Frustrating experience at Dan lounge TLV
 

Refused to let us in using BA status while traveling on RJ and claimed it was because we weren’t traveling on BA. When I said other lounges don’t do that they claimed they were a private lounge and made their own rules. Seemed like really bad customer service but the reviews of the Dan lounge I read were bad anyway so not sure missed much…

Dan Lounge has always been miserable. Haven't been there since 2019 pre-pandemic but on UA this upcoming trip. So will get lounge pass. I usually stay a few minutes and then go out and enjoy the shops.

Honestly, I never bother with this lounge. Sitting at McDonalds in the terminal is usually more enjoyable.

It used to be that you had to bring a voucher from the check in counters. Not sure if that is so now. In any case, Dan lounge personnel were wrong as written in OW website:

Dan Lounges (Open with a limited service)

(TLV) Ben Gurion International Airport -

Access

• Business Class
• First Class
• Sapphire Tier
• Emerald Tier

Airlines

• British Airways
• Cathay Pacific
• Finnair
• Iberia
• Royal Jordanian
• Access for eligible customers traveling on these oneworld member airlines only.

https://www.oneworld.com/airport-lounges

In any case, for any problem in Dan lounge in wing B, there’s always Dan lounge in wing C and vice versa.

Although the Dan Lounges aren't great, I usually find a spot on the "bar" at the window and can enjoy a glass of wine before a flight.

I havent seen both being open at the same time since the pandemic started. There were also upgraded Dan Lounges by the Chabad stand and in concourse E, but both have been closed since the pandemic started.

Yes we could only find one open (think it was the C wing not the B one, but not entirely sure which…)

I try not to use them - if enough people don't use them maybe they will have an incentive to improve?

The problem is that since they are the only alternative to El Al’s own lounge it’d take a lot of passengers deciding not to use them to have an effect. What would presumably do something is if several airlines cancelled their contracts with them and set up a different lounge. Wonder if there’s precedent for that happening based on customer dissatisfaction?

The most viable option is for TK to open a *A lounge.

Or UA. But I think the airport has an exclusivity agreement with Dan.

Its a pity they don't serve the food you get at the Dan TLV/KD/Dan P etc.

It's a catch-22. If fewer people used them they'd be a lot more pleasant. So more people would use them. "That place is so crowded, no one goes there any more..."

The main problem is TLV isnt a Hub for any Alliance thusly I wouldnt expect those ih The Dan to know all that matters is having the status with the Alliance and be flying with any member of The Alliance. So to them if you have UA status you can only enter if flying UA and not OS,LX,LO,LH,SN etc etc same with the OP they dont get that they were allowed in by flying any OW member carrier.

That said I ran into the same in Europe in out stations where UA didnt fly and It wasnt a *A hub. Luck there was also a Mastercard Lounge and went there instead. Doubt it would happen in an Alliance Hub as they know the score.

And yea it was much better when at checkin you got the coupon to get in, after all Dan is private and whom should they look towards for payment, they would expect BA to refuse since you werent flying on BA, and didnt want the run arounds till they finally maybe get RJ to pay, no problems getting the money from RJ if you hand in a voucher from RJ. So i put the blame on RJ and not the Lounge

Both oneworld and Star Alliance have more than enough TLV traffic to support a lounge (even an alliance one). If there's an exclusive agreement with Dan, my question would be why... (and I wouldn't expect the answer to necessarily be very kosher, shall we say). The Dan lounges are broadly garbage, and I bet the airlines pay above average rates for them, as they're the only game in town... IAA should absolutely provide the space to another operator.