Austin-Bergstrom International Airport will be home to one of Southwest Airlines' first traveler lounges with an opening date scheduled for late 2027. But you'll need a new premium Southwest credit card from Chase to get in.
The Dallas-based airline announced Wednesday that it's breaking into the rapidly growing airport lounge business and revealed where the first four lounges will be built. The other three are in Baltimore, Honolulu and Nashville.
"This is really exciting, especially for us, because Southwest, as everyone knows, is growing their footprint here in Austin," said Sam Haynes, a deputy chief at ABIA. "This is just another way that they're investing into this community, really giving us the attention that we think this community deserves."
Southwest, the largest carrier at ABIA, occupies 10 gates. That number will grow to 18 after the city builds a new 26-gate concourse expected to open in the 2030s. This summer, the airline is offering as many as 132 nonstop flights a day, a record high.
In December, the city and state of Texas said they were giving Southwest Airlines almost $20 million in economic incentives to open a new crew base at ABIA, allowing the airline's locally-based flight attendants and pilots to start and end their days in Austin.
Southwest didn't say exactly what types of amenities could be found at its new lounges, beyond "sophisticated design" and "locally-inspired dining," but said they would offer similar benefits to other lounges sponsored by JPMorgan Chase.
"I'm not surprised by it," said Joe McCulloch, who runs the travel website ATXJetsetter. "When Southwest had their own unique, so to speak, business model, they didn't need a lounge. Now that they're the same as everybody else, they've got to compete on the same things as everybody else."
Southwest had been famous for its two bags fly free and open seating policies in which people lined up in groups and took whatever seat they could find. The airline moved to assigned seating earlier this year and started charging for bags last year, putting it more inline with major carriers.
"Well, the next big differentiator is you're going to have some sort of lounge access or something for your premium flyers to keep them from moving over to a Delta or United if they're offering similar service on similar routes," McCulloch said.
The Southwest lounge will be 19,500 square feet and located in a newly renovated space on the third level above the new TSA Checkpoint 4. Access by stairs or elevator will be near Gate 22.
The airport lounge business has been growing as travel increases and airports renovate and expand, according to SNS Insider. The research firm expects the $1.45 billion U.S. market to more than double to $3.95 billion by 2035.
That growth is already visible in Austin.
American Airlines is opening a new 12,000-square-foot Admirals Club on the west side of the terminal inside a new 80,000-square-foot addition to the Barbara Jordan Terminal dubbed the Westgate Expansion. The American lounge will have an outdoor terrace and skyline views of downtown Austin.
A smaller outdoor lounge for the public is also opening in the Westgate Expansion along with a quiet space, nursing rooms, a children's play area and an area where pets can pee.
Delta Airlines, which recently announced a new nonstop flight to Paris, is planning to open a new Sky Club sometime in the early 2030s, Haynes said.
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