PV_Premier

July 5, 2018?

rustykettel

This is more depressing than possible slipped opening date. A chance to really improve the ALs' amenities thrown into the skip.

beckoa

I've written into AS before about adding a shower or three.

DL had them for years.

Then they built a new lounge with more showers.

Next AX opened a CL with a shower.

AS is definitely dropping the ball... hope they'll be in the new N lounge but doubt they are planning it Would be nice after a redeye...from Alaska, Hawaii or LAX.

BOB W

That is a joke, right?

jimmygottfredson

I think this is a direct response to the new Delta Sky Club at SEA and the competition for mind share between the two airlines for the Seattle market. The new SEA Sky Club has very good food (better than any other Sky Club IMHO) and Delta features food done by Ethan Stowell, a local Seattle chef and restaurateur.

I highly suspect that Alaska doesn't want to continue to be outdone by Delta in the lounge and food category. Alaska will find their own local partner "vender" to answer to Delta's offering.

I was in the new SEA Sky Club on Friday evening and opinions aside, objectively the new Sky Club is very nice. Alaska needs to step up their lounge game.

UAPremierExec

Did the AA lounge in SeaTac on C have showers?

dayone

Yes, at least two.

jsguyrus

Pretty much everyone has been saying this for two years yet we see nothing changing. Last week it was the same old soup and salad option and that is it. I think AS is ok with being a second tier club as they honestly charge a lot less that DL or AA for a membership.

beckoa

AS has been doing *little* changes like having cold chicken for salad, etc. Nothing substantial yet. But it seems they are aware of the variance in products. Will be interesting to see what C turns out to be. Anyone know how big it will be compared to D and N?

jimmygottfredson

I forget this and it's a really good point. With the VX acquisition and a larger territory on the West Coast, I can't imagine that Alaska will stay content as a second tier Airline - but who knows.

Would an investment into the lounge arena make a material impact on profitability? I could see the argument that it should be a profit center, even as a more upmarket participant.

jiburi

Yes, Alaska is premier West Coast Airlines. That status aside, Alaska is still a small domestic player where average traveling public is paying less than $500 for a round trip. A fair comparison, I believe is JetBlue, but JetBlue currently has no lounge of its own, providing only common airport lounges at select airports, but choosing to distinguish inflight product by offering A321 mint. The other domestic competitor, Southwest, has no lounge of its own, and identifies itself as a passenger friendly airline.

Hawaiian does offer lounge, for domestic and international flights but seem comparison to AS lounge amenities.

I don't think it's realistic for AS to act like an international carrier like Delta, American, and United, and recoup the high cost of operating an airport lounge with premium amenities like those of Delta. AS has limited ability to charging fares some exceeding $5000 for a roundtrip travel.

Jiburi

jsguyrus

OK, it looks like this may actually be a go. I understand that AS is holding an employee Lounge Preview Day on the 29th.

dmodemd

Just in time. I have one pending visit before July 10th and one lounge pass left as backup if I get turned away with PP.

AS Flyer

This.

Admittedly, I'm not as savvy about the lounges as most of you, but I think that it's not realistic to expect that Alaska is going to have lounges that will compete with the international lounges of major international airlines. Alaska's biggest competitor is a major international airline that does offer lounges on that order. It's a compelling argument - but Alaska has never been that kind of an airline. The value proposition Alaska offers are friendly and helpful employees (hopefully, more often than not), a frequent flyer program that honors the amount of time you spend on a plane vs how much $$$ you spend and a reasonable threshold to gain and hold status that will allow you free upgrades and other amenities that make traveling a little easier. Until Alaska starts flying widebody airplanes across the ocean, charging a significant premium for travel in premium class, they won't be in a position to offer all of the same amenities that Delta offers... including lounges of the same scale. That's just my simple opinion based only on what I know about lounges which, I admit, isn't a lot.

dayone

Thanks for the heads-up. I hope someone will get up an update next week.