6 Airport Lounge Openings I’m Most Excited About—Southwest’s First Club, Private Transfers And North America’s Largest

There’s an incredible array of new airport lounges in the pipeline that’ll be coming in the next few years. There are six I’m looking forward to more than any of the others. This isn’t a list of which six I think will be ‘the best’ new lounges, although lounge quality influences how much I’m looking forward to them. This is a mix of what I think will be nice lounges with how interesting, unique and useful they’ll be – in some cases they simply solve real problems. Austin American Airlines Admirals Club this lounge was first announced in 2021. It’s finally under construction, at the far west end of the airport rather than the central portion of the current concourse. But it’s 12,000 square feet and in the airline’s new aesthetic that was first unveiled at Washington’s National airport (Concourse E) and that we’ve seen at Denver, Newark and Philadelphia. It’s really gorgeous. And this will be American’s first lounge with an outdoor terrace. This is my home airport, and while American is expected to remain smaller in Austin than Southwest and Delta, they will nearly double their gate allocation once Austin’s new concourse opens in the early 2030s. They’ll occupy 9 gates on the west end of the current concourse (along with Alaska Airlines). So this new lounge is located right where American’s gates will be. Credit: American Airlines Southwest Airlines Austin and Nashville clubs (whichever one comes first) Southwest hasn’t even formally announced clubs, but there are at least six in the pipeline (Austin, Nashville, Honolulu, Denver, Washington National, Dallas Love Field). Both Austin and Nashville should come next year which means we’ll get to see what a Southwest Airlines lounge looks like, and what their new premium credit card from Chase is going to be like. What will access rules be? Chase Sapphire Lounge LAX is the only remaining ‘officially announced’ Chase lounge that’s coming, though Miami is coming, too and that’ll have Cuban coffee. The LAX lounge project committed to “delivering airside escort services” as an add-on premium feature for “those passengers looking for a more discrete and seamless journey within TBIT or to other terminals.” Credit: Chase project submission to Los Angeles World Airports Capital One Charlotte Lounge this will be on the mezzanine level of the Concourse A expansion. At ~ 14,000 square feet it will be Capital One’s largest lounge to date. New York JFK is 13,500 square feet. (Phase II of the airport’s Concourse A Expansion opened in September 2024. Delta’s Sky Club is 14,000 square feet on the mezzanine there.) This is the only known new lounge in the Capital One pipeline. They haven’t seemed to be aggressive – they didn’t bid against Chase for Miami. That worries me a little bit. However, Capital One’s lounges are generally very good, my three favorite credit card lounges in the U.S. are Capital One lounges (spots 4 – 6 are occupied by Chase). Charlotte is going to get a lot better. American is building a new Admirals Club and Flagship lounge, and they’ve opened their Grab ‘n Go market (“Provisions”). There’s a The Club and a couple of Minute Suites as well as a Centurion lounge. Charlotte moves from a place where I go from avoiding itineraries to one where I won’t mind connections so much. Credit: Capital One Charlotte American Airlines Flagship and Admirals Clubs Today American Airlines lacks a business class lounge at its second largest hub, and lacks sufficient lounge space overall. The main club at the intersection of the C and D concourses is overcrowded and it’s tough to find a seat. It’s still in the old US Airways style. There’s nothing premium about the experience. There’s a smaller satellite club on the B concourse in the 2017-era ‘modern hospital’ design that’s too small and overcrowded, tough to find a seat. That’s all going to change. While the airport’s concourses are too packed, with low ceilings, the lounge game will get much better. Current Charlotte Main Admirals Club Houston United Airlines United Club (Terminal B) United will open its largest club – at 55,000 square feet – in Houston. This will be the 7th largest lounge in the world by my count, and largest in North America. It’s nearly as large as the Turkish Airlines Business lounge in Istanbul. Will any of these be game-changers for you? What lounge openings are you looking forward to most, and what’s your favorite today? Topics on this page