That one in Brussels is pretty good, one of the better ones in Europe
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I have never used a lounge in all my six decades, and I think I am unlikely to start now, so this feature remains unattractive to me or possibly other card holders. To be fair, I am not sure what would be!
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Lounges are very popular and the travel industry is fast moving towards premium leisure markets so it’s a sought after perk for sure.
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For me this has been the issue with this perk. So many cards have this now that eventually we’ll see truly premium lounges and the aspire lounges will become the normal place to go for beers and less premium as a result, I reckon.
Agreed, but it shows that they are a popular perk. Never being in one is the abnormal probably these days.
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I’ve never been in one, but I do wonder if I would actually save money vs food and a pint or three at the airport 
It’s not just about money it’s a nicer environment too for most lounges but I definitely get my moneys worth from drinks alone.
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Very few lounges I’ve been to are good food wise, but you can get your money’s worth in drinks alone.
The overcrowding issue is a big problem. Been to some lounges that were overpacked and not worth staying in. There’s some great hidden gems tho, like the one in Brussels. The Vienna is another I quite enjoy visiting. Biased but Belfast City (my local one) is quite good too for UK lounges.
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Most UK lounges aren’t good but once you venture out they can get nice enough. I still firmly maintain that even the worst UK lounge is a better place to wait than the general areas
I think some people overthink lounges. They think of Emirates First Class and put that onto any lounge they visit when in reality they are fairly comfortable less busy waiting areas with free drinks and some snack based foods while you wait for a flight.
A lot of bad reviews or bad impressions are just the person not managing expectations.
I’ve had some really good food in lounges but I don’t go to any expecting more than some snacks and at least some gin and tonic. Anything more is a bonus.
Worst lounge I’ve ever been in was a tie between Cusco in Peru and Marseille in France. But both were tiny rooms with about 10 people max so even that is better than the waiting areas.
Given I’ve not spent any time in a general waiting area before a fight since 2014 I hopefully have been to enough to get a good idea about them!
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Worst lounge I think I’ve been in is Faro airport recently - small, rammed full (standing room only) and food and drink not being replenished.
Despite being rammed full, they were still admitting people who were promptly turning round and walking back out again.
I guess once the DragonPass / Priority Pass gets scanned - they’re getting paid either way even if the visitor walks out again
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Shout out for the Northern Lights lounge at Aberdeen airport, and the Spitfire Lounge at Southampton (who I think are the same company) - both quiet, pleasant surroundings, decent food and drink, and good friendly staff.
The rest of the UK ones, particularly chains like Aspire, I would take or leave, and that’s assuming they aren’t full already on arrival
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