Our review of Aspire Rewards – and how Priority Pass lounge visits count

Aspire Rewards is the little-known reward scheme for Aspire and Club Aspire airport lounges in the UK, except for those at Heathrow and Gatwick.

It isn’t widely used, but it shoud be on your radar because Priority Pass and DragonPass visits count.  What is better than picking up an extra reward from something that you are not paying for in the first place?

You can find out more on the Aspire Rewards website here.

Aspire Rewards is app based, available via the Apple and Google app stores.  There is no ‘non digital’ alternative.

You need to download the Aspire Rewards app, create an account and then scan the QR code in the app each time you enter an Aspire lounge.

As far as I can see, there is no ability to drop the membership card into Apple Wallet which is a little annoying.

How do you earn Aspire Rewards points?

The scheme is simplicity itself:

• You earn 4 points per £1 if you book via executivelounges.com or pay on the door

• You used to earn 50 points per lounge visit (25 points for a child) if you enter via a Priority Pass or other lounge scheme card – the website now says that you earn “a set amount of points displayed within the lounge at the time of visit”

• You will also earn “a set amount of points displayed within the lounge at the time of visit” if you visit an Aspire lounge because it is your official airline lounge, eg Newcastle where British Airways passengers use the Aspire lounge.

Importantly, “multiple visitors within one transaction can be added to one loyalty account”.

You can only earn points at UK Aspire lounges, excluding the Heathrow and Gatwick sites.

How do you spend Aspire Rewards points?

There are two sorts of rewards:

• 500 points gets you a free lounge visit – this does NOT seem to be transferable because you redeem by scanning your phone

• 700 points gets you a £5 shopping voucher (when available, which at present they are not)

Historically you could get shopping vouchers for John Lewis, Amazon and Marks & Spencer, and the Aspire website still shows their logos. These seem to come and go, weirdly, and at present the only reward option showing in the app is a free lounge visit.

If you are paying cash for your lounge visits then the scheme is generous. You’d be getting a free visit for every 4-5 paid visits. It is weak if you are visiting purely on Priority Pass cards.

Note that your points have a 24 month hard expiry – activity does not keep them alive.

Which lounges take part in Aspire Rewards?

Here are the participating lounges, according to the app.  I have linked to our reviews:

Belfast City lounge (Aspire) – review here 

Birmingham North lounge (Aspire) – review here 

Birmingham South lounge (Aspire) – review here 

Edinburgh x 2 lounges (Aspire) – review here and review here

Humberside lounge (Aspire) – review here 

Inverness lounge (Aspire) – review here 

Liverpool lounge (Aspire) – review here 

London Luton lounge (Aspire) – review here (but leaving Aspire soon)

Manchester Terminal 1 lounge (Aspire) – review here 

Manchester Terminal 2 lounge (Aspire) 

Newcastle lounge (Aspire / Aspire Plus) – review here 

Note that the lounges in Heathrow and Gatwick do NOT take part.

You can find out more about Aspire Rewards on its website here.

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How to get FREE airport lounge access via UK credit cards (July 2025)

Here are the six options to get FREE airport lounge access via a UK credit card.

Your best value option (but no points):

The cheapest route to a Priority Pass airport lounge card is via the Lloyds Bank World Elite Mastercard.

The credit card has a fee of £15 per month, and comes with a Priority Pass which gives unlimited free access for the cardholder. If you add a free supplementary cardholder, they will also receive unlimited free access.

Unlike the version of Priority Pass you receive with American Express, the Lloyds Bank version also lets you access £18 airport restaurant credits.

Even better, the credit card has 0% FX fees and comes with 0.5% cashback. Full details are in my Lloyds Bank World Elite Mastercard review.

Lounge access via American Express cards:

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 1,500 lounges in the Priority Pass network – search it here.

You also get access to Eurostar, Lufthansa and Delta Air Lines lounges.  Our in-depth review of The Platinum Card from American Express is here.

You can apply here.

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

Additional lounge visits are charged at £24.  You get four 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 Credit Card review here.

Lounge access via HSBC Premier credit cards (Premier account holders only):

HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard gets you get a free Priority Pass card, allowing you access to the Priority Pass network.  Guests are charged at £24 although it may be cheaper to pay £60 for a supplementary credit card for your partner.

The card has a fee of £290 and there are strict financial requirements to become a HSBC Premier customer.  Full details are in my HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard review.

Got a small business?

If you have a small business, consider The American Express Business Platinum Card which has the same lounge benefits as the personal Platinum card:

You should also consider the Capital on Tap Pro Visa credit card which has a lower fee and, as well as a Priority Pass for airport lounge access, also comes with Radison Rewards VIP hotel status:

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