Oneworld lounge access: why some frequent flyers are shut out
By David Flynn, February 12 2018
Access to airport lounges around the world is a cornerstone benefit of building up frequent flyer status within a particular airline alliance, and it's the one which business travellers appreciate the most.
In the case of the Oneworld alliance – which counts Qantas, Cathay Pacific, Malaysia Airlines, British Airways, American Airlines, Qatar Airways and JAL among its 13 members – holding the equivalent of Oneworld Sapphire status with any member airline opens the doors at the business class lounges of all Oneworld airlines.
Likewise, Oneworld Emerald status – a tier which includes Qantas Frequent Flyer Platinum , Cathay Pacific Marco Polo Diamond and British Airways Executive Club Gold cards – sees the welcome mat rolled out at first class lounges.
That's the idea, anyway. Most of the time it holds true, but there are exceptions to every rule – including when it comes to lounge access for Oneworld frequent flyers.
First class yes, frequent flyers no
For example, British Airways' Concorde Room is available only to BA first class passengers and its most elite frequent flyers (Concorde Room Card holders and invitation-only BA Premier members). Emerald-grade frequent flyers, along with first class travellers on other Oneworld airlines, are directed to seperate and far less impressive 'first class' lounges.
Qatar Airways' Premium Lounges at London, Paris and from this week Bangkok, are open to first class and business class travellers on any Oneworld airline, but not frequent flyers of any stripe.
British Airways' arrivals lounge at London Heathrow Terminal 5 is exclusive to BA first class and business class passengers arriving on long-haul flights and British Airways Executive Club Gold members in any class – but only BAEC Golds, and not their equivalents from other Oneworld airlines.
However, Cathay Pacific's Hong Kong arrivals lounge welcomes Emerald-grade frequent flyers from any Oneworld airline (such as Qantas Platinum) and its own Marco Polo Gold and Diamond members, as long as they're arriving on a Cathay Pacific or Cathay Dragon flight.
American Airlines' Flagship Lounges in the USA will let in Oneworld Emerald card-holders travelling in economy on even the shortest domestic flight, but bars its own top-tier AAdvantage frequent flyers unless they're on an international flight headed outside of North America.
Oddly, Finnair flips things around in favour of the frequent flyer: Oneworld Emerald and Sapphire passengers enjoy entry to the upscale Finnair Premium lounge while business class travellers have to make do with the lesser Finnair lounge.
Oneworld makes the rules, but members can bend them
Doesn't this amount to a lot of inconsistency and confusion for the business traveller?
Dennis Tierney, Oneworld's Vice-President for Customer Experience, says that the alliance's rules "stipulate the minimum standards to which all alliance member airlines must adhere in all areas of customer experience, including lounge provision and access."
“But all member airlines are free, if they choose, to offer their own customers, and indeed customers from their partner airlines, services that exceed those minimum requirements," he tells Australian Business Traveller.
“Some member airlines choose to offer a range of lounges at some airports, with varying access criteria. There is no Oneworld requirement for these airlines to open the doors to all of these lounges to top-tier frequent flyers from all Oneworld airlines, whether flying in premium cabins or not – so long as at least one of these lounges is available to them under the usual Oneworld rules."
Tierney cites Qatar Airways' Premium Lounges as an example.
"Qatar Airways has a number of Premium Lounges, where access is restricted to customers booked in its own first or business class cabins, or in the first or business class cabins of any of its oneworld partners."
"At the locations where it offers these Premium Lounges, it also makes available other lounges in which top-tier frequent flyers (equivalent to Oneworld Emerald or Sapphire) from its own Privilege Club or any other Oneworld partner’s frequent flyer programme who are booked in the economy cabins on Qatar Airways or any oneworld partner airline are welcome."
In short: as long as there's somewhere for Platinums, Golds, Diamonds and others of their shiny ilk to put up their feet, airlines are free to operate even more exclusive lounges and set the doorlist as they please.
Meanwhile, arrivals lounges fall outside Oneworld's control altogether, Tierney adds.
“Arrivals lounges are not included as part of the oneworld offering – although, again, some member airlines go ‘above and beyond’ in this area."
"Cathay Pacific, for instance, welcomes Oneworld Emeralds into its Hong Kong arrivals lounge if they arrive on Cathay Pacific or Cathay Dragon, no matter in which cabin they were booked."
David Flynn is the Editor-in-Chief of Executive Traveller and a bit of a travel tragic with a weakness for good coffee, shopping and lychee martinis.
12 Feb 2018
Total posts 1
Thanks this article forced me to sign up with abt.
Emirates Airlines - Skywards
07 Sep 2012
Total posts 146
Not just Finnair, but Finns in general are some of the rudest people I have ever come across while travelling.
27 Sep 2011
Total posts 37
Finns in general were uniformly polite and accommodating when I was in Finland. Perhaps you weren't being polite to them and got back what you were giving out?
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
10 May 2012
Total posts 134
WRT your comment about the BA 1st Lounge at Heathrow "Emerald-grade frequent flyers, along with first class travellers on other Oneworld airlines, are directed to seperate and far less impressive 'first class' lounges". The BA First Lounge is in fact excellent. Breakfast is great. The tarmac view is excellent. And if you pick up the landline phones, you can even call back to Australia for free! Not too bad me thinks.
04 May 2015
Total posts 262
It's not bad, but it's still not the real first class lounge. It's a very reasonable for a business class lounge, though, haha. (You could probably say the same thing about BA first class flights, actually... one of the world's best business class experiences, LOL.)
16 Nov 2011
Total posts 595
Tough audience. It’s been 7 or 8 years since I set foot in the T5 first lounge and frankly it was right up there. Yes there was something better that I only ever sampled the once, but still was great first class lounge.
QantasFF
16 Nov 2012
Total posts 57
One wrinkle is that Qantas Gold/OW Sapphire doesn't get you in to OW lounges when travelling Jetstar Business, as I discovered at Japan Airline's Lounge at Osaka - although the CIP used by Jetstar there is really rather good and uncrowded.
04 May 2015
Total posts 262
That's not really a "wrinkle": Jetstar isn't a Oneworld airline. Qantas just lets its own frequent flyers use its own lounges when flying Jetstar to be nice, but it doesn't mean Jetstar is part of Oneworld. You can buy Jetstar business class tickets that include lounge access though, but they tend to be a bit more expensive than the basic business class fare.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
29 Apr 2015
Total posts 9
I have economy seats on a flight to Rome out of Perth coming up, Qantas flight but operated by Emirates, a stop in Dubai. I have Platinum QFF but my wife and 16 year daughter are only silver. Will we all be able to access to the First Class Lounges or will we be excluded? - Thanks in advance Kajdes
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
18 Jun 2015
Total posts 105
Qantas
01 Jun 2016
Total posts 28
Qantas First class lounge allows +1 and two kids under 18 for economy class travel too.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
29 Apr 2015
Total posts 9
Continuing from above message we would want to access a lounge in Perth, Dubai and Rome. Thanks again
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
01 Mar 2013
Total posts 169
Wonderfully informative David. I also believe manners and some courtesy can help when needed at the Lounge door. Cheers.
12 Apr 2011
Total posts 71
Although this doesn’t answer the question whether an airline must treat entry level emeralds of other airlines the same as their own entry level emeralds when it comes to lounge access. There’s no example where a entry level emerald is treated better when flying their “home” airline than entry level emeralds of other airlines flying that same airline.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer - Chairmans Lounge
01 Sep 2011
Total posts 413
I don't think the above article, with due respect, offers any new info. I can understand BA providing access to the Concorde Lounge only to their 1st passengers and not OW emerald in business; they (BA) have in my view a very good actual 1st lounge. Unless Qatar have changed policy, you CANNOT get into their 1st lounge if you are OW emerald (I am OW emerald via CL and Plat1) and flying in business despite the fact that most of their flights don't have a 1st cabin eg: as I have flown MIA/DOH, JFK/DOH, DOH/HKG, DOH/CPT etc. They do not have a separate 1st lounge a la BA and QR (in my view their business lounge is a zoo) do as they please ... alliance players they are not. I find them a frustrating and annoying airline. Eh, what do they care.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
21 Jul 2014
Total posts 32
No matter how many problems Oneworld may have, Star Alliance is usually worse. At one stage I had SQ Gold and had to fly through SIN in Economy twice in a few months and both times I was not allowed in the business lounge. That's okay, their published rules, all acceptable. But Oneworld airlines treat their FF much better.
16 Nov 2011
Total posts 595
That’s a bit like the qantas domestic situation where the base level ‘Gold Kris’ lounge is for frequent flyers in economy FF and the Silver Kris lounge being for business class passengers and higher tier passengers.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
21 Jul 2014
Total posts 32
Really good point. The Silver/ Gold thing was my big mistake. I had not experienced the word "gold" being so devalued before. It taught me a lesson. Now I have Emerald with QF and JAL - just about all my travel/lounge needs are taken care of! (Except departing from Frankfurt for anywhere in East Europe...)
29 Jan 2012
Total posts 176
Always a good topic to discuss. I am just amazed how complicated, restrictive and limiting status with airlines FF schemes has become, and will become in the coming years, Soon I believe only F and J will have lounge access, with all other passengers, no matter their tier, only being able to generate points and bonus points - which they will be virtually unable to use on the ever decreasing number of seats available and will no doubt lose once their 12 month expiry is reached.
FF schemes were great in the 80's, rewarding and available to all, now and no doubt in the future, a marketing scheme with little to no benefit except to the airlines.
Maybe time for passengers to start choosing carefully!
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
21 Jul 2014
Total posts 32
An excellent post and good point about "choosing carefully". I gave up on Star Alliance because it just all became too hard with SQ and have concentrated on the 2 airlines I have decided to fly the most. And it is working better for me, but yes, what will happen in the future and things keep getting cut back and restricted (and monetised)?!
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
25 Jun 2017
Total posts 8
Regarding BA arrivals lounge Heathrow. I am flying Doha to Heathrow soon in J on BA metal but codeshare booked with another airline. Do I have any chance of using the arrivals lounge I wonder?
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
29 Jul 2017
Total posts 1
QF Platinum - has anyone experienced difficulties using the Emirates First Lounge - Travelling Business on Emirates from Dubai to Sydney arriving into Dubai at midnight and departing the following morning
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
20 Dec 2012
Total posts 40
You won’t have any trouble accessing DXB F lounge as QF Platinum
16 Nov 2011
Total posts 595
The article misses the abnormality much closer to homes, Qantas domestic business class lounges. Gold and One World sapphire members are not welcome based on status alone.
China Airlines - Dynasty Flyer
22 Sep 2012
Total posts 74
If people think that is bad try flying CZ as an elite plus member the lounge provided to all members with elite plus and their own gold and silver members (no higher status in this program). The lounge provided is very basic below the standard of the business lounge. This from my experience in Guangzhou. Luckily I don't fly them much because of this.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
14 May 2015
Total posts 9
I am Qantas Platinum will Fly Cathay Pacific economy class from Guangzhou China to Bangkok Via Hong Kong. I know I have no problem to Access Cathay Pacific Lounge in Hong Kong. however I am not sure if I can access Cathay Pacific Guangzhou Lounge? Checked Cathay Pacific website. it showed me Cathay pacific use Premium Lounge in T1 Baiyun airport Guangzhou China. Obviously This is not CX own operate lounge. I guess it is run by 3rd party contract lounge. It’s also accessible via Priority Pass.So Can I Access this lounge when fly CX economy class?
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