American Airlines Premium Lounge Terminal E Miami Review Bottom Line
Arrival:
My inbound flight from Dallas was 1 hour early (yes, you read that correctly), so as is usual at Miami, we had to wait for a gate to be available. This process only took 15 minutes and we arrived with about 40 left before our scheduled arrival time. My flight for Doha was leaving from terminal E, so I took the train to the terminal connector and decided to wait for boarding at the American Premium Lounge Terminal E.
Accessing the Lounge
Usually, people can only access the lounge if they are travelling out of Terminal E AND they are either OW Sapphire or Emerald travelling internationally. The lounge is also open to BA, Iberia, American, Qatar and Air Berlin premium passengers. Recently, however, AA started allowing Admirals’ Club members to access the lounge if they were departing from Terminal E.
To get to the lounge, you have to take a 1960’s looking elevator, that is as dim as a night club. Probably not the best entrance to a premium lounge, but I digress. As soon as I arrived, I nice lady took my boarding pass, scanned it and told me to go to the gate early as I would need to get a Qatar issued boarding pass to board.
The Lounge In all Its (Long Gone) Glory
As I entered the lounge, I saw that it was fairly empty. There were flight monitors to the right of the check in counter and a small hallway that was reserved for staff only. There were quite a few decorative sculptures in brass, I liked the aesthetic, but they weren’t over the top. Continuing cross the lounge, here were a few working stations, each with power ports and a chair. There was also wireless printing for all your needs.
The lounge was divided into seating areas, some were there was nothing but chairs, others had a TV, and there was the shell of a bar. The bar’s glory days had long passed, as it was not just a seating counter with TVs above it. The lounge had some amazing views of the tarmac. But there was also some gaudy, weird furniture. The main separator of the lounge was a small bridge that contained the main seating area for the food.
So, I had read in previous reviews that there was hot food served at the lounge. Now, imagine my surprise when the only food they had was cold cuts and sandwiches, salads, and a cold pasta. I was very disappointed, as I expected this to be a nudge up the Admirals’ Club ladder. Needless to say, it was only half a rung higher.
The food did not look very fresh, but to a hungry college student, all food is good food. I took parts of the salads, and sandwiches and had a small feast. The silver lining was that they had pickles, something I have recently started to like thanks to a college friend. There was also a self serve alcohol bar, with middle line brands and some decent beers (they had Stella Artois, Blue Moon, among other domestic brands).
Shower Suites
Probably the greatest disappointment came in the form of the shower suites. I was about to fly for 14 hours, and I wanted to refresh myself to be able to sleep better (showers help me sleep, for some weird reason). So I requested a shower, was promptly showed to a suite, and when I turned on the water it came out cold. I waited. Kept waiting. Waited even more. AFter a solid 10 minutes of wasting water I had had enough. There was no hot water, and I proved this in the sink as well. Probably the most disappointing shower experience I have had at an American lounge. The only kudos are that the toiletries were CO Bigelow brand, which I personally like.
Landing Thoughts:
The American Airlines Premium Lounge Terminal E is only half a rung higher than an Admirals’ Club. The food was subpar, I would have preferred to buy a sandwich at an Admirals Club being completely honest. The staff, however, was kind and attentive.
If I had a chance, I would rather spend time at the Centurion Lounge MIA, or at the new refurbished Admirals Club by gate D15. I wouldn’t really spend more than the minimal time at the Terminal E lounge.
What do you think? Is the American Premium Lounge Terminal E worth it? Have you had a better experience?
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I’ve used this lounge many times as it’s large and quiet. And there are more complimentary items than in either D lounges. Want a bottle of water in D lounges, you pay. Here they are complimentary. The lounge is definitely dated, but it’s large and quiet which for me, is the most important part. I’ve gone into the Centurion to have breakfast then quickly moved into this lounge as it’s peaceful, especially in the morning when there is practically no one in there.
The reason AA started allowing domestic access is that they have been remodeling the other Admirals club areas at Miami. I visited this lounge a while back and noticed that they roll out different foods and amounts during the day. I also didn’t notice any problems with the showers. I really like this lounge for long layovers as it is so quiet compared to the rest of the airport or other lounges. Lots of space.
Hi Dan! Thanks for reading and commenting!
Yeah, until the Miami D30 Admiral’s Club is done, they will probably still allow passengers to use it. I didn’t get to see any hot food, besides the soup. Maybe it was an off day, but it was really disheartening. However, the food on Qatar Airways was spectacular so probably not a bad dilema in the end.
Best,
The Millennial Traveler
don’t laugh, think this lounge goes back to Eastern Airlines in the 80s with its Miami base and hub. the E terminal with the upper train was Eastern’s flagship Latin connecting point. AA acquired it by buying Eastern’s Latin American routes (Pan Am’s went to United; remember, they once had a Miami Latin hub too). into the early 2000s, this was AA’s premier lounge there. Not until they opened the super A-D terminal (this is Term E) did they end up w/ 2 new clubs.
Hi David! Thanks for reading!
I remember a long long time ago when American used to operate the A-E terminals, the last one to go I think was Terminal C. I can imagine that the Terminal E lounge was the best on in the airport in those days, but they haven’t maintained it much since then, and I was pretty disappointed in all honesty.
Best,
The Millennial Traveler