And the Priority Pass 2024 ‘Airport Lounge of the Year’ Excellence Awards go to ….

After a multi-year covid-induced hiatus, airport lounge network Priority Pass has brought back its ‘Airport Lounge of the Year’ awards and unveiled the 2024 winners.

Whilst it is easy to take such awards with a pinch of salt, the fact that the Priority Pass ones are based on reviews from cardholders does give them credibility.

The global winner this year is none other than the Vienna Lounge at Vienna Airport, which I reviewed last year.

The headline of my review was “Is this the best independent lounge in the world?” Clearly, my views are shared by Priority Pass users who, I am told, voted for the Vienna Lounge by a wide margin.

To quote Priority Pass:

“Since being refurbished in 2022, the Vienna Lounge offers a great variety of amenities for solo travellers, families, and those flying for business. With its Viennese cafe offering sweet treats and a buffet, comfortable seating in natural lighting, workstations, a collection of art and views out onto the airport stands, corridors and runway. ”

Here is what I had to say in the conclusion of my review:

“It is hard to convey how impressive the Vienna Lounge is, although I have tried!

This is, fundamentally, the best independent airport lounge I have ever tried and I would be surprised if it isn’t one of the best globally. The quality of the finishes, the upkeep and the design is exceptional. It feels like it opened yesterday, despite having over 800,000 guests over the past year.

It is head-and-shoulders above the windowless Plaza Premium lounge at Heathrow T2, which has won top spot in the “World’s Best Independent Airline Lounge” awards for six years in a row.

If you are flying through Vienna Airport, I highly recommend you take a look.”

The award was handed over at a ceremony in Vienna last week, and Priority Pass invited me down to join them.

Here are the other regional winners:

Asia Pacific

• Winner: Chase Sapphire Lounge by The Club, Terminal 1, ‌Hong Kong International Airport, ‌Hong Kong
• Highly Commended: Oriental Club Lounge, Terminal 2, ‌Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, ‌Taiwan

Europe

• Highly Commended: Marco Polo Club, Venice Marco Polo Airport, Italy (reviewed here)

Latin America and the Caribbean

• Winner: Advantage VIP Lounge, Curitiba Afonso Pena International, Brazil
• Highly Commended: Macondo Lounge, Barranquilla Ernesto Cortissoz International, Colombia

Middle East and Africa

• Winner: Petra Lounge, Amman Queen Alia International Airport, Jordan
• Highly Commended: Primeclass Lounge, Muscat International Airport, Oman (Rob was in this lounge last October and agrees with this award)
• Highly Commended: Bidvest Premier Lounge, International Terminal A, Johannesburg O.R Tambo International, South Africa

North America

• Winner: VIP Lounge Aguascalientes, Jesus Teran Peredo International, Mexico
• Highly Commended: Escape Lounge, S Terminal A, Syracuse NY Hancock International, United States

The only other lounge on this list I have been to is the Marco Polo lounge in Venice. Whilst this is a lovely lounge, it doesn’t get close to the quality of the Vienna Lounge. Still, it is a deserved second place for this location.

Next time I am in Hong Kong I will have to check out the Chase Sapphire Lounge by The Club, which won in the Asia Pacific category.

Pioneer of the Year

For the first time, Priority Pass has introduced two additional categories, one for lounges and one for lounge staff.

The first is ‘Pioneer of the Year’ for lounges which “champion unique and innovative services and solutions that help to improve the overall traveller experience.” There are four winners, one in each of the geographic regions:

• Primeclass Lounge, Izmir Adnan Menderes Airport, Turkey   
• AMAE Lounge, Argentina   
• Hacienda Santa Lucia by The Grand Lounge Elite, Felipe Angeles International, Mexico  
• Gameway, Terminal 3, Los Angeles CA – LAX International, United States  
• The Coral Finest Business Class Lounge (Cocoon), International Concourse C, Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport, Thailand  

All Star of the Year

The third category rewards stand-out staff from lounges around the world, again with winners from each geographic locale. This is a lovely idea that recognises the hard work of many lounge staff.

Here are the winners:

• Miss Phatsalawan Narapornkitirat, Miracle Lounge, Domestic Concourse D, Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport, Thailand 
• Anita Ganska, Preludium Lounge, Terminal A, Warsaw Frederic Chopin, Poland  
• Danielea Potes Flechas, W Premium – 5th Avenue, Terminal 3, Sao Paulo Guarulhos International, Brazil   
• Ghulam Sarwar, The Lounge, Sharjah International, United Arab Emirates  
• Silvia Villatoro, Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse, International Terminal A, San Francisco CA International, United States  

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How to get FREE airport lounge access via UK credit cards (December 2024)

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

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 American Express Platinum review is here.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 14th January 2025, the sign-up bonus on The Platinum Card from American Express is increased to 80,000 Membership Rewards points. This converts into 80,000 Avios! The spend requirement is changed to £10,000 in six months for this offer. Click here to apply.

You can apply here.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold 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 review here.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 14th January 2025, the sign-up bonus on ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold is increased to 30,000 Membership Rewards points. This converts into 30,000 Avios. Click here to apply.

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 American Express Business Platinum 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 also comes with Radison Rewards VIP status:

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 9th December 2024, there are EXCLUSIVE sign-up offers for our readers on the two Capital on Tap small business Visa cards. You can earn 20,000 points on the Business Rewards card and 30,000 points on the new Pro card. Click here to apply.

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