Latest news with #airportlounge
Fast Company
16-07-2025
- Business
- Fast Company
The only way into this airport lounge? A flight delay
Its never a good time to lose a flight, get one cancelled, or loiter aimlessly at the airport due to delays—except, maybe, today and tomorrow. Tucked inside John F. Kennedy Airport's iconic TWA Hotel, which boasts a retro aesthetic reminiscent of the golden age of air travel, a temporary lounge by Cayman Jack is set up. The catch? Only unlucky passengers experiencing travel disruptions are allowed in. Its no surprise that flight disruptions are becoming increasingly common in U.S. travel. Almost 1 in 4 passengers experience a flight delay or a cancellation within American airports, totaling in 236 million people affected. Disturbances can oftentimes affect just a few flights, but sometimes its widespread. Last year, the CrowdStrike IT outage led to nationwide disruptions, and earlier this year, a 90-second loss of communication from tower control at Newark led to a series of local cancellations. 'We've all experienced these moments first-hand and wanted to make life's most unexpected detours an opportunity to flip vacation mode,' Stately Jukes, Director of Brand Commercialization for Cayman Jack told Fast Company. Open July 16 and 17, the Cayman Club operates as a 'missed-flight lounge,' offering visitors above 21 years old ice-cold Cayman Jack Margaritas, bites curated by Chef Aarón Sanchez, and complimentary massages. 'We wanted to flip the script on the traditional lounge experience,' Juke says. 'Forget elite status and instead make the lounge something to reward people who are in need of a little levity in their travels.' For those struggling with summer travel outside of JFK, Cayman Jack is extending online opportunities to passengers nationwide through Sept. 1. On their website, travelers are able to upload their travel mishaps for the chance to earn anything from a cold margarita, to gift cards and spa services. 'You know how some of the best vacation memories come from unplanned moments?,' Juke added. 'When plans go sideways, everyone deserves to enjoy a margarita.' The super-early-rate deadline for Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies Awards is Friday, July 25, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply today.
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Amex Just Changed Airport Dining Forever With Its New Celebrity Chef Menu
American Express is redefining the airport lounge experience with its newest program, The Culinary Collective by The Centurion Lounge. Launching on July 29, this initiative teams up with four James Beard Award–winning chefs and a top mixologist to elevate the food and drink offerings across all 15 Centurion Lounge locations in the Onwuachi, for one, is not just a notable Top Chef alum and 2019 Food & Wine's Best New Chef, but he also owns the acclaimed restaurants Tatiana in New York City and Dōgon in Washington, D.C. He's bringing Afro-Caribbean flair to the lounges with his Suya Short Ribs and Tamarind Ice Box Cake. Mashama Bailey, co-owner of The Grey in Savannah, adds soulful dishes like Paprika Chicken and a rich Espresso Crème Brûlée, while Michael Solomonov, known for Philadelphia's Israeli-American outpost Zahav, is offering a Pomegranate Glazed Salmon with Tabbouleh. And, rounding out the culinary team is Sarah Grueneberg of Chicago's Monteverde – also a Top Chef alum – who brings Italian sophistication with her Lemony Orzo with Artichokes and Dill. 'We know how much Card Members love the food and drinks at the Centurion Lounges and look forward to seeing what's new. With help from our Resy chef partners, we've brought together a group of some of the most exciting culinary minds in America to create incredible menus, available all in one place for the first time ever,' Audrey Hendley, President of American Express Travel, said in a statement. 'You'd be lucky to make it to each of their celebrated restaurants across the country, but now visitors to our Centurion Lounges will be able sample dishes created by these chefs.'The beverage experience is also getting a serious upgrade. Harrison Ginsberg, bar director at the award-winning Overstory in New York City, has crafted globally inspired cocktails like The Centurion – which is vodka, yuzu, lime, soda – in addition to a boozy-free option like his Green Tea Tonic, made with green tea, lemon, grapefruit, and a botanical travelers in a rush, Amex has something else in the works: Sidecar by The Centurion Lounge. Slated to debut in 2026 at the airport in Las Vegas, Sidecar will offer a faster, sleeker lounge experience tailored for those with tight layovers. "Many of our visitors spend less than an hour in our Lounges, and we've created Sidecar specifically for them," Hendley said. 'The first Centurion Lounge opened in Las Vegas in 2013, so it's fitting that we're launching this new lounge concept at LAS as we continue to innovate to meet our Card Members' needs.'So, whether you're just stopping by during a quick layover or settling in before a long-haul flight abroad, the Centurion Lounge experience is clearly evolving to bring even more luxury and ease to your time at the airport. Amex Just Changed Airport Dining Forever With Its New Celebrity Chef Menu first appeared on Men's Journal on Jul 15, 2025
Travel Weekly
15-07-2025
- Business
- Travel Weekly
American Express is opening a Centurion Lounge at Tokyo Haneda
American Express will open a Centurion Lounge at Tokyo's Haneda Airport on Wednesday. Located in Terminal 3 near Gate 114, the lounge is nearly 7,500 square feet and features "sweeping views of the airfield," American Express said in a release. In addition to a wide range of seating choices, lounge guests will have access to private phone booths that can also be used for meditation. Lined with fabric panels and featuring traditional Japanese artwork, the booths will have an audio program with calming sounds. A VIP area for Centurion members will feature elevated furnishings and finishes, with kumiko-style woodwork, Japanese art and photography and a private beverage station. The lounge's menu was created by chef Satoshi Ogino. It will have some traditional Japanese offerings like sushi and ramen as well as a buffet serving local and global cuisine. A sweets bar will feature tea and Japanese wagashi sweets. The lounge will also feature an open kitchen where guests can watch chefs at work. Its full bar will feature wine, cocktails, Japanese beers, sake and shochu. The Haneda lounge is the 30th Centurion Lounge to open and the fourth in Asia. "We've seen incredible demand for travel to Japan. It is one of the destinations where we've seen the highest growth recently," said American Express Travel president Audrey Hendley. "We look forward to showcasing the impeccable service Centurion Lounges are known for in a destination we know is so important to our card members."
Fast Company
15-07-2025
- Business
- Fast Company
The Platinum Card is about to change. Amex's new fast-format airport lounge might be a sneak preview
If you've ever sprinted through an airport only to land in a standing-room-only lounge buffet line, you know that the state of modern travel perks is competitive. As credit card companies and airlines rush to expand their lounge footprints, American Express is looking to double down on what it believes sets it apart: consistency, exclusivity, and culinary experience. This summer, Amex is rolling out two major updates that signal how it plans to maintain its lead in the fast-growing airport lounge landscape. The first is 'The Culinary Collective,' a chef-driven revamp of food and beverage offerings at Centurion Lounges nationwide. The second is 'Sidecar by The Centurion Lounge,' a brand-new, fast-format lounge experience that's set to launch at Las Vegas's Harry Reid International Airport in 2026. Together, these updates offer a glimpse at Amex's evolving strategy: appealing to both high-end leisure travelers and time-crunched business flyers, all while keeping its signature level of luxury intact. A new flavor of exclusivity Rather than chasing square footage like Delta Air Lines— whose newest Sky Club in Atlanta can seat over 500 guests—Amex is banking on curated experience over capacity. That's where The Culinary Collective comes in. Featuring rotating menus from a team of James Beard Award-winning chefs, including Mashama Bailey and Kwame Onwuachi, the initiative aims to bring restaurant-level meals into the airport setting. 'You'd be lucky to get into each of their restaurants on a normal day,' Audrey Hendley, president of American Express Travel, tells Fast Company. 'Now, you can try them all in one trip.' Through the Collective, new menu items will be available in all 15 U.S. Centurion Lounges beginning July 29, 2025. The focus on thoughtful dining mirrors Capital One's approach, which leans into local partnerships with regional bakeries and breweries to create an experience that feels like stepping into a city's best café, not another airline lounge. Amex, in turn, is opting for hospitality as theater: chef-driven menus, cocktails developed by Overstory's Harrison Ginsberg, and lounge layouts designed to feel more like boutique hotels than waiting rooms. Introducing Sidecar: A lounge for the layover-challenged But what if you only have 45 minutes until boarding? Enter Sidecar, a new lounge format designed to give travelers a premium experience even if they're short on time. Set to launch in 2026, the space will offer table-side service, curated small plates, and a speakeasy vibe—all within close proximity to the main Centurion Lounge in Las Vegas. Think of it as Amex's answer to the crowding crisis that's plagued lounge operators in recent years. Rather than just add square footage like Delta or increase access fees like United, Sidecar is an attempt to diversify the experience based on how travelers actually use lounges. 'We're seeing a significant segment of travelers who only spend 30 to 45 minutes in the lounge,' said Hendley. 'Sidecar is our way of honoring that time with the same level of care and service.' That echoes Capital One's design philosophy for its growing lounge network, which includes grab-and-go options, regionally inspired food, and 'perfect' airport beers crafted in collaboration with local breweries. As Capital One's Jenn Scheurich put it: 'It doesn't really matter whether you have 15 minutes or an hour—you still want a great lounge experience.' Travel benefits for the TikTok generation The updates come as American Express embarks on its largest Platinum Card refresh in company history, with new perks targeting millennial and Gen Z cardholders, who now make up 35% of the company's U.S. consumer spending. With over 1,550 lounges worldwide—including 29 Centurion Lounges and new ones coming to Salt Lake City, Newark, Tokyo, and Amsterdam—Amex already boasts the largest global lounge network of any U.S. card issuer. But in a post-pandemic travel boom where lounge access is no longer a rarity but a battleground, the pressure to keep experiences differentiated is high. While Delta is betting big on footprint and familiarity, leaning into hometown-inspired art and hospitality in its new Atlanta Sky Club, Amex is betting that its brand of curated luxury still wins loyalty—even if that means skipping the buffet for a quick cocktail before boarding. More than perks: a play for emotional loyalty For American Express, lounges like the new Centurion Sidecar in Las Vegas aren't just about creature comforts—they're part of a broader strategy to build what the company sees as lasting, emotional loyalty. Yes, the lounge has yuzu cocktails and espresso crème brûlée. But it also has something harder to measure: the feeling of being taken care of when everything else about air travel is chaos. 'We're always looking for ways to better understand how customers travel and what they're looking for in the experience,' says Hendley. 'There's nothing better than settling in at a Centurion Lounge and starting your trip with a great meal and a great drink. Whether you're going on vacation or traveling for work, we want to make that moment count.' For now, Amex is staying tight-lipped about the specifics of its Platinum Card refresh. What it has made clear is that the refresh is aimed squarely at younger travelers. 'They're not just looking for benefits—they're looking for a brand that gets them,' Hendley said. That means spaces that feel modern and intimate, perks that are easy to use, and partnerships that feel aspirational but not out of reach. To stand apart from its rivals, American Express is banking on design, consistency, and culinary clout to keep members engaged. And in Sidecar's case, it's also about speed. 'Many of our visitors spend less than an hour in our lounges, and we've created Sidecar specifically for them,' Hendley said. 'You still want a great lounge experience—just in a shorter window.' Ultimately, the lounge is the hook—but the goal is bigger. Amex wants card members to feel like wherever they're going, the brand is already there, holding the door open and mixing the drink.
Travel Weekly
15-07-2025
- Business
- Travel Weekly
American Express is doing a quick-stop airport lounge
American Express will open a new kind of airport lounge designed for travelers in a hurry: Sidecar by the Centurion Lounge. The new concept will debut at Harry Reid Airport in Las Vegas in 2026. Its design is speakeasy-inspired, American Express said, and travelers can access Sidecar within 90 minutes before their flight's departure. The lounge will feature a small-plate menu. Sidecar is open to all card members with access to the Centurion Lounge network. The Centurion Lounge at Las Vegas will continue to operate, giving travelers a choice. "Many of our visitors spend less than an hour in our lounges, and we've created Sidecar specifically for them," said Audrey Hendley, president of American Express Travel. New menus at Centurion Lounges American Express also announced the Culinary Collective by the Centurion Lounge, a group of four chefs and a bar director who will create a new menu of food and drinks for lounges. Chef Sarah Grueneberg's watermelon salad. Photo Credit: American Express New menu items will be available beginning July 29. Select recipes from the collective will also be available at the Sidecar lounge. The collective includes chefs Mashama Bailey, Sarah Grueneberg, Kwame Onwuachi and Mike Solomonov, and bar director Harrison Ginsberg. "You'd be lucky to make it to each of their celebrated restaurants across the country, but now visitors to our Centurion Lounges will be able to sample dishes created by these chefs," Hendley said.
