United Club membership now $650 effective 8/13/19
#106
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: San Francisco/Tel Aviv/YYZ
Programs: CO 1K-MM
Posts: 10,757
I have two lines of questions to understand this change better:
(1) When was the last price increase? What price was it before that? (What % increase is this over inflation?)
(2) I know these could only guestimates but what percentage of humans in a given lounge are (a) paid club members (b) club cc holders (c) one-time pass from Explorer card (d) paid $59 at the door (e) *G on int'l Y itin (f) foreign *G on domestic F/Y itin (g) short-haul int'l J itin (h) long-haul J/F itin at a station with no Polaris Lounge?
People complain UCs are overcrowded, to solve this UA can either restrict access or build more / bigger UCs. In most stations that already have a UC I'm guessing expanding UCs is not possible or prohibitively expensive, though they expanded LGA and have been opening some Polaris lounges which at some stations have diverted pax (though at some stations they've replaced an existing UC). They've been trying and failing to expand at EWR. So what can they do to reduce the number of people using the UC?
Access categories (b) (c) (e) (f) (g) and (h) are all tied up in multi-year contracts (and the *A rules aren't likely to change anytime soon), so if United wants to make a change unilaterally and now it's likely change (a) or (d), and remember United also has way more info than we have about which categories of access make up the bulk of the overcrowding (though we do have some anecdotes about people thinking the beer is free, who are probably not (a) or (b)).
It could be that the $59 cash entry is not significant enough to bother doing away with, and that club members are contributing the most to overcrowding, that the Club CC price will also increase shortly as soon as the Chase contract renews, and that the two free Explorer passes will also change in some way at next contract renewal (or maybe most of those expire unused and it's a sweet deal for UA).
In essence, United is saying they'd like to reduce the number of people who get in by paying [by raising the price] and leave more room for int'l pax who are *G or flying J. Rough for you if you're a domestic road warrior, but can't say I see it as a bad choice for them.
Or it could all be short-sighted and the 10%-20% of people who cancel their memberships because of the price increase will float away from UA/MP in general and cost UA a lot of ticket revenue. But for all the people who are saying "I'm cancelling my membership!" on this thread, that's what UA wants you to do. They aren't betting that demand is inelastic and they can extract more cash, they're betting that demand is elastic and they can preserve a less-crowded product for their premium pax.
That's my guess, anyway.
(1) When was the last price increase? What price was it before that? (What % increase is this over inflation?)
(2) I know these could only guestimates but what percentage of humans in a given lounge are (a) paid club members (b) club cc holders (c) one-time pass from Explorer card (d) paid $59 at the door (e) *G on int'l Y itin (f) foreign *G on domestic F/Y itin (g) short-haul int'l J itin (h) long-haul J/F itin at a station with no Polaris Lounge?
People complain UCs are overcrowded, to solve this UA can either restrict access or build more / bigger UCs. In most stations that already have a UC I'm guessing expanding UCs is not possible or prohibitively expensive, though they expanded LGA and have been opening some Polaris lounges which at some stations have diverted pax (though at some stations they've replaced an existing UC). They've been trying and failing to expand at EWR. So what can they do to reduce the number of people using the UC?
Access categories (b) (c) (e) (f) (g) and (h) are all tied up in multi-year contracts (and the *A rules aren't likely to change anytime soon), so if United wants to make a change unilaterally and now it's likely change (a) or (d), and remember United also has way more info than we have about which categories of access make up the bulk of the overcrowding (though we do have some anecdotes about people thinking the beer is free, who are probably not (a) or (b)).
It could be that the $59 cash entry is not significant enough to bother doing away with, and that club members are contributing the most to overcrowding, that the Club CC price will also increase shortly as soon as the Chase contract renews, and that the two free Explorer passes will also change in some way at next contract renewal (or maybe most of those expire unused and it's a sweet deal for UA).
In essence, United is saying they'd like to reduce the number of people who get in by paying [by raising the price] and leave more room for int'l pax who are *G or flying J. Rough for you if you're a domestic road warrior, but can't say I see it as a bad choice for them.
Or it could all be short-sighted and the 10%-20% of people who cancel their memberships because of the price increase will float away from UA/MP in general and cost UA a lot of ticket revenue. But for all the people who are saying "I'm cancelling my membership!" on this thread, that's what UA wants you to do. They aren't betting that demand is inelastic and they can extract more cash, they're betting that demand is elastic and they can preserve a less-crowded product for their premium pax.
That's my guess, anyway.
#107
Moderator: United Airlines
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: SFO
Programs: UA Plat 1.99MM, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Plat/LT Gold, Hilton Silver, IHG Plat
Posts: 66,567
United Club pricing increases [Effective June 11, 2015]
$50 increase (although the spouse membership took a bigger hit)
The 2015 thread reads pretty much the same as the 2019 thread
And before 2015, 2013 -- 2013 UA Club Membership Prices Will Increase - Beleive it was also a $50 increase
...(2) I know these could only guestimate but what percentage of humans in a given lounge are (a) paid club members (b) club cc holders (c) one-time pass from Explorer card (d) paid $59 at the door (e) *G on int'l Y itin (f) foreign *G on domestic F/Y itin (g) short-haul int'l J itin (h) long-haul J/F itin at a station with no Polaris Lounge? ...
#108
Join Date: Sep 2014
Posts: 2,530
4 years ago, almost to the day
United Club pricing increases [Effective June 11, 2015]
$50 increase (although the spouse membership took a bigger hit)
The 2015 thread reads pretty much the same as the 2019 thread
And before 2015, 2013 -- 2013 UA Club Membership Prices Will Increase - Beleive it was also a $50 increase
United Club pricing increases [Effective June 11, 2015]
$50 increase (although the spouse membership took a bigger hit)
The 2015 thread reads pretty much the same as the 2019 thread
And before 2015, 2013 -- 2013 UA Club Membership Prices Will Increase - Beleive it was also a $50 increase
No one that knows will be talking, certainly not UA. Everyone will be guessing with no knowledge -- just random speculation based on a limited, incomplete view. Anyone's guess will be biased toward a perceived notion. Might as well use a random number generator.
I don't think it takes insider UA knowledge to make basic claims like "more people access the UC as members, *G, or long-haul J than by buying $59 cash entry at the door"...if $59 one-time access is as rare as it appears that really leaves UA with only one knob to tweak and that is the membership knob.
#109
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: GVA (Greater Vancouver Area)
Programs: DREAD Gold; UA 1.035MM; Bonvoy Au-197; PCC Elite+; CCC Elite+; MSC C-12; CWC Au-197; WoH Dis
Posts: 52,110
Or maybe United is trying to save money by shopping on ebay.fr now.
#110
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: HNL
Programs: UA GS4MM, MR LT Plat, Hilton Gold
Posts: 6,447
4 years ago, almost to the day
United Club pricing increases [Effective June 11, 2015]
$50 increase (although the spouse membership took a bigger hit)
The 2015 thread reads pretty much the same as the 2019 thread
United Club pricing increases [Effective June 11, 2015]
$50 increase (although the spouse membership took a bigger hit)
The 2015 thread reads pretty much the same as the 2019 thread
#111
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Programs: UA 1K 1MMer & LT UC (when flying UA); Hyatt Credit Cardist; HHonors Diamond; Marriott Gold via UA 1K
Posts: 6,953
Ok, so an 18% increase after 4 years. Inflation on $550 over those same 4 years would make it $594. So this is a 9% inflation-adjusted price hike for renewing members and 0% price hike for new members. If you are trying to winnow your ranks a little, this seems like a reasonable bump.
I agree but it was more a thought experiment to say ok there are 8 ways to access a United Club, and only 2 that UA has unilateral authority to change. So if the changes to paid memberships (like restricting to same-day flight on partner, raise in price, etc.) seem harsh, it's in part because the other 6 access methods are inflexible, esp. the *A ones which are not likely to change. And I'd expect the 2 Chase access methods to be changing in the next 12-24 month timespan as contracts come up.
I agree but it was more a thought experiment to say ok there are 8 ways to access a United Club, and only 2 that UA has unilateral authority to change. So if the changes to paid memberships (like restricting to same-day flight on partner, raise in price, etc.) seem harsh, it's in part because the other 6 access methods are inflexible, esp. the *A ones which are not likely to change. And I'd expect the 2 Chase access methods to be changing in the next 12-24 month timespan as contracts come up.
#112
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: CT/NY
Programs: UA 1K/1MM, AA EXP, Marriott LT Titanium, Hyatt Globalist, IHG Plat Amb
Posts: 5,981
In reading this thread, it appears that:
Maybe I set my bar low, but I don't think the expectation for an airport lounge is meant to feed you all three meals before or after your flight. True, United Club will never be the same as LH's Senator's Lounge, TK's Istanbul Lounge, or NH's noodle bar at NRT club. At the same time, with my UC membership via the Chase Club card, I was able to access clubs at ATL, BOS, FLL, MCO, SAN, SAT, and SNA and can bring up to 2 friends/colleagues in without additional charges (unlike DL club access with Amex cards). In absence of *G benefits while traveling internationally, it's a good option for some people who do not travel between SFO and SEA exclusively.
One thing that UA needs to do is make the UC experience consistent across all clubs and stop the beta testing. I mean, AC serves the same meager offerings across all of its MLL in North America.
- Some folks are ok with eating bone-in chicken while standing up in Amex Centurion Lounge, pretending it's a night market.somewhere in Asia.
- The lack of cheese cube or soup choices is driving decisions on whether to visit United Club or not
- Despite of all the cuts at Admirals Club and Sky Clubs, United Clubs are infinitely worse because, well, there's only hummus and hot sauce to go with crudite
- Only white wines from United Club will give you heartburn, but not the sauvignon blanc from Amex Lounge
- 1 broken coffee machine means that every coffee machine is broken systemwide
Maybe I set my bar low, but I don't think the expectation for an airport lounge is meant to feed you all three meals before or after your flight. True, United Club will never be the same as LH's Senator's Lounge, TK's Istanbul Lounge, or NH's noodle bar at NRT club. At the same time, with my UC membership via the Chase Club card, I was able to access clubs at ATL, BOS, FLL, MCO, SAN, SAT, and SNA and can bring up to 2 friends/colleagues in without additional charges (unlike DL club access with Amex cards). In absence of *G benefits while traveling internationally, it's a good option for some people who do not travel between SFO and SEA exclusively.
One thing that UA needs to do is make the UC experience consistent across all clubs and stop the beta testing. I mean, AC serves the same meager offerings across all of its MLL in North America.
#113
Join Date: May 2001
Location: HNL
Posts: 1,013
At HNL, *G gets you into the new ANA lounge (granted, hours are limited), at LAX into the *A lounge, and at IAD the TK and LH lounges. There's a few other domestic options as well - but these 3 cities are the bulk of my travels. Nonetheless, I do hope the PP card continues to renew at the $375 level, as it did again this year, and for the past umpteen years...
#114
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: EWR
Programs: UA 1K, UA 1MM
Posts: 234
Dittto. I was there last week around 6pm and there were no seats. None. Food was so so as wel (first time I was disappointed by the food offerings at a Centurion Lounge)l. I turned around and went back to the UC.
#116
Join Date: Feb 2008
Programs: 6 year GS, now 2MM Jeff-ugee, *wood LTPlt, SkyPeso PLT
Posts: 6,526
How does your Plat card get you into the AS lounges? The Priority Pass Access for AS lounges ended in many locations a while ago. Did they announce a new Amex Plat specific access plan that I missed? (I was sitting outside the AS lounge at the SEA C Gates last night and would have loved to go in)
As a free agent, I have little interest in buying an airline specific lounge membership program. Amex Plat and Priority Pass, UA *G and international business class travel give me sufficient coverage. $650 would pay for plenty of airport meals in restaurants.
I used it last thursday at LAX, and have used at PDX as well. No club at SFO, so never tried it here. Never had an issue, and the benifit is that while DL only lets me into the SkyClub, PP allows a guest. But you need the PP card, not as with DL just your Amex PLT.
#117
Join Date: May 2006
Location: SAN
Programs: UA lifetime gold, 1.8MM; Marriott lifetime Titanium
Posts: 488
For the past several years I have just been showing up about 5 minutes before boarding and walking around during connections. I guess it's now worth paying $59 occasionally rather than $650 or less for a year. It would be nice if the lounges were consistently better though and not sporadically better.
#118
Join Date: Dec 2011
Posts: 3
Amex authorized user
What a joke. I have an Amex PLT card, SO has one too, the AMEX lounges are far, far, far better than UA's lounges, are in most of the airports I frequently, and as long as I fly AS or DL, I can use my AMEX card to access the lounges on them (or internationally) as well. Costs me $550 x2, and I get a great credit card to boot. @:-)
The package UA is offering is just inferior, to go with an inferior lounge. These kinds of things just make UA non-competitive. Faced with flying AS the other day (lounge access) vs. UA (no lounge access) guess who I flew....
The package UA is offering is just inferior, to go with an inferior lounge. These kinds of things just make UA non-competitive. Faced with flying AS the other day (lounge access) vs. UA (no lounge access) guess who I flew....
#119
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: PGD
Programs: AS 100K, DL DM 1MM, UA 1MM
Posts: 436
I am though their 2-3 times a month, nearly every time I fly UA. I need a good stiff drink before getting on a UA flight I have never, not once, not found a place to sit. Might I have to look arround? Yes. Might I not have a table in front of me I can eat off? Yes. But never not found a place to sit. The Club that is most impacted IMHE is SEA, which sometimes can't let people in.
+1. Decent wine, good cocktails, and the food is delicious ^ I would must rather stand and eat/drink at the Centurion than sit down and deal with the swill/crud at the United Club.
I am amazed by AA, the Parkerization is really amazing. I am actually going to fly them on Monday - 4 seats in PE to Paris, then back from BCN, but they only made the "an airline I will fly" since its (a) PE and (b) their is a Centurion at DFW and PHL (our return).
Delta though will give lounge access (as will AS via PP membership which comes with the AMEX) to an AMEX Plt. So if you are flying Delta, it is silly to pay $845, you can just get the AMEX PLT for $550 and you can use their lounges.
+1. Decent wine, good cocktails, and the food is delicious ^ I would must rather stand and eat/drink at the Centurion than sit down and deal with the swill/crud at the United Club.
I am amazed by AA, the Parkerization is really amazing. I am actually going to fly them on Monday - 4 seats in PE to Paris, then back from BCN, but they only made the "an airline I will fly" since its (a) PE and (b) their is a Centurion at DFW and PHL (our return).
Delta though will give lounge access (as will AS via PP membership which comes with the AMEX) to an AMEX Plt. So if you are flying Delta, it is silly to pay $845, you can just get the AMEX PLT for $550 and you can use their lounges.
Last edited by bobblevins; Jun 19, 2019 at 6:51 am Reason: add pdx
#120
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: ORD
Programs: United Premier 1K , Marriot Titanium, Hilton Diamond, IHG Platinum
Posts: 113
I too feel that UC has whored themselves out to too many creditcard companies. I was traveling with a Japanese colleague and was astonished that they had a credit card that would get them into ALL StarAlliance , OneWorld, and Sky Team lounges. Like ...? I felt totally betrayed as an Elite flier and this woman who hardly flies at all can get into every lounge on the planet. I have no idea what they paid per year in fees but still...
Back to the UC situation, I agree that the lounges have got better in recent years. Best UC lounge is still LAX (IMO) and that StarAlliance lounge at LAX is hands down the best lounge in North America and I doubt it came cheap. If higher membership fees means further improved lounges (can we get Polaris access for domestic business class?) then I am willing to pony up. Sure $650 will cut some traffic, but you know AA and DL are already doing the same so they got nowhere else to go.
Back to the UC situation, I agree that the lounges have got better in recent years. Best UC lounge is still LAX (IMO) and that StarAlliance lounge at LAX is hands down the best lounge in North America and I doubt it came cheap. If higher membership fees means further improved lounges (can we get Polaris access for domestic business class?) then I am willing to pony up. Sure $650 will cut some traffic, but you know AA and DL are already doing the same so they got nowhere else to go.