Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan - Seeking advice: AS Board Room access denied to full-fare F

Hi all, and thank you in advance for your advice.

I am sitting in SEA right now, in the main terminal, not very happy... :mad:

A roof tile fell off "due to a water leak" right above the main desk, and they're only letting in Board Room members into the lounge.

I have been flying since 4:00 am Seattle time (now 12:20) and I have a 3 hour connection to YYC. I started my trip in GDL, stopped in SJC, both locations not offering lounge access. I was aware of that, and was looking forward to lounge access in Seattle.

Now here I am, together with my mother, both of us having paid full F (1500 USD per person round-trip), and I am not admitted into the Board Room while members are. I simply do not understand the logic behind this, and frankly I'm completely turned off of the Alaska brand by this customer service. Nothing is offered - no food voucher, no discount, nothing. There are no supervisors on duty either. :confused:

I'm trying not to vent, but having been awake for so many hours already and envisioning 3 hours in the main terminal (which OT is packed today) with super-slow WiFi is not my vision of an expensive F ticket.

All advice welcomed dearly, thank you!

Jan

Hi all, and thank you in advance for your advice.

I am sitting in SEA right now, in the main terminal, not very happy... :mad:

A roof tile fell off "due to a water leak" right above the main desk, and they're only letting in Board Room members into the lounge.

I have been flying since 4:00 am Seattle time (now 12:20) and I have a 3 hour connection to YYC. I started my trip in GDL, stopped in SJC, both locations not offering lounge access. I was aware of that, and was looking forward to lounge access in Seattle.

Now here I am, together with my mother, both of us having paid full F (1500 USD per person round-trip), and I am not admitted into the Board Room while members are. I simply do not understand the logic behind this, and frankly I'm completely turned off of the Alaska brand by this customer service. Nothing is offered - no food voucher, no discount, nothing. There are no supervisors on duty either. :confused:

I'm trying not to vent, but having been awake for so many hours already and envisioning 3 hours in the main terminal (which OT is packed today) with super-slow WiFi is not my vision of an expensive F ticket.

All advice welcomed dearly, thank you!

There's a customer desk in both D & C, I would go talk to them.

I'm sorry you're having a bad experience...but it doesn't seem out of line that when the boardroom is full or has to limit capacity that the members take precedence.

Id recommend taking your mom to Anthony's or vino volo and have a nice lunch. When the trip is over, write to customer care and perhaps you can get some day passes for your next trip.

I'm in the Board Room now. The Room wasn't full at all, and I don't agree that members should take precedence over paying F. That's not a way to lure premium passengers in vs. bottom-feeders (no offence intended to anybody, please take it as a generalisation).

Here's a copy of a letter I wrote to a lady whose business card I received:

Dear Ms. XXX,

I am currently in Seattle, after having arrived from Guadalajara, traveling through San Jose.

The two of us, XXX and Jan XXX, purchased full-fare First Class tickets on Alaska.

I have been in aircraft since 4:00 am Seattle time, and traveling since 1:30 am Seattle time.

Right now, I have a three hour connection to Calgary, and I am not admitted to the Board Room because of a water leak. While I understand the unpredictable nature of this event, the lounge is admitting passengers. Only Board Room members are allowed entrance, and not full-fare First class passengers. This, for me, is absolutely inconsistent, unfair, and disrespectful of paying customers. If the lounge is dangerous to access, nobody should be able to enter. However, if it is not, then you should give priority to paying passengers and then to members, limiting access to those groups only.

Compounded to the above, there are no supervisors on duty, and the lounge agents are (supposedly) powerless to issue food vouchers or any compensation.

This whole event has completely tarnished Alaska's reputation in our view, especially because of the lack of customer service, evidenced most when the agents simply dismissed us promptly, "the orders came from above".

Having had other options to Guadalajara (United, Delta, and US Airways, to name a few) choosing Alaska was purely based on recommendations and great service. Price was not a factor in this decision.

Now, I will try my best to avoid flying Alaska Airlines, due to the absolutely lack of care shown by your staff during this event.

Thank you very much for your time and help,

Sincerely,

Jan XXX

I'm in the Board Room now. The Room wasn't full at all, and I don't agree that members should take precedence over paying F. That's not a way to lure premium passengers in vs. bottom-feeders (no offence intended to anybody, please take it as a generalisation).:

Speaking as a paying member of the AS Boardroom for twenty five years or as a "Bottom Feeder" I disagree. If their were no Boardroom memberships there would be no Boardroom. Memberships pay the majority of the boardrooms costs. So by all means keep the membership out in favor of the firstclass ticketed passengers.

Perhaps we should also suggest that Boardroom fees be used to fund better service in the AS First class section to lure more first class ticket purchases seeing that we already pay for their boardroom usage.

Speaking as a paying member of the AS Boardroom for twenty five years or as a "Bottom Feeder" I disagree. If their were no Boardroom memberships there would be no Boardroom. Memberships pay the majority of the boardrooms costs. So by all means keep the membership out in favor of the firstclass ticketed passengers.

Perhaps we should also suggest that Boardroom fees be used to fund better service in the AS First class section to lure more first class ticket purchases seeing that we already pay for their boardroom usage.
Interesting perspective. I see it from the other side of the fence, since my primary programme is Air Canada. The Lounges are used by Air Canada for:
- status passengers
- paying business
- *A Gold
- paid memberships
If AS didn't have a lounge/club/Board Room, I would not have purchased the F ticket. I understand however that the US is a totally different market in regards to F which is basically Y+. So I comprehend where you are coming from. But I also think it is a stretch to say that you pay for my Board Room access. I paid for Board Room access in my ticket. Otherwise, what am I paying for?
- meal: at most a $10 meal
- seat: 1.75 times the room in Y
- baggage: two bags free
That's it. So lounge access is an important part of it as well.
Anyways, I will post back with results from AS.

I'm in the Board Room now. The Room wasn't full at all, and I don't agree that members should take precedence over paying F. That's not a way to lure premium passengers in vs. bottom-feeders (no offence intended to anybody, please take it as a generalisation).

Here's a copy of a letter I wrote to a lady whose business card I received:

I think you way overreacted a little and completely disagree with this line of thinking as a paying BR member. Considering a lot of the paying BR members are also Alaska's most frequent fliers I doubt they agree with your line of thinking either:

"This, for me, is absolutely inconsistent, unfair, and disrespectful of paying customers. If the lounge is dangerous to access, nobody should be able to enter. However, if it is not, then you should give priority to paying passengers and then to members, limiting access to those groups only."

Also sounds like you gained entrance to the BR after all? If so why are you still flying off the handle?

I think you way overreacted a little and completely disagree with this line of thinking as a paying BR member. Considering a lot of the paying BR members are also Alaska's most frequent fliers I doubt they agree with your line of thinking either:

"This, for me, is absolutely inconsistent, unfair, and disrespectful of paying customers. If the lounge is dangerous to access, nobody should be able to enter. However, if it is not, then you should give priority to paying passengers and then to members, limiting access to those groups only."

Also sounds like you gained entrance to the BR after all? If so why are you still flying off the handle?
OK. Here we go.

1. I sent the letter before I trekked to the Board Room and found out they were letting everybody in.
2. The lounge was not full. There was no reason to deny entry to people who had boarding passes with F written on them. If you can't access the computer, write down the seat number and type it in later.
3. If the lounge is dangerous, completely close it. If it is not, why do you suddenly limit access?
4. Please enlighten me how much lounge access costs per year. AFAIK, it's around 400-500 USD, right? Well, I paid 750 USD per person more per ticket then in Y... You can do the math.
5. I'm sorry, I take it back. Board Room members and F pax should have equal priority. I forgot about status pax mostly having board room passes.
6. I was pretty tired after 10 hours of travel... The last thing I expected was to be denied entry to the lounge!

EDIT: Ah yes, just before anybody mentions anything, the roof tile that fell was above the entry desk, not in the lounge area itself. So there was no part of the lounge that was closed.

I agree with the OP here. AS states it clearly here:

Passengers ticketed in First Class in either F or A class have access to the Alaska Airlines Board Room included in their ticket (excluding reciprocal agreements with other airline clubs or lounges). Passengers traveling on an upgraded ticket booked in U class do not have access.

http://www.alaskaair.com/content/gifts-and-products/board-room/boardroom-policies-and-rules.aspx

It does not say might have access, it says that they have access. And few purchase full fare F. On a proportionate basis, a person who rarely flies but always buys full fare F contributes more than a member who flies often and always uses the board room.

I'm sorry you're having a bad experience...but it doesn't seem out of line that when the boardroom is full or has to limit capacity that the members take precedence.

Id recommend taking your mom to Anthony's or vino volo and have a nice lunch. When the trip is over, write to customer care and perhaps you can get some day passes for your next trip.

Speaking as a paying member of the AS Boardroom for twenty five years or as a "Bottom Feeder" I disagree. If their were no Boardroom memberships there would be no Boardroom. Memberships pay the majority of the boardrooms costs. So by all means keep the membership out in favor of the firstclass ticketed passengers.

Perhaps we should also suggest that Boardroom fees be used to fund better service in the AS First class section to lure more first class ticket purchases seeing that we already pay for their boardroom usage.

I respectfully disagree with these perspectives. Boardroom access is specifically extended to several different groups of people:

Members
Guests of Members
Members of partner lounges
Priority Pass Members
First Class passengers (not on upgrades).

Basically...the way I see it...AS has entered a contractual agreement with each of them to offer lounge access when certain conditions are met (the lounge is open, the individual has a same day boarding pass, etc). If AS fails to meet their end of that contractual agreement with ANY of them, then I think that individual would be entitled to some form of compensation, or at a minimum a customer service gesture of some kind to attempt to remedy the situation. To say that in this circumstance it is reasonable to extend entry to members only or to members and their guests seems absurd to me - each of the above groups has, in some way, paid for access to the lounge.

In the case of the OP, lounge access was a significant advantage to purchasing a first class ticket - not being allowed into the lounge seems kind of similar to IDB in this instance. While I don't think a refund of the ticket is in order, I do think that extending daypasses for future use, OR a cash refund to each traveler for the value of a daypass would be the minimum compensation that would be reasonable.

This does bring up an interesting point...I haven't dug into the T&C of BR membership...is there a clause/disclaimer about restricted access? What about in the COC of an F ticket, partner lounge membership T&C, priority pass T&C, etc?

In any case...this all appears to be a moot point - OP...your last post states that you are IN the BR, and that it isn't full...how did you get in, and what are you still so upset about if you were granted access?

Edit: while I was typing, the OP addressed this last question above (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/18849174-post8.html).

I agree with the OP here. AS states it clearly here:



http://www.alaskaair.com/content/gifts-and-products/board-room/boardroom-policies-and-rules.aspx

It does not say might have access, it says that they have access. And few purchase full fare F. On a proportionate basis, a person who rarely flies but always buys full fare F contributes more than a member who flies often and always uses the board room.

Thank you for your support, that is exactly the point I am trying to make here.


In any case...this all appears to be a moot point - OP...your last post states that you are IN the BR, and that it isn't full...how did you get in, and what are you still so upset about if you were granted access?

Thank you also for your understanding. I am NOT upset, please do not take it that way. Now I am simply whiling away my time in SEA and defending my position on FT. You know how important that is! :p

I got in after re-appearing at the lounge and noticing that they were now letting everybody in. If there's something which still has left me unhappy is the lack of respect (for lack of a better word in my state of mind) for paying F class customers and simple dismissal without any attempt to remedy the situation. Also in such a situation to have no supervisors on duty is frankly unnacceptable. When, in the past, I was unable to access AC lounges alone as a minor, I was given meal vouchers by the agents without a word of protest. Here they said it is not possible to do and that they never do it. :confused:

I actually would not be surprised and I think it is within their rights to tell Priority Pass members that they are unable to access the lounge (and same with DL Club members) since that is not directly part of their brand. But since AS F is part of AS, I don't think it is reasonable and/or wise to restrict access to that group of customers (which I understand is probably quite small). Perhaps it was unintentionally left out, because so few people actually pay for F? I don't know, I don't fly US airlines enough. ;)

If AS didn't have a lounge/club/Board Room, I would not have purchased the F ticket. I understand however that the US is a totally different market in regards to F which is basically Y+. So I comprehend where you are coming from. But I also think it is a stretch to say that you pay for my Board Room access. I paid for Board Room access in my ticket. Otherwise, what am I paying for?
- meal: at most a $10 meal
- seat: 1.75 times the room in Y
- baggage: two bags free
That's it. So lounge access is an important part of it as well.
Anyways, I will post back with results from AS.


4. Please enlighten me how much lounge access costs per year. AFAIK, it's around 400-500 USD, right? Well, I paid 750 USD per person more per ticket then in Y... You can do the math.

While I do agree (as per my post above) that you are absolutely correct that you should not have been denied access...I have to agree with other posters and say that you are over-reacting a bit...

Remember that lounge access was ONE beneficial perk of your F ticket. It added to the overall value of F for sure. However...I have a HARD time believing that it was THE MAIN reason you purchased an F ticket - you must have found some significant value in the F product itself as well as the other benefits. If you truly are saying that you paid $750 for F, but the only thing you cared about was Boardroom access, I would hate to be experiencing your disappointment right now as the SEA boardroom is nothing to write home about...I'd also hope that if this is the case, next time you consider either purchasing an annual membership, priority pass membership, or a daypass...all significantly cheaper than $750. So, YES, you must have been willing to pay something for the meal, seat, and baggage (in this case, about $700 - check the math).

While I do agree (as per my post above) that you are absolutely correct that you should not have been denied access...I have to agree with other posters and say that you are over-reacting a bit...

Remember that lounge access was ONE beneficial perk of your F ticket. It added to the overall value of F for sure. However...I have a HARD time believing that it was THE MAIN reason you purchased an F ticket - you must have found some significant value in the F product itself as well as the other benefits. If you truly are saying that you paid $750 for F, but the only thing you cared about was Boardroom access, I would hate to be experiencing your disappointment right now as the SEA boardroom is nothing to write home about...I'd also hope that if this is the case, next time you consider either purchasing an annual membership, priority pass membership, or a daypass...all significantly cheaper than $750. So, YES, you must have been willing to pay something for the meal, seat, and baggage (in this case, about $700 - check the math).
Of course. And FYI I also have PP access. So yes, it was a combination of the above factors, including lounge access. But I probably would have decided to fly with a different airline had AS decided not to offer lounge access with F tickets. UA, US, AA, and DL all do on int'l itineraries, so I could have chosen one of those.

Of course. And FYI I also have PP access. So yes, it was a combination of the above factors, including lounge access. But I probably would have decided to fly with a different airline had AS decided not to offer lounge access with F tickets. UA, US, AA, and DL all do on int'l itineraries, so I could have chosen one of those.

Well, again, I think we should call it for what it is...if you already have PP access, then I don't think you can logically claim that lounge access was even a factor in your decision to purchase an AS F ticket. You had access to the AS lounge WITHOUT purchased F...at most this was a $27 value per passenger to you, depending on your PP membership...

Therefore, your statement: "If AS didn't have a lounge/club/Board Room, I would not have purchased the F ticket." is a logical fallacy...

Again, I sympathize with your situation, and I do think that you should have been granted access to the lounge without incident, but I think you went a little overboard on your argument.

PP says "Access may be restricted due to space constraints."

So, the PP access isn't guaranteed. Back to the OP's point, an F passenger has as much right as a BR member to access the room. Once the room is full (per fire code) then that is it, and it should be first come first serve for anyone with unfettered access (i.e., BR member and F, but not PP, which has a published potential restriction). The BR access is a published service that comes along with the F ticket. Period.

There are times that, all other things being equal, I decide to start a trip from SFO instead of OAK for a BR visit. During the times I haven't been a BR member, I'd have been sorely disappointed to find out that my F ticket didn't get me in (especially in that terminal).

There are times that, all other things being equal, I decide to start a trip from SFO instead of OAK for a BR visit. During the times I haven't been a BR member, I'd have been sorely disappointed to find out that my F ticket didn't get me in (especially in that terminal).

You're a brave soul. The SFO lounge is not very good and that airport is an abomination. I am an OAK and SJC guy at almost all costs.

I wish SJC would get a lounge they sure need one.

I still think the OP overreacted in the letter considering it was a mitigating circumstance and the decision may not even have been up to the front desk personnel (engineering could have told them to limit entrants or something like that). I thnk it should be paying members over FC if one has to be picked over the other.

They should have offered compensation in some form though for the original denial and I am sure customer care will make it right.

BR went mx, so in this IROPS situation AS should have rebooked you into the skyclub or put you up overnight and gotten you into the BR the following day. :p

the IDB analogy resonates with me. hope they at least refund you the sticker price of two day passes in cash.

How funny, I'm almost never au courant but I was in the SEA BR from about 2:30 - 4:30 today and no one mentioned anything, and we of course did not know to look up at the ceiling.

We were guests of a lifetime member (thanks Dennis, wherever you are)...we were his seatmates on an incoming flight (perfect strangers) and when he heard we had a 3 hour layover he took us under his wing.

At what time did they start letting everyone in, because it was certainly business as usual when we were there.

BR went mx, so in this IROPS situation AS should have rebooked you into the skyclub or put you up overnight and gotten you into the BR the following day. :pWeather related, so you're on your own.

What do we teach our kids when something doesn't go your way?
Apply the wise, sage advice in this situation.
The situation isn't as dire as it could have been.

You're a brave soul. The SFO lounge is not very good and that airport is an abomination. I am an OAK and SJC guy at almost all costs.


I never thought of being brave by flying SFO. Yes, T-1's pier with the 20s and 30s gates is "not the best" (eventually it will be replaced, as it is sinking) but visiting the BR is like catching up with old friends that I don't frequently see anymore.

As a former board member, current gold and frequent purchaser of full fare first class, bottom line is when you are purchasing the ticket(s) a selling point is board room access; not maybe access or discretionary access. If members are being admitted than so should the full fare first class!

You're a brave soul. The SFO lounge is not very good and that airport is an abomination. I am an OAK and SJC guy at almost all costs.

I wish SJC would get a lounge they sure need one.


My preference is for OAK as well, where sadly there are no lounges at all (T1 certainly has become the ghetto after all the improvements to T2). But I gather there are simply not enough flights to support one though query whether one could be shared by several carriers as is the case in other countries.

The SFO lounge is small but adequate to the task. Definitely not worth trekking across the bay though unfortunately that is necessary for the SFO-SJD flights.

There was no reason for OP to be denied BR entrance unless it was closed or over legal capacity. Hopefully, AS will make this right.

Since I jumped to UA last year, I do not fly on AS as much as I used to, but I always appreciate their customer service, which is superior to that of other US-based airlines.

Sorry that the OP had a suboptimal experience.

Last time I looked, Board Room access is made available to Board Room members, not full fare or first class passengers. But you can always buy a Day Pass, why didn't this guy think of that?

Last time I looked, Board Room access is made available to Board Room members, not full fare or first class passengers. But you can always buy a Day Pass, why didn't this guy think of that?

Board Room access on day of travel for paying First Class customers has been a benefit for a long time. It's not likely the the OP didn't think of that, but rather he thought he shouldn't have to fork over an additional $45 to receive a benefit that is included with his ticket.

I respectfully disagree with these perspectives. Boardroom access is specifically extended to several different groups of people:

Members
Guests of Members
Members of partner lounges
Priority Pass Members
First Class passengers (not on upgrades).

Basically...the way I see it...AS has entered a contractual agreement with each of them to offer lounge access when certain conditions are met (the lounge is open, the individual has a same day boarding pass, etc). If AS fails to meet their end of that contractual agreement with ANY of them, then I think that individual would be entitled to some form of compensation, or at a minimum a customer service gesture of some kind to attempt to remedy the situation. To say that in this circumstance it is reasonable to extend entry to members only or to members and their guests seems absurd to me - each of the above groups has, in some way, paid for access to the lounge.

]I completely concur. Some people buy full fare F tickets mainly for the boardroom access perk, which the way things are going could be going away any day now as well. Thats no different than getting ready to board on full paid F and they say oh sorry your seat is broken and you have to go sit in coach BUT you are still going to be charged full fare F price that you paid....no difference IMO

Perhaps we should also suggest that Boardroom fees be used to fund better service in the AS First class section to lure more first class ticket purchases seeing that we already pay for their boardroom usage.

Members don't pay for F ticket access to the BR, the purchased F fare does. At least if Alaska has any sort of intelligence in their F pricing (Which may be up for discussion :) )

Thats no different than getting ready to board on full paid F and they say oh sorry your seat is broken and you have to go sit in coach BUT you are still going to be charged full fare F price that you paid....no difference IMO

True, but you'd expect compensation in the example you provided, no? AS can take actions, they should at least be prepared to compensate the customer when the expected benefit/seat class is not provided.

True, but you'd expect compensation in the example you provided, no? AS can take actions, they should at least be prepared to compensate the customer when the expected benefit/seat class is not provided.

I agree.

Though I've moved to the United Club, I always thought that the SEA BR personnel were outstanding, and I'm sorry to hear that OP had a poor experience.