cfischer

how is that relevant?

Star Alliance Gold Customers travelling in any class of travel

As a Star Alliance Gold customer travelling in any class on a Star Alliance member airline operated flight, you have access to any member airline lounge at the airport where your flight departs, if the following conditions are met:

• You present your boarding pass of a Star Alliance member airline operated flight which departs at the same day as your visit or latest by 05:00 AM the next morning.
• If your boarding pass does not carry the Star Alliance Gold indicator, you will need to also show your valid Star Alliance Gold card.
• The lounge displays the Star Alliance Gold logo at the entrance.

You are entitled to bring one guest travelling on any Star Alliance flight departing from the same airport on the same day.

WineCountryUA

That is incorrect.
This is the policy
and LAX, DTW, BOS, IAH, EWR, ..... and others. Today any *G *A lounge in the USA works

This may help to see the true picture, https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/unit...-domestic.html (13 lounges including @ EWR, ORD, IAD, LAX,MIA, LGA, DTW and BOS)

True, but SQ denied it was a *G lounge and BR sort took the same stance and it was the operator that denied access, not UA or UA personal. And it is been a non-issue for some time.

I would state it the other way --- until there is a denial, the best assumption is there will be access - the vast data support access. Lack of a denial, this is pure speculation. There is no instance I am aware UA personnel blocking UA *G from access an *A lounge -- none.

HNLbasedFlyer

I live in Hawaii and of course I know many people who live in Hawaii (FYI - Hawaiian(s) is reserved for Native Hawaiians - living in Hawaii doesn't make you Hawaiian) speak Japanese. What I said was I don't recall any of the agents at the UC speak Japanese.

I'd be really shocked if the ANA lounge was not staffed by Native Japanese speakers (or Japanese as a second language) - many Japanese visitors to Hawaii have limited English skills or aren't comfortable speaking English. And yes I know many are perfectly comfortable speaking English.

MatthewLAX

ANA to NRT. I was on the Suites side.

Kacee

That is sensible.

Though it's not irrational to be concerned that if UA personnel man the entry desk, they might wrongly deny acess . . . after all, they do it at UCs often enough

WineCountryUA

If I read the OP correctly, there are NH personal at the entry and not solely a UA agent. Can not remember a case where an UA agent was at a partner's club, the UA agent did lounge check-in.

And doubtful the NH will be using UA systems to determine access. perhaps best to wait for an actual issue before getting too worked up. Seems to be fitting a straight line to a single point.

IAH-OIL-TRASH

Kacee

It wouldn't be FT if people weren't hypothesizing about things that may never occur

Personally, I won't ever be surprised by a report of a UA agent wrongly denying lounge access. The access rules have been the same for years, it's these peoples' jobs to know them, and there still agents at UA hubs (DEN, IAH, EWR) who get it wrong on a consistent basis.

WineCountryUA

But that would require the UA agent to be the individual doing lounge check-in. IME, UA agent at a partner club are there for reservation / UA traveler help and don't do lounge check-in.

Simple solution don't check-in with the UA agent.

Kacee

All I said was that I don't find garykung's expression of concern irrational, b/c I could see a UA agent wrongly denying access. I haven't predicted anything, and am certainly not losing any sleep over this

garykung

Let's me say this once and for all.

The only 2 reports of access, which include MatthewLAX and me, are both international. MatthewLAX's access was independent to his status. I was the only one who accessed the lounge solely by UA*G. Until there is an actual report of domestic access by UA*G, we will NEVER know who is right or wrong.

As I have said previously - this is merely a caution based on the presence of the UA personnel AT THE CHECK-IN at the time of my visit.

We can argue whatever we want. Bottom line - we simply won't know until someone reports back.

For the record, NH personnel did my check-in. But both NH and UA personnel thanked for my visit, which UA personnel explicitly thanked me for being 1K.

Then how can NH determine the validity of the BP?

Beside - because the BP is required for checking in, the BP itself has ample information to determine access even before scanning the BP.

Taking a look with the BP is sufficient enough to determine.

WineCountryUA

NH will be using its' system which will then check thru *A links to UA for further information if needed.
The scan and decision making will be in the NH system

Yes, but there is a trend to "let the computer" make the decision with the complexity of the rules and the increasing types BPs (paper, various different electronic, ...) the computer get what it needs from the barcode -- simpler execution and should be lower error rate.

limyanko

I was in Honolulu last month visiting family, and stopped by the ANA lounge on my way back to the mainland. Traveling eastbound from HNL to LAX, zero trouble gaining admission as *G. I was also able to guest in my wife without any issue. I don't recall seeing any United employees in the lounge, and certainly not at check-in, though it's possible they're there at other times.

We walked to the lounge -- with a baby, stroller, and a bunch of luggage -- and didn't find it onerous. It's a little bit of a hike, but I enjoy the open-air atmosphere at HNL and found it nice to stretch my legs before a day of flying. YMMV.

OP didn't seem too impressed by the lounge overall, but I thought it was quite nice. Maybe my standards are just low, though I liked how they offered both local and Japanese food, the lounge was quiet and nearly empty, and the employees were all very polite. The children's play area was great, too -- there was a large space for kids to crawl around, climb blocks, etc., with books to read to them in Japanese, and some really beautiful decorations hanging from the ceiling. (Much nicer than any other children's area that I've visited domestically.) I'll certainly choose ANA over the UA or HA lounges the next time I'm visiting.

garykung

If you have been NH Lounges at NRT, you will know why I say this.

IAH-OIL-TRASH