There are few things that will improve your time spent at the airport more than having access to an airport lounge. Think you need to be an ultra-frequent flyer with top-tier airline elite status to enter them? Think again: All you need is the right credit card.
But credit cards that offer lounge access don’t come cheap. Expect to shell out annual fees ranging from $400 to $700 dollars a year – which can certainly be worth it when you factor in all the benefits they provide. But what if you want to bring the family into the lounges with you?
Many credit cards offering lounge access will charge you extra to bring guests with you, or just not allow it at all. At the bare minimum, they’ll charge you another annual fee to add an authorized user to your card which would grant them their own lounge access. But that’s not the case with the *capital one venture x*.
Unlike competitors, *amex platinum card* and the *chase sapphire reserve*, the Venture X is the only premium travel card that allows you to bring the entire family into airport lounges without paying a dime more than its $395 annual fee.
Here’s how you can get lounge access for their entire family for less than $400 per year.
Learn more about the *capital one venture x*
What Airport Lounges Can Cardholders Access?
First, let’s walk through what lounges you can actually access with the *capital one venture x*
When Capital One launched the card back in November 2021, it was easily the most exciting new travel card to hit the market in years – and a big part of that was thanks to the brand-new Capital One lounges. These spaces are a big step up from most lounges you can access with a credit card and carrying the Venture X is your ticket in.
But they aren’t the only lounges you’ll have access to: The Venture X also comes with a complimentary Priority Pass membership, which unlocks more than 1,300 other lounges around the world. And for the time-being, you can also get into Plaza Premium’s full lineup of lounges … though, that’s changing come March 1, 2025.
Here’s a quick look at what each of these lounges have to offer.
Capital One Lounges
After years of planning and months of building, Capital One finally has its own branded airport lounges. With just three lounges currently open for business (and more on the way), Capital One won’t win any awards for quantity – but quality is a whole different discussion.
Each lounge is a bit different, but they’ve all got a great design, fun amenities, and absolutely outstanding food and drinks – easily among the best airport lounges in the U.S., period.
The first Capital One lounge location in Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) clocks in around 10,000 square feet, but it feels much bigger than that. There’s an open and airy design, with floor-to-ceiling windows and views of the tarmac below. Everything feels bright, fresh, and new. Once you enter the lounge, there’s plenty of seating, with armchairs, cafe-style tables, and long sofas.
Whether you’re at the bar, at a high-top table, or lounging somewhere else, there are power outlets and USB ports seemingly everywhere.
Capital One puts a big emphasis on offering excellent food and drinks, with a local flair – and once you’re in door, it’s all free. At the Capital One lounge in Denver (DEN), for example, the bank leans into the Colorado location with a ground bison sloppy joe. Where else are you going to find that in an airport lounge?
Not to be out done, the lounge at Washington, D.C.-Dulles (IAD) offers a full-service coffee bar where you can order a coffee or tea to go or to sip on while in the lounge. From a simple Americano to an oat milk latte, the friendly baristas can make you almost any coffee drink you want. There’s also cold brew on tap and drip coffee, of course.
Additional Capital One Lounges are planned for Las Vegas (LAS) and New York (JFK), though exact opening dates have yet to be announced.
The Venture X card will get you and two guests unlimited access to any of these Capital One lounges for free.
Capital One Landings
Don’t call it a lounge … it’s a Capital One Landing.
The first of these hybrid airport lounge-restaurant mashups, officially opened the its doors at Washington, D.C.’s Reagan National Airport (DCA) late last year. While we haven’t yet visited for ourselves, this new space looks pretty sweet. Capital One Landings have both a sit-down dining room and grab-and-go options.
The food and beverage program is spearheaded by award-winning celebrity chef José Andrés and his José Andrés Group, with made-to-order Spanish-style tapas and drinks delivered directly to your seat. Plus, you’ll find “interactive” carts roaming the space at various times of the day – a mimosa cart in the morning featuring orange, pomegranate, and pineapple juices; a cheesecake cart in the afternoon with accompanying fruits and sauces, and a gin and tonic cart in the evening featuring various gins, tonics, and garnishes.
So far, just one other Capital One Landing has been announced, with the next location set to open at New York’s La Guardia Airport (LGA) later this year, though an exact timeline is still unclear.
Just like the Capital One lounges, Venture X cardholders get unlimited complimentary access for themselves and two guests. You can even make reservations online in the Capital One app up to six months in advance.
Priority Pass Lounges
The Capital One Venture X will also get you a complimentary Priority Pass Select membership that gives you access to over 1,300 airport lounges across the world.
Better yet, the Priority Pass membership you’ll get with the Venture X is a bit stronger than what you’ll get with the Amex Platinum Card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve. That’s because you be allowed to bring an unlimited number of guests with you on each visit, assuming there is space available in the lounge.
The quality and offering in Priority Pass lounges can vary quite a bit. But even the worst Priority Pass lounge is still better than sitting at the gate in the terminal.
Plaza Premium Lounges
The Capital One Venture X is also your ticket into Plaza Premium Lounges … at least for a few more weeks. As of March 1, 2025, Venture X cardholders will no longer get direct access to Plaza Premium Group lounges.
Instead, Venture X cardholders will be able to continue visiting some (though not all) Plaza Premium lounges via their complimentary Priority Pass membership. The two companies restarted a partnership last year, opening the door for Priority Pass members to visit dozens of Plaza Premium lounges.
It’s not a massive change, but there are two possible downsides:
- While most Plaza Premium lounges will still be accessible using your Priority Pass membership, a few aren’t: Avianca Lounges in Colombia, MERA Business Lounges in tourist hotspot Cancun (CUN), and Plaza Premium-branded Lounges in Brazil, among others
- Visitors using Priority Pass often get less generous access: You’re limited to a two-hour visit and showers, where available, may not be complimentary
Venture X cardholders get unlimited complimentary access for themselves and two guests when accessing Plaza Premium Lounges with their card. If you’re instead using your Priority Pass membership to get into these lounges, guest access is unlimited – so long as space is available.
How to Get Lounge Access for the Whole Family
Getting complimentary lounge access for the entire family with the Venture X card starts with the card’s incredible authorized user benefit. Once you get the card, you can add up to four additional users to your account at no additional cost. And each of those authorized users will get their own lounge memberships and access with the ability to bring their own guests in with them.
So let’s say you have a family of five and want to get everybody into the Capital One Lounge in Dallas (DFW). If you’re the primary cardholder and add your spouse as an authorized user, they would get their own lounge membership with the ability to bring two of their own guests in with them. Between the primary cardholder, the authorized user, and the four guests (two for each cardholder), you could easily bring six people into the lounge with you at no additional cost.
Whether you’re visiting the Capital One Lounges and Landings, or a Priority Pass lounge, the process works the same. Pay the $395 annual fee on the Venture X and you can get lounge access for you and four additional users. Plus, you and all of your authorized users will have the ability to bring in at least two guests on every visit. That’s unheard of in the premium travel credit card space.
Take for example the *chase sapphire reserve* which offers access to Chase’s Sapphire Lounges and a nearly identical Priority Pass membership to the one you’ll get with the Venture X. Not only does the Sapphire Reserve charge an annual fee of $550, but you’ll also have to pay an additional $75 for each additional authorized user.
Sapphire Reserve authorized users will get their own lounge memberships with the ability to bring their own guests. But if you want access for the whole family, you’ll be on the hook for at least $625 in annual fees each year – way more expensive than the Venture X for similar lounge access.
Then there’s *amex platinum card* which provides access to Amex’s Centurion Lounges, the Delta Sky Club (if you are flying with Delta), Priority Pass Lounges, and Plaza Premium lounges. But that access doesn’t come cheap.
The annual fee on the Platinum Card is $695 (see rates & fees) and if you want to add an authorized user to your card, that will be another $195 per year. You can add up to three additional users at that rate, but you’ll have to pay up for each of them. If you wanted to give lounge access to three family member, it would cost an additional $585 per year on top of the card’s $695 fee. Ouch!
Add it all up and the Venture X isn’t just the cheapest card for family lounge access … it might be the best card for families, period.
Full Benefits of the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
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- $300 Annual Travel Credit: Each year, cardholders will get a $300 travel credit to use through the Capital One Travel booking portal.
- Capital One Lounge & Priority Pass Select Lounge Access: Cardmembers will also be able to bring guests with them at no additional cost on each visit.
- Up to a $120 Credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck: Membership in either program is good for five years.
- 10,000 Mile Anniversary Bonus: Every year on your account anniversary, you’ll receive 10,000 bonus miles after paying your card’s annual fee. These miles are worth a minimum of $100 towards travel.
- Earn Unlimited 2x Miles on every purchase: Cardholders will earn 2x miles on every dollar spent. Plus, you’ll earn 10x miles on hotels and rental cars booked through the Capital One Travel portal and 5x miles on flights booked via the portal.
- Complimentary Hertz President’s Circle Status
- Add up to four authorized users at no additional cost
- $395 Annual Fee
Learn more about the *capital one venture x*
Bottom Line
If you want airport lounge access and often travel with the whole family in tow, you won’t find a better (and cheaper) option than the *capital one venture x*.
With the ability to add up to four additional authorized users at no additional cost, you can easily get your whole family into a lounge before your next trip for just the card’s $395 annual fee – a unique benefit you won’t find from other premium travel credit cards.
