Originally Posted by
j2simpso
If true this is really disappointing news. It looks like another Canadian airport is following the nonsense of YYZ and segregating terminals by what flight you actually have. Meanwhile in the states i can access whatever terminal I damn well please so long as I have a same day boarding pass departing from the airport. You may think I'm splitting hairs here but there are tons of legitimate uses for accessing terminals you technically shouldn't be in.
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This is also going to be a double whammy for Westjetter Elites mark my words on that count. Why? Because many of the airline lounges have backed away from the contract model. Most recently AC pulled out of priority pass. As the lounge options become more limited and access to other terminals is denied you'll struggle to find any terminal to use. Which is fine if you're a fat cat like me who flies * exclusively and has status but for everyone else... I'm not so sure!
Safe Travels,
James
Segregated International, Domestic and US actually makes a lot of sense and is closer to how the rest of the world does it. The US it the odd example.
That said, not having another domestic lounge is a major problem and shows a lack of planning and understanding the customer journey on the part of the airport operator. Take Vancouver as an example. Two Plaza Premium lounges exist in domestic departures. It is a big airport, with a bid domestic departures area. Obviously Plaza Premium needs to be in both the WestJet and AC area.
For priority pass members YVR also offers two lounge options for International departures. Both the Plaza Premium and Sky Team lounge.
Getting back to Montreal. The domestic maple leaf lounges have never offered priority pass access. A few of the overseas and US Maple Leaf lounges have and some still do. The Maple Leaf lounge in Newark accept Priority pass outside of peak hours.
Clear opportunity here for WestJet to open up a domestic lounge in Montreal and accept Priority Pass. They can use Priority pass to subsidize their lounge.