aster

Is lounge (Fairmont Gold?) access one of them?

Jasper2009

Short answer: NO

Access to the Gold lounge is not a benefit of any tier, not even FPC Platinum, and even the confirmed suite upgrade certs cannot be used to upgrade to a Gold room/suite nor is it possible to upgrade within the Gold category. Fairmont is very protective of the Gold floor, you can generally expect a premium of $150+ to get exactly the same room on the Gold floor.

Just to give you an example of how protective Fairmont is of the Gold floor (which they market as a "hotel within a hotel" versus the "business lounge" concept at most other hotels): I´ve been pretty lucky over the years with regards to upgrades and have received penthouse suites, multi bedroom suites etc., but not once have I been upgrade to the Gold floor. Sure you´ll find a few people on FT who will tell you they´ve been upgraded once in a blue moon, but generally it´s very unlikely to happen.

I´m not an expert regarding the Swissotel program and couldn´t find a lot of info on the Swissotel benefits site, but generally the benefits you receive at the other hotels are very limited.

For instance, FPC Premier/Platinum members can earn stay credit when staying at Swissotel/Raffles hotels, get a welcome gift and a few other benefits (see details here), but overall the cross-brand benefits are very limited and nothing to get excited about.
I´d expect that the benefits you receive at Fairmont hotels are similar to those FPC Premier7Platinum members receive at Swissotels, possibly a comp. one-category upgrade if you´re very lucky, but not much in terms of "guaranteed benefits".

One last comment regarding Gold rooms: If you book your room on the Fairmont website you may be offered a "standby upgrade" to a Gold room. Basically you´re offered to be upgraded at check-in if there´s availability for a set fee (which usually is about 50% of the price difference between the room category you book and the price of the Gold room), and of course you´re only charged if you´re upgraded, which is an excellent deal IMO.

LordOfTheRing

Swissotel Circle members get benefits at Fairmont and Raffles from the Elevŕ level (the second level of 3 - formerly Elite).
Besides honouring your personalised room preferences, Fairmont will offer to Swissotel Circle members: Complimentary local calls, health-club access, discount at Fairmont stores, newspaper, 10% off Willow stram spa treatments, VIP welcome amenity and free use of their TaylorMade golf clubs.
the nights you spend at a Fairmont or a Raffles will also count towards your membership renewal if you're an Eleva member. To be a Zenit, you'll have to spend all your nights at Swissotel.

Jasper2009

Welcome to Flyertalk and thanks for your input!

Seems like the benefits are very similar to those all FPC members receive, so nothing to get excited about.

LordOfTheRing

I guess the main benefit is that the nights spent at Fairmont count towards your Elevŕ membership renewal, and vice-versa - nights spent at Swissotel count towards the renewal of your Platinum or Premier membership. that's not so bad... it definitely extends those brands geographical reach