Seatlink

Alaska Airlines Board Room Seattle Showdown, Part 1 (D Gates)

Alaska's main Seattle lounge - but is it the best?

Flying out of Seattle on Alaska Airlines? Probably, unless you're headed to Europe or Asia, since AS owns > 50% of the SEA market share. Even if you're not, if you've got Priority Pass from one of your points credit cards, the Alaska Airlines Boardroom is where you'll want to be to avoid the terminal crowds. Now that there are two Alaska lounges in Seattle, it seems like a good time to review these two lounges in a head-to-head competition, seeing as SEA is my home airport. First up: the Alaska Airlines Board Room between C and D gates in the main terminal of Seattle.
What's awesome:
  • ummm, pancake machine? Yes.
  • great views of C and D gate activity, as well as the runways off in the distance
  • friendly staff, as always (I honestly don't know how Alaska does it)
  • it's not far at all from checkpoints 1 and 3
What's not:
  • it's the original lounge, so it can feel a bit dated when compared to the new Board Room, or the likes of Delta etc.
  • I think the only time I've been here when it wasn't really crowded was at 10pm on a holiday.

Getting into the Board Room

If you've booked a paid first class fare on Alaska or premium cabin on one of their partners you can walk right into the lounge and fire up the pancake machine. If you're not, your only option is a full Alaska Board Room Membership, OR Priority Pass (my favorite because it works in a ton of lounges), which you can get from a handful of credit cards, including the Citi Prestige, Amex Plat, and Sapphire Reserve.

The Gallery:

The Bottom Line:

This lounge is worth visiting if your flight departs from the main terminal and you have Board Room access. The American Express Centurion Seattle Lounge isn't far away, so if you have access to that via your Amex Platinum card I'd say it's a tossup considering both lounges get crowded during peak times, but I might give the Centurion Studio the edge based on food options alone.

What else?

Are you a frequent Board Room visitor? Did I miss anything?