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a black card with gold textEverybody in this hobby should have a Priority Pass.  It seems like every time I open a card, I get a new Priority Pass in the mail a few weeks later.  I think I have 2 right now…3 with the new AmEx Hilton Ascend!

My Priority Pass has been an awesome benefit to my air travel.  I’ve used lounges throughout the US, in Costa Rica, Mexico, and the Bahamas.  Each time, I’m admitted to the lounges fee-free and get a bite to eat.  At airport food prices, the Priority Pass alone offsets some of my annual fee on my premium credit cards.

(If you find your wallet strangely lacking of Priority Pass access, pick up a new card with lounge access here!)

The list of Priority Pass lounges has been constantly growing, and more recently, the network expanded to include a handful of restaurants and bars.  Instead of getting free access to a lounge, you can stop by the bar for a bite to eat, and get a certain dollar amount off your meal.  You’ll find some of these restaurants in Denver, New York, Miami, St. Louis, Lexington, London, and Portland.  Portland boasts three restaurant/bar lounges, and up until recently, you could easily hit all three of them with a long layover.  Lunch at the Capers Market, afternoon drinks at the House Spirits Distillery, and dinner at Capers Cafe Le Bar.  Now of course, I don’t think every Priority Pass holder stopping by each restaurant every time they had time at PDX is very good for business…and apparently Priority Pas agrees.

a burger and fries on a plate

A burger and fries from the Timberline – a Priority Pass restaurant at Denver International.

Priority Pass has updated their terms to include the following restrictions:

  • You can only stop by one of the Capers locations at PDX
  • You must show an outbound boarding pass to use your priority pass discount.

I have to level with you guys, I think these restrictions are fair.  My dad voice is popping into the back of my head, “This is why we can’t have nice things..”

Although I definitely use lounges on arrival if I have time to kill, this isn’t a common occurrence for me.  Lounge access (and food) prior to my flight is much more important to me than afterward.  By the time I land, I’m usually itching to get to the next place anyway.  I think Priority Pass has implemented just restrictions, and I think it’ll be easy for us to follow those rules.

This certainly isn’t the first time Priority Pass has started to limit us…should we be worried?  Let me know what you think about Capers and House Spirits Distillery!

Hat tip to Lucky over at One Mile at a Time.


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