American Express Platinum cardholders now get Lufthansa lounge access at Heathrow Airport

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For a few years, American Express has been running various levels of airport lounge access with Lufthansa for holders of The Platinum Card.

Certain lounges would be available but would disappear. The offer would have a time limit but would be permanently extended. It was a little confusing, to put it mildly. It was primarily aimed at Frankfurt and Munich.

American Express Platinum cardholders now get Lufthansa lounge access at Heathrow

The good news is that American Express Platinum cardholders can now access the Lufthansa lounges in Heathrow Terminal 2.

This is not open to everyone.

Firstly, you must be flying on Lufthansa, SWISS or Austrian. Eurowings is not included.

Secondly, no guests are allowed – although your supplementary Platinum Card holder could obviously come in if they were with you. This means that families are excluded although children under 2 are allowed in.

There are two options available:

If you are flying in Economy with Lufthansa, SWISS or Austrian, you can use the Lufthansa Business Lounge in Terminal 2A

If you are flying in Business with Lufthansa, SWISS or Austrian, you can use the Lufthansa Senator Lounge (at the back of the Business Lounge) instead of the Business Lounge

Here is the American Express page for accessible lounges at Heathrow, including the two Lufthansa lounges.

It isn’t clear if the lounges will be open on Monday or not. American Express currently shows both as closed although I thought otherwise, to be honest.

Our last review of the Lufthansa Business and Senator lounges at Heathrow Terminal 2 is here. They are, like all Lufthansa lounges, a bit clinical and sterile, lacking in warmth and charm, but you may prefer it to sitting in the terminal.

Using Lufthansa airport lounges with American Express Platinum

What other airport lounges can you access with American Express Platinum?

The Platinum Card from American Express comes with a lot of airport lounge access benefits:

You get two Priority Pass cards, each of which allows two people unlimited access to 1,300 airport lounges globally (so a family of four is covered)

You get access to all Plaza Premium lounges with a guest by showing your Platinum card

You get access to Delta lounges, when flying with Delta, by showing your Platinum card (no guests allowed)

You and your guests get access to American Express’s own network of Centurion airport lounges, which are primarily in the US but which is also coming to Heathrow Terminal 3 in late 2021 (I was told two weeks ago that it is ready to open when enough flights resume)

You can access 13 other American Express-brand airport lounges in Stockholm, Delhi, Mumbai, Mexico City x 3, Buenos Aires, Sao Paulo, Monterrey x 2 (Mexico, not CA!), Melbourne, Sydney and Toluca – full details are here

You also get Eurostar lounge access by showing your Platinum card – this benefit is not available to Business Platinum cardholders.

You can learn more about these benefits in our full American Express Platinum review here.

Getting airport lounge access for free from a credit card

How to get FREE airport lounge access via UK credit cards (December 2021)

As a reminder, here are the three options to get FREE airport lounge access via a credit or charge card:

The Platinum Card from American Express

30,000 points and an unbeatable set of travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express comes with two free Priority Pass cards, one for you and one for a supplementary cardholder. Each card admits two so a family of four gets in free. You get access to all 1,300 lounges in the Priority Pass network – search it here.

You also get access to Plaza Premium, Delta and Eurostar lounges. Our American Express Platinum review is here. You can apply here.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & two airport lounge passes Read our full review

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold is FREE for the first year. It comes with a Priority Pass card loaded with two free visits to any Priority Pass lounge – see the list here.

Additional lounge visits are charged at £20. You get two more free visits for every year you keep the card.

There is no annual fee for Amex Gold in Year 1 and you get a 20,000 points sign-up bonus. Full details are in our American Express Preferred Rewards Gold review here.

HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard

A huge bonus, but only available to HSBC Premier clients Read our full review

HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard gets you get a free LoungeKey card, allowing you access to the LoungeKey network. Guests are charged at £20 although it may be cheaper to pay £60 for a supplementary credit card for your partner.

The card has a fee of £195 and there are strict financial requirements to become a HSBC Premier customer. Full details are in my HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard review.

PS. You can find all of HfP’s UK airport lounge reviews – and we’ve been to most of them – indexed here.

Category

Lufthansa and Miles & More

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

MT says:

18 Jul18 July 06:34

I don’t suppose Centurion Card holders get access to the Senator lounge regardless of class of travel, similar to the arrangements at FRA / MUC?
- Rob says:
  
  18 Jul18 July 09:12
  
  Might do – there are different rules for Centurion cards. Have a dig around the Amex website.
- A says:
  
  18 Jul18 July 13:32
  
  Yes, senators regardless of travel, and if at MUC/FRA you can use the first class lounge (but not the first class terminal)
- ADS says:
  
  18 Jul18 July 15:19
  
  Although a few years ago when I used them – there didn’t seem much difference between the two lounges ?
  
  I guess if the Business lounge gets busy, the Senator lounge might be quieter – hard to see that being likely for a while though.
  - Rob says:
    
    18 Jul18 July 16:27
    
    Correct, virtually nothing in it except fewer people.
Phillip says:

18 Jul18 July 06:50

The Senator lounge has been closed throughout the pandemic. I don’t believe it opened at all last year.
When I travelled through T2 two weeks ago, the entire lounge was closed. Not sure when they plan on reopening.
- Lady London says:
  
  18 Jul18 July 10:56
  
  I have been in both Silver end and Gold end of LH T2 lounge at LHR. I didn’t feel there was much difference at all between them. I think Gold end had a stack of free newspapers/better reading selection.
  
  It’s a useful additional choice if you’ve got a Plat and flying the short haul routes on LH Group airlines out of T2. Every other time I’d do the long walk to the UA lounge especially for their breakfast and bar and cheerful atmosphere or even the tiny SQ one next door.
  - John says:
    
    18 Jul18 July 12:17
    
    Before covid the main difference was that the Gold section was a lot quieter.
    
    The normal bit is not the *silver* section – it’s the business section and only lufty silver gets in (but they wouldn’t get into SQ or UA etc)
  - Dubious says:
    
    18 Jul18 July 14:30
    
    The main difference that I find, as a vegetarian, if the business end had better food than the good end. I have often found it quieter in the business end too.
    - Dubious says:
      
      18 Jul18 July 14:31
      
      *’is’ not ‘if’.
Andrew says:

18 Jul18 July 07:55

Families *with young children* are therefore excluded. Families which include adult children with their own Platinum cards are not excluded.
- Tim says:
  
  18 Jul18 July 08:39
  
  Good. Smelly gooey sticky nose picking sloppy noisy bunch. And that’s just the self entitled parents. 🙂 At least T2 has a kids area. Personally, I’d add one of those fun sliding tubes to it, and entice them to use it with free sweets and chocolate. And then locate the end of the tubes in the smelly sticky rubbish bins outside. They should feel at home in there. 🙂
  - Martin says:
    
    18 Jul18 July 09:08
    
    is it the children or the parents you’re trying to entice down the slides?
- Rob says:
  
  18 Jul18 July 09:08
  
  Adults are not children 🙂
  
  It would have been more accurate to point out that under 2’s are allowed as guests.
  - sayling says:
    
    18 Jul18 July 10:21
    
    For years, I’ve been telling my mum I am not a child, but now have trouble referring to my own offspring as my ‘adults’ (both in their mid twenties).
Tim W. says:

18 Jul18 July 08:38

When writing about the Platinum card, could you always make clear which one you are talking about? For example, it’s my understanding that the Business Platinum doesn’t get you access to the Eurostar lounge, whereas the Personal one does.
- MW says:
  
  18 Jul18 July 09:05
  
  With the exception of Eurostar lounges, Business Platinum lounge access is the same.
  
  I’m not sure why they don’t provide access to Business Platinum cardholders, it just doesn’t make sense.
- Rob says:
  
  18 Jul18 July 09:05
  
  Fair point, although the personal card is called Platinum and the business card is Business Platinum, so any references to Platinum are generally to the personal card unless specified albeit most copy across to Business.
- Lady London says:
  
  18 Jul18 July 11:01
  
  Does anyone know why this is? It does not make sense when there’s a fair amount of people paying higher ticket prices (that still don’t get them lounge) to Paris on business. Would have thought business passengers need it more. Anyone know why is Eurostar being so silly about this? I’d have had a Business card if it wasn’t for the silly meanness of giving leisure travellers to a key lounge and denying business travellers
ChrisW says:

18 Jul18 July 09:03

Frustrating that it’s only when flying Lufty and pals. Shame it’s not all * Alliance carriers. That would be a really nice perk when flying long haul Y on United or SQ without status.
- John says:
  
  18 Jul18 July 12:19
  
  And make it a lot more crowded for those of us who have Star Gold until end 2022 from flying one long-haul and one return to Greece in 2019….
Symon says:

18 Jul18 July 10:04

Any news on reinstating online upgrading to Plat?
- Rob says:
  
  18 Jul18 July 10:08
  
  With virtually no Gold Charge cardholders left, what’s the point?
  - Harry T says:
    
    18 Jul18 July 10:18
    
    You can upgrade from Green charge too, although I suspect we don’t have too many of those kicking around either. I think the reason they’ve made the offer offline only is due to repeated abuse by some card holders, eg upgrading and downgrading multiple times a year. Now they can restrict it to once in a lifetime.
    - Yorkieflyer says:
      
      18 Jul18 July 13:00
      
      I did the green upgrade path when otherwise not entitled to a bonus, I think the spend required has gone up though for a bonus?
  - Yorkieflyer says:
    
    18 Jul18 July 12:58
    
    Are there many plats left after the last eighteen months?
    - mark2 says:
      
      18 Jul18 July 14:51
      
      I have still got one. I have had it for about eight months and am breaking even with the offers. Also got 130,000 MR including 35,000 retention. Waiting to see if another £175 Waitrose since last has run out and then try to get another retention or cancel.
    - Ed says:
      
      18 Jul18 July 17:58
      
      Wish I could break even on the offers. Nearly every one is 100% UK-centric. O just got a few airline ones for TP, EY etc for flights originating from UK. Some hotel ones such as IHG for stays in UK and a couple of places in Europe and an Avis one for a UK car rental. Not good for a card aimed at people who travel…
Smid says:

18 Jul18 July 12:29

I’d not bother, you’ve got a PP, I’ve not extensive experience of the LH lounges, but I did spend time in the one in Frankfurt before a Qatar flight, and it’s pretty much a PP lounge.