Amex Rolls Out Digital Waitlist for Most Centurion Lounges

With long lines out the door and few spaces to sit once you're inside, American Express' “exclusive” Centurion Lounges have felt anything but exclusive lately. But now, at least you may not have to stand in line to get inside.

As first flagged by View from the Wing, Amex recently began testing out a new digital waitlist system via its smartphone app at a select few Centurion Lounges. Now, we've confirmed that this new feature is rolling out to nearly every Centurion Lounge in the U.S. – only the Denver (DEN) lounge didn't have it available as of publication. International Amex lounges in Mexico City (MEX), London-Heathrow (LHR), Sydney (SYD), and beyond also don't currently have a digital waitlist available.

So rather than walking over to the lounge only to find you can't get inside – or standing in line with other Amex cardholders – you may be able to join the queue digitally to get into a U.S. Amex lounge before heading over. Amex will send you a text or an email with a pass to enter when it's your turn.

It's similar to the system Capital One implemented earlier this year to manage capacity at its own Capital One Lounges. But unlike with Capital One, you won't be able to see how busy the Amex lounge is: You'll simply join the digital queue – or, if the lounge isn't full, you'll instantly get a QR code to scan your way into the lounge. Otherwise, you'll get a text (or email) notifying you that you're on the waitlist.

Some of the most popular Centurion Lounges had individually enacted their own queuing procedures. The LAX Centurion Lounge, for instance, was using text notifications to prevent lines piling up outside its doors. Other locations simply forced travelers to wait.

With just a 10-minute window to get in once you receive an alert it's your turn, you still can't reserve a spot in the lounge far ahead of time, unfortunately. And American Express doesn't currently provide an estimate of how long you'll have to wait to enter.

“We’re always looking for ways to innovate our services and offerings to enhance the Centurion Lounge customer experience,” an American Express representative said in a statement to Thrifty Traveler.

How it Works

To join the Centurion Lounge wait list, simply open the Amex app on your phone, go to your card benefits, and select airport lounge access. Then, search for an airport with a Centurion Lounge and select it.

Depending on the airport, you'll either be generating a QR code for entry or simply joining the digital queue by pressing “Join Waitlist”.

Regardless, it brings you to the same form.

After confirming you have a boarding pass, a valid form of ID and plan to visit the lounge within the three-hour window before your departure time, you'll be taken to the next page where you'll choose how you want to be notified, whether by email or by text, and enter your contact information.

From there, you'll be directed to enter how many guests you want to bring in with you. Amex now charges cardholders for guests – unless you charge a whopping $75,000 a year to your eligible Amex card. If multiple people in your traveling party have their own Amex lounge access, they'll likely have to join the digital waitlist separately.

You will then get a confirmation text message saying that you're on the waitlist. Unfortunately, the text message notifications don't provide an estimated wait time before you're admitted into the lounge.

Amex gives you 10 minutes to show up at the lounge after receiving the second text alert telling you to head to the lounge. If you're late , you'll have to start the entire process all over again. Just remember, there might still be a line to get in once you make it to the lounge.

Similar to how you were previously able to generate a QR code directly via the Amex app for entry into the lounge, you'll get an eligiblity code for the lounge staff to scan you in for entry.

Bottom Line

With more and more travelers adding premium credit cards like the Amex Platinum to their wallets, you're still likely going to continue encountering a wait at many Amex Centurion Lounges – at least for now. But adding the ability for cardholders to digitally join a waitlist in the Amex app should make that wait a little less painful than standing in line.