Originally Posted by QRC3288

Why does CX print out those invitations anyway? They are just wasted paper, no? Is there a reason I'm missing? In HKIA at least (and other high-frequency destinations like TPE, for example), all the lounge attendants know the rules for each person. They see "DM/Emerald" on your boarding pass and they know you can go to the F side with 2 guests. True, in some of the outport lounges (in China for example), which are operated by third parties, the invitations can serve a purpose - to make it clear to the lounge attendants who is allowed in, and with how many guests...without them having to know OW rules. But I don't get it for HKIA and other CX-operated lounges.

To confuse matters further, sometimes the HKIA agents (I've noticed this most often at KA) print out lounge invitations with the wrong totals on them - sometimes they say +1 Guest, sometimes +2 Guests. As a DM traveling on CX or KA, I'm pretty certain I'm allowed in 2 guests....but very frequently it says +1, and I even seen it where it said +0 Guests. Whatever that means. In the times I do bring guests, it's easier for me to just show the lounge attendant my BP...instead of an erroneous lounge invitation.

And at outports, polite agents are forever asking me "will you use The Arrival in Hong Kong? Would you like an invitation?" And I think, um I don't need the invitation. All I need is my BP. And when they do give me the invitation, I frequently lose it anyway. I always keep my BPs in case mileage doesn't come through, but I could care less if The Arrival invitation slips in between the seat or gets left behind.

Anyway, this is a digression from this thread about which lounge...just something I've always wondered about.