I upgraded to the Reserve card as soon as I was able to beating the Fee increase in the bargain. Since I was unable to upgrade prior to my next flight I was relegated to the Centurian lounge. After experiencing the Chase lounge I felt like I was in Denny’s when I went back to the CL.
@Steve — Speaking of Denny’s, did you get a ‘Slam’?