To start, I should mention that I had never been to an airport lounge in my life. I was a recent Alaska Airlines credit card holder, and I was very excited to explore the world of airport lounges. But maybe I should back up, for those unfamiliar with this world. Let me attempt to explain it a little.
What’s an Airport Lounge?
An airport lounge is a section within an airport, created to be a more comfortable area for travelers to wait for their flights than general seating at the gate or an airport restaurant. Typically, these lounges are exclusive and allow access only to loyal members of their brands, such as airline loyalty programs, first class fare holders, or owners of specific credit cards that offer lounge access as a benefit.
What are the Benefits of Visiting a Lounge?
Lounges typically try to attract travelers with more comfortable seating, complimentary drinks (sometimes including alcoholic drinks), free Wi-Fi, charging stations for devices, and sometimes showers, spa services, and more. They tend to be quiet places to work or relax and unwind during a layover or maybe before your flight takes off.
An Honest Review of the SeaTac Airport Alaska Airlines Lounge (North Satellite):
Access to the Alaska Airlines lounge is a benefit that comes with our (my husband and I) Alaska Airlines branded credit card, but we still needed to pay. More on that later. I was very excited to use it because I had never been to a lounge before and wanted to see what all the hype was about.
When we arrived, we were greeted by the front desk representative. She immediately asked us if we were first class ticket holders on an Alaska Airlines flight. We said no, but that we were Alaska Airlines credit card holders. Maybe I misinterpreted her reaction, but she seemed less interested in helping us and a little confused about what program I was talking about. I don’t know if she was new or not, so maybe I’m being unfair, but after explaining to her that we were interested in purchasing the discounted day passes, and that we were Alaska credit card holders, with a same day Alaska airline ticket, she scanned our tickets and took our credit cards as proof, and allowed us into the lounge. It wasn’t a big deal, but her reaction made me feel like a second-class citizen for not being a first-class ticket holder. It was fine, though. Maybe she was just new to the job.
When we got beyond the (not literal) velvet rope, I noticed the architecture in the lounge was beautiful. There were couches around a fireplace and modern looking features everywhere. There were also floor-to-ceiling windows showing the outside world of the airport, planes taking off from their gates - you know, airport stuff.
Unfortunately for us, the best seats in the house were all taken. That’s fine though, because we found a seat at a table, where we dropped off our stuff, and went to find some complimentary breakfast foods.
This is when I get a little picky. The breakfast, I shouldn’t criticize because it was complimentary, and who am I to look a gift horse in the mouth. But to be honest, the food seemed like a free budget to moderately priced hotel buffet. When I go to a hotel, I’ll typically spring for the paid breakfast over the free one. This is because I just find that the paid breakfast is much better than the complimentary breakfast. That’s what it was like here. And I hate to be a complainer about it, but the food was lukewarm sausage, cold cut sliced meats, mixed fruit salad, yogurt, cheeses, muffins, cold cereals and hot oatmeal. I mean, it was fine. It was really fine. But I was more impressed with the barista beverages like lattes than the foods. There was a juice machine with fountain drinks too. The line for the barista was kind of long, but maybe I just showed up too late in the morning, plus, lines are just part of life anyway.
Maybe I should have been more impressed with the bar. It did look like a nice bar and the bartender seemed friendly when I overheard her talking to a patron. It was in the morning, though, and I’m not much of an alcohol drinker, so I missed out on that perk.
My last criticism is that the chairs were often torn in places and had stains on them. That’s not to say there was no one cleaning up. There were. I saw staff working hard to keep tables cleaned and garbage put away. I’m sure they were doing their best. But I was expecting that with the whole “are you a first-class ticket holder?” gatekeeping, that it would be a lot more than it was.
Which leads me to some of my final thoughts.
Are Airport Lounges Worth Visiting/Paying For?
Maybe I would sing a different tune at a different lounge, but my answer to whether or not I would pay $60 per person ($120 total for the two of us) to stay in a lounge, the answer would be: no.
And here’s why: I don’t think we got $120 worth of food, or ambiance, or comfy seating or exclusive VIP treatment. It just felt like another over-hyped, over-priced velvet rope to make wealthy people feel superior to everybody else. I would rather go to a restaurant somewhere in the city where I can get a lot more for a $120 bill at the end of the night at a fine dining restaurant. The seating wouldn’t be torn and stained, the food would be better, and it would probably have a nice view of the waterfront. But not at the airport.
Ouch. I know. I’m being honest though. I think even if it was free, I probably wouldn’t go back to an airport lounge. You can get a better quality meal, for half the price, even within the airport. It was quiet as a library, and it didn’t feel like a welcoming, comfortable place by the one staff member who greeted us.
How Alaska Airlines Can Improve its SeaTac North Satellite Lounge:
Here are some things I think could be done to make an airport lounge, specifically for this Alaska Airlines SeaTac North Satellite lounge much better:
- Better food. Your complimentary food and drinks are probably the number one reason people are going there. $60 for a budget-moderate hotel buffet is not a good value when often hotels will charge half that for a much better breakfast buffet.
- Clean, stain- and tear-free furniture. This doesn’t give a good impression when you’re paying $120 for two people to, essentially, sit down for an hour or longer before their flight leaves.
- Most importantly: train your staff to understand your own programs so they’re not confused and neither are your customers. Don’t have staff greet people with a question like: “Are you a first-class ticket holder?” It makes it seem like first class ticket holders are the only people who are allowed access in the lounge, and it makes your clients feel like mere peasants. Also, I read the consumer reviews after returning from our visit at this particular Alaska Airlines lounge, and found that many of the first class ticket holders weren’t even allowed access into the lounge because they weren’t traveling enough miles on their flight. If that was me, and if I had paid a small fortune for a first class ticket, I would never fly Alaska Airlines again. Don’t do that, if that’s still the case.
Anyway, that’s my honest opinion and review. In conclusion, I don’t think I will go to another lounge, especially since it’s expensive, to me, to visit. The value is just not there for me. If it was free, I might go, but only if I read the consumer reviews and it was exceptional.
For now, I’ll stick to an airport restaurant or God forbid, waiting at the gate with the rest of us peasants.