Priority Pass, a leading airport lounge and experiences program, owned and operated by Collinson, announced it added 183 airport lounges and experiences to its global network in 2021, including 36 locations in the United States. The latest additions to the Priority Pass network mean that Priority Pass has at least one experience covering 95% of all international flights from the top 100 airports around the world. In addition to newly added lounges, Priority Pass has also focused on making more premium experiences accessible for its members, including new dining, sleep and spa offerings as well as recently announcing a partnership with CarTrawler.
Growing The Premium Lounges Network
As part of its dedication to growing its premium lounge network, Priority Pass added 134 new premium lounges globally in 2021, each designed to be a luxurious oasis for travelers pre-flight.
Separately, as previously announced in June 2021, a relationship with JP Morgan Chase will give Priority Pass Members access to lounges within the brand new, premium airport lounge "Chase Sapphire Lounge by The Club." Three lounges are already in development at Hong Kong International, Boston Logan International and New York LaGuardia airports.
Adding New Airport Experiences
As part of its commitment to expanding the range of options available for members beyond airport lounges, Priority Pass also introduced 49 new experiences globally in 2021. These include Sleeping Pods at New York LaGuardia Airport; new spas, including a location at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW); and even a new gaming experience at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). Additionally, premium dining experiences were added, where guests can dine on delicious local cuisines and, in some cases, enjoy the scenery nearby with expansive window views.
Airport wellness company, Be Relax, also joined the Priority Pass network, offering members the opportunity to enjoy a relaxing spa experience before or after their flight. With numerous locations across the U.S. and around the world, Be Relax offers a large range of wellness services, including chair massages, loungers, and aromatherapy. Priority Pass Members can now visit Be Relax locations at San Diego International Airport (SAN), Detroit Metropolitan Wayne Airport (DTW), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), and New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and LaGuardia Airport (LGA), with more locations coming soon to the network.
“Priority Pass experienced massive growth in 2021,” said Christopher Evans, joint CEO, Collinson. “Not only have we expanded the network into more locations, but we’ve also grown by introducing a whole host of new experiences and services. One of our key goals this year was to bring more premium, digitally enabled travel experiences to our members, to help them feel a bit of luxury, and boost their confidence while traveling during what has been a difficult time. Our aim has always been to enhance the experience of getting from A to B and make access to these benefits more seamless. I am delighted with the incredible range and quality of the additional lounges, experiences, and partners that our customers can now access."
Providing New and Exciting Services
In addition to expanding its airport experiences, Priority Pass added a range of new travel services to its app, allowing member's access to more things to enhance their overall travel experience, including a global partnership with CarTrawler. The partnership gives all members access to competitively priced car rental and airport transfers through CarTrawler’s network of over 2,200 vehicle partners across 50,000 locations worldwide, including. The partnership is a result of Priority Pass’ desire to constantly evolve its propositions in accordance with travelers’ evolving needs and wants and joins COVID-19 travel testing and duty-free shopping services.
Rebuilding Traveler Confidence
Priority Pass launched a number of innovations last year to help rebuild traveler confidence and welcome passengers back safely. During the pandemic, the company launched a groundbreaking new "Ready 2 Order" food and beverage system in recognition of the challenges traditional food and beverage (F&B) models in lounges faced as a result of COVID-19 restrictions. The solution meant a number of lounges were able to protect the provision of F&B for guests, whilst ensuring all Members and lounge staff could stay safe via a contactless ordering process. To date, over 143,000 orders have been placed via the app and in November, Priority Pass announced it was expanding its Ready 2 Order footprint from 16 lounges to 46, with a view to be up and running throughout 2022.
Priority Pass Members were also offered COVID-19 travel testing discounts on both PCR and Antigen tests for arrivals and departure to help make taking to the skies again more accessible.
“As we move into 2022, thanks to innovations like COVID-19 travel testing, the roll out of vaccines and increased health and safety measures across the industry, we can expect confidence in travel to return”, said Evans. “And our lounges will be ready and waiting to welcome passengers when they take to the skies again.”
*Airport ranking based on 2019 flight numbers.
