Airport lounges used to be a perk. In 2026, they are a battleground. American Express is refreshing Centurion Lounges and adding faster Sidecar formats. Chase is experimenting with champagne parlors and hyperlocal chef partnerships in its Sapphire Lounges. Citi is back in the ultra-premium card game. And Capital One, the relative newcomer, is making a different bet. Instead of building another lounge at LaGuardia Airport, it built a restaurant.
"Customers opened and maintained 360 Savings accounts based on Capital One's promises that they would receive 'one of the nation's best savings rates.' Instead, Capital One took advantage of its customers and hoped that they wouldn't notice."
