Two new lounges are opening at Denver International Airport: American Airlines’ Admirals Club lounge and the Plaza Premium Lounge.
The Admirals Club lounge opened on Oct. 18 after the project first started in late 2019 as a rebranding for the carrier’s airport lounges, said Dwayne MacEwen, founder and principal of DMAC Architecture and Interiors. The Plaza Premium Lounge – developed in partnership with Capital One – opens to the public on Friday, Nov. 3.
DIA spokesperson Ashley Forest called the latter lounge “the first common-use lounge here that technically is not connected to an airline or credit card.”
United Airlines also recently opened the carrier’s largest club in the world in DIA’s B East Concourse, with another club planned for 2025.
American Airlines’ Admirals Club Lounge
To access the Admirals Club lounge in Concourse C between Gates C30 and C32, travelers must be flying American Airlines, any Oneworld Alliance airline or JetBlue, except for those to and from Europe. “Any traveler can pay a fee for a day pass for entry, or become a member through an annual fee or by enrolling in a special American Airlines credit card,” said IBP Media spokesperson Mayra Agredas.
The lounge includes a kids club, a lounge pavilion and a dining pavilion with a bar, serving area and seating options. “It’s about making a space that you remember, that you want to be in,” MacEwen said in an interview.
DIA is one of four airports in the country chosen for the redesigned Admirals Club lounge model, joining Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Va., Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark, N.J., and Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Austin, Texas.
MacEwen described DIA as “an important travel destination” that suited it for the project.
“The timing was perfect,” he said. “The airport was pushing for it as well. They wanted American to take over the space.”
Plaza Premium Lounge
In Concourse A near Gate A34, the new Plaza Premium Lounge can be accessed every day from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. by any passenger – regardless of airline or credit card – if they pay the $65 daily fee and reserve their slot online on its related webpage.
If the passenger is a Capital One cardholder, then they can check their benefits on the bank’s website to see if they qualify for free entry.
The lounge features shower suites, relaxation rooms, a conference room, prayer rooms, nursing rooms, a children’s area, food stations and a bar, Forest said.
The project has been in the works for a couple of years. DIA is only the third airport in the U.S. with a Plaza Premium Lounge, along with Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport in Dallas and Orlando International Airport in Orlando, Fla., she added.
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