Got Amex Gold? You will receive a Priority Pass airport lounge card very soon
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As we suggested was likely last year, American Express has announced some good news for Preferred Rewards Gold credit and charge card holders.
Effectively immediately, your Lounge Club airport lounge access card is being replaced by a Priority Pass.
If you have an Amex Gold card, you will receive your Priority Pass within the next three weeks.
The terms are unchanged
This is NOT the ‘unlimited access for you and a guest’ Priority Pass that you receive with American Express Platinum.
It will have the same rules as your existing Lounge Club card:
- you will receive two free lounge visits per card year
- additional visits will be automatically charged to your American Express Gold card at the rate of £20
If you have already used one or two of your annual lounge passes, these will be deducted from the opening balance on your Priority Pass.
When does my Lounge Club card stop working?
28th February.
Is Priority Pass better than Lounge Club?
Yes, for two reasons:
Priority Pass has a bigger network than Lounge Club
Despite both being owned by the same company, Collinson, the Lounge Club network is smaller.
The Priority Pass network has over 1,200 lounges in it (albeit quite a few are currently shut, but give it time ……).
This HfP article is a little out of date but it gives you an idea of the differences between Lounge Club and Priority Pass. Back in 2018, additional UK lounges included Heathrow, Southend, Newquay, Norwich, Exeter, Glasgow, Jersey, Doncaster Sheffield and Derry.
Priority Pass has digital membership cards
You no longer need to worry about forgetting your plastic Lounge Club card.
You can download the Priority Pass app to your smartphone and use the digital membership card to enter lounges.
Conclusion
This is a genuine improvement to American Express Preferred Rewards Gold, giving access to a wider range of lounges.
Being able to use a digital membership card stored on your phone will also make your life easier.
If you don’t have Amex Gold, we ran a full Preferred Rewards Gold review last week.
With NO FEE for the first year, two airport lounge visits via Priority Pass and a whopping 20,000 American Express Membership Rewards points as a sign-up bonus (converting to 20,000 Avios), it is an impressive package. It is also a great first step for someone starting off with miles and points.
You can apply for the card here.
Want to earn more points from credit cards? – March 2024 update
If you are looking to apply for a new credit card, here are our top recommendations based on the current sign-up bonuses.
In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.
You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:
Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard
Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review
Barclaycard Avios Mastercard
5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review
You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the best of the other deals currently available.
British Airways American Express Premium Plus
25,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review
American Express Preferred Rewards Gold
Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review
The Platinum Card from American Express
40,000 bonus points and a huge range of valuable benefits – for a fee Read our full review
Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard
15,000 bonus points and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review
Earning miles and points from small business cards
If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these offers:
SPECIAL OFFER: You receive a huge 120,000 Membership Rewards points if you apply for American Express Business Platinum by 9th April 2024. You receive 80,000 points for spending £12,000 within 90 days and a further 40,000 points if you retain the card for 14 months. Click here to apply.
SPECIAL OFFER: You receive 60,000 Membership Rewards points if you apply for American Express Business Gold by 9th April 2024. Remember that the card is FREE for the first year. You receive 40,000 points for spending £6,000 within 90 days and a further 20,000 points if you retain the card for 14 months. Click here to apply.
British Airways Accelerating Business American Express
30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review
American Express Business Platinum
Crazy 120,000 points bonus (to 9th April) and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review
American Express Business Gold
Huge 60,000 points sign-up bonus (until 9th April) and free for a year Read our full review
Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa
Get a 10,000 points bonus plus an extra 500 points for our readers Read our full review
For a non-American Express option, we also recommend the Barclaycard Select Cashback card for sole traders and small businesses. It is FREE and you receive 1% cashback on your spending.
Barclaycard Select Cashback credit card
2% cashback on all your business spend for 3 months (1% thereafter) and no annual fee Read our full review
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