wayan

So this is my first RCC at IAD in a looong time. Since my dot.com days in the early 00's. Back then I remember it as a sumptuous affair - food, drinks, private escorts to board.

Today I walked in and walked out.

Yes, it's quiet and have wifi, but just crackers and cheese? And only Miller Lite for free? And forget any personal treatment. For the $300 or 50K FFM annual fee, I was expecting the Lufthansa Welcome Lounge selection or at least the FRA terminal lounges. This RCC was a joke.

Are all the domestic RCC's this bad?

Miles Ahead

Private escorts?

aCavalierInCoach

I think you're confusing the RCC of a few years ago with the RCC from.... another dimension.

cityboy340

+1

Eastbay1K

The F lounge did private escorts in certain cities, but I've been flying UA since the mid '80s, and had quite a number of Int'l F trips from the early 90s through early '00s (when things were as good as they ever got) and I never, not once, ever had a sumptuous affair in any UA lounge. That isn't to say I didn't have pleasant experiences, with some decent drink and snack. Inflight, I had some sumptuous on occasion. But on the ground, no.

lax2010

WOW! Private escort! WOW!

ordogg

+1

Blueskies01

Are you confusing an International F lounge with an RCC?

And certainly more offerings most of the time than you state... while its not up to an international lounge standard (and maybe an overall RCC challenge for UA domestically considering its an "international" lounge to some people right??) it does have more usually (not hot items usually but at least more than cheese & crackers...

Also - the "adult beverages" are more extensive than miller.. just the miller in cans in the easy self serve fridges... bar has more for free... just have to ask..

mduell

They're not all that bad, but they're not like the lounges of first/second class airlines.

entropy

Most people here kvelling about SQ, but all I see at the SKL is quarter sandwiches and 59 cent cup-o-noodles.... Does that make a "first class" airline? The LH lounge at IAD is "nicer" physically, and they have gummi bears, soft pretzels and some nasty reheated meatballs, 'pasta' and reheated frozen vegetables. Sure, they have better free alcohol, but that's just european. The bar is pretty low.... I don't see butler-served chateaubriand in any US airline lounge now or in the future.

rjque

On the plus side, the vermin are classy.

LAX

At SFO, it's nothing "sumptuous", but there were some hot foods (ie: fried wonton, sitr-fried noodles, soups, etc.) the last time I was there 2-3 months ago. Certainly beats the veggies, fruits, & nuts available at the RCC, IMHO.

LAX

Fanjet

Enough with comparing a SQ or NH lounge with that of a domestic US carrier. 2 different market segments. How many flights does a SQ lounge cater to (outside of SIN)? And btw, the Kris Lounge at AMS is nothing to write home about. How many flights are there out of IAD on a daily basis? While the RCCs might not be an oasis, they serve a purpose. And for me, the RCC at C-17 is much better than the dark dungeon at D-8, and the "busting at the seams" one at C-7. But I'd rather be sitting in any one of those, than at one the smelly and run-down gates in C/D.

LAX

UA is more than just a domestic US-based carrier! While I acknowledge it's a different market, there are people that pay quite a bit of cash to fly in C and connect at IAD and I thought they use the same lounge, no?! FWIW, the Maple Leaf Lounges for our neighbors up north are pretty nice, so why can't UA just raise the bar a little?

LAX

NickB

IAD is a UA hub. You'd need to compare it with the lounges at carriers in their hubs: SQ in SIN, BA in LHR, VS in LHR, TG in BKK, NZ in AKL, CX in HKG, etc..., in which case the comparison would be pretty poor for UA.

That said, in any event, as has been oft-repeated on this forum and others, lounges of US airlines and of foreign carriers are fundamentally different entities. For US carriers, lounges are conceived as membership-based and essentially profit centres. For non-US carriers, lounges are conceived as perks of premium class flying and essentially cost centres. So, it is no surprise that US airlines lounges generally (not just UA) tend to be rather more spartan and basic than lounges of non-US carriers.

A more meaningful comparison would be between IFLs and first class lounge of non-US carriers. While, on the whole, IFLs are still relatively mediocre, the differential is not quite as substantial as between hub RCCs and business lounges of non-US carriers.