My First Visit to a Centurion Lounge

A few days ago, I was flying home from a conference in Arlington, VA. I was flying out of Ronald Reagan International Airport (DCA). I had about a 4 hour wait before my flight departed, so it was the perfect opportunity to visit a Centurion Lounge. The American Express Platinum card unlocks the most comprehensive lounge access, and it was the first time I was able to visit a Centurion Lounge.

You’re allowed to visit a Centurion Lounge within 3 hours of departure, so I had to kill some time before I could go in. I like the layout of DCA, because it’s pretty simple. After you go through security, there is a long corridor, and 4 concourses branch off from it. The Centurion Lounge is close to the entrance to concourse B. I walked down to make sure I knew where the lounge was. Then I decided to walk around and explore for a while. I walked past Hugo Boss and Brooks brothers. I saw some jackets that looked nice, but let’s be honest. I’m not rich. Ha, ha, ha!

I stopped by the Smithsonian store. I saw a few shiny things that I really wanted to get including: a small piece of meteorite in a chain, a set of travertine coasters, and an amethyst geode. Sadly, I had to forgo such things, because I had already bought a few things the day before: a 1981 edition of The Art of French Cooking, and The Gulag Archipelago. I don’t usually have time to shop for souvenirs when I travel.

I finally went to the lounge and took the elevator to the second floor. I was relieved that there wasn’t a line. After checking in, I went to look for a place to sit. The lounge was quite crowded, but I did find a chair. One thing I noticed was that despite it being so crowded, it wasn’t very noisy. Most people were quietly eating, scrolling on their phones, or working on laptops. I wanted to take pictures of the inside of the lounge, but I felt very self-conscious, and I didn’t want to be rude.

I was generally impressed with the quality of the food. Salad with many toppings, butternut squash soup, roasted red pepper soup, chickpea curry, barbecue chicken, fingerling potatoes, cookies, etc. I went back to the buffet twice and tried almost everything. Having lounge access is not just nice because it gives you a place to relax, but having unlimited food and drinks is also quite valuable. Anyone who has flown knows that airport food is not cheap. You could easily end up paying $25-30 for a burger, fries, and drink. I might be thin as a rail, but I like to eat. Being able to eat as much as I want is a nice benefit.

There was a separate area for Centurion card holders. For those of you who don’t know, that is a very exclusive invitation only card for high-net-worth individuals. Perhaps someday I’ll be one of them.

Overall, I enjoyed the experience. I look forward to the next time I’m able to visit.