Centurion Lounges in the US: What German Platinum and Centurion Card Members Need to Know

Does a German card get you in at all?

Yes. The US Centurion Lounges accept Platinum and Centurion cards issued outside the US, which includes the German Platinum Card, the Business Platinum and the German Centurion. You do not need a US card.

What you need:

• the physical card or the card in your wallet, and it has to be your own: Amex says access is per Card Member, not per card
• a confirmed boarding pass for a departure on the same day
• for paid guests, the physical card, not just the digital version

The guest rule: this is where the German card differs

Guests are where the biggest difference between US cards and cards from the rest of the world sits.

• German and other international Platinum cards: one complimentary guest per visit. Until mid 2026 it was two. The access page is not fully consistent here, because the fee section still mentions a limit of two complimentary guests. Plan with one.
• US Platinum (consumer and business): two complimentary guests only after 75,000 US dollars in card spend in a calendar year. Without that spend, the US Card Member pays for every guest. So the German card is not worse off here, and for many people it is better.
• Centurion Card: either immediate family (spouse or domestic partner, children under 18) or up to two complimentary guests.

Each additional guest costs 50 US dollars in the US, children aged 2 to 17 30 US dollars. Children under 2 are free with a lap infant boarding pass or proof of age. If you travel as a family, the details are in the article on lounge access with children.

On top of that, since July 2026 there is the rule that causes the most discussions at the front desk: all guests must be on the same flight as the Card Member. The business partner flying to Chicago an hour later no longer comes in with you.

If you regularly travel as two or three, a Platinum supplementary card is a cleaner solution than guest fees. Because access is per Card Member, each supplementary card brings its own guest.

The 3-hour rule and what it means on long haul

Platinum Card Members can enter no earlier than three hours before departure as shown on the boarding pass. At the Sidecar in Las Vegas it is only 90 minutes.

For travellers from Germany the rule has three practical consequences:

1. No arrivals use. If you have just landed, you will not get in. Amex states this explicitly. After an overnight flight from Frankfurt you do not shower in the Centurion Lounge unless you are flying on the same day.
2. An early hotel checkout does not help. If you have to leave the hotel at 11 am and fly to Europe at 6 pm, the earliest you can enter is 3 pm.
3. Delays count by the boarding pass. What matters is the departure time on the boarding pass. Whether staff let you in earlier when a delay has been announced is not regulated. Do not count on it.

For Centurion Card Members, the access page lists no time rule; it appears only in the Platinum section. If you arrive with a Centurion more than three hours before departure, expect a discussion.

Connecting: the 5-hour rule

On a layover the window is more generous: entry no earlier than five hours before the connecting flight. A same-day round trip does not count as a connection.

For transatlantic trips this is the most interesting rule. If you fly from Frankfurt via a US hub on to Mexico, the Caribbean or the West Coast, you can spend the wait after immigration in the lounge. Two things to plan for:

• Entering the US always means immigration and then a fresh security check. Global Entry makes this much faster, which on a tight connection decides whether a lounge visit happens at all.
• Most lounges sit in one terminal or concourse. Whether you can reach it after security depends on the airport. Check that in advance, not at the gate.

Which lounges help on transatlantic routes

Not all 16 US lounges are equally relevant for travellers from Germany. The value depends on whether you depart for Europe from the lounge's terminal or connect there.

• New York JFK, Terminal 4: the classic departure point for Europe and Delta's hub. If you fly from another JFK terminal, it does nothing for you, because switching terminals means another security check. Details in the Centurion Lounge JFK review.
• Los Angeles, Tom Bradley International Terminal: located where most international long-haul flights leave. One of the most useful locations for flights to Europe and Asia.
• Atlanta, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston, Charlotte, Philadelphia: hubs of the large US airlines that show up often on connecting itineraries from Germany. Here the 5-hour rule is what matters.

Newark is missing from this list. On October 8, 2026 Amex announced that the lounge in Terminal A will open in 2027 instead of 2026 as originally planned, now with more than 30,000 square feet on two floors (report at Milesopedia). If you fly United via Newark, you stay without a Centurion Lounge until then. At Heathrow a second lounge in Terminal 5 is announced for 2028, and the existing one in Terminal 3 stays open.

When the US lounge benefit is not worth it

The Centurion Lounges are real value, but not for everyone.

• If you fly to the US once or twice a year, you will use the lounges two to four times. That alone does not justify a premium card. What else the card has to deliver is in Is the Amex Platinum worth it.
• If you fly business class, you usually already have airline lounge access. The Centurion Lounge is then an alternative, not additional access.
• If you travel as four, the German Platinum means guest fees for two adults.
• If you fly from the wrong terminal, you get nothing. In New York that affects many flights to Europe.

Since October 1, 2026 Lufthansa lounge access via Amex has also been dropped. On the outbound flight from Germany that leaves mainly Priority Pass, and the Centurion Lounge becomes a benefit for the way back.