| THE ALVIATOR'S VERDICT I found this lounge to be surprisingly good, with plenty of seating, decent catering, great barista coffee and cocktails, despite the lack of natural light | 4.0 |
American Express operates various lounges across the world. Most of them are based in the U.S., though they have multiple locations around the world as well. Outside of the U.S., I’ve reviewed their lounges in London and Hong Kong, though they also have locations in Tokyo Haneda, Delhi, Melbourne, Mexico City, Buenos Aires, Monterrey, Mumbai, Stockholm, and Sydney (with Amsterdam to come this year).
In this review, I’m going to review the AmEx Centurion Lounge at Sydney Airport, which I had the chance to visit before a flight from Sydney to Auckland. The lounge is located in Terminal 1 (the international terminal), and is available to AmEx Platinum and Centurion cardholders. While the lounge gets a bad rep particularly from those who have been to some of the better lounges in the Centurion Lounge network, I didn’t mind the Sydney lounge at all, and found it to be the better option for Platinum cardholders compared to the Plaza Premium lounge (though I didn’t visit the terminal’s Priority Pass lounge, The House, which I’ve now heard good things about, and wish I dropped by).
American Express Centurion Lounge Sydney Access and Opening Hours
The AmEx Centurion Lounge at Sydney Airport is open from 6 AM until 10 PM, covering most departures at Sydney Airport. Access is open to AmEx Platinum, Business Platinum and Centurion cardholders.
You’re able to enter the lounge on a supplementary card (as I did), and guesting policies differ depending on which country you hold a Platinum card for. In this case my Hong Kong-issued Platinum card comes with a free guest, though I know that guests cost US$50 for U.S.-issued cards. You also need to be departing out of the international terminal – you can’t pass through immigration just to use the lounge in this case, sadly.
American Express Centurion Lounge Sydney Location and Entrance
The AmEx Centurion Lounge is located by the wing housing gates 50-63. Head over there (a 5-10 minute walk through a hallway), and you’ll find a complex of airline lounges. The Singapore Airlines and Air New Zealand lounges are upstairs, and the Emirates and AmEx Centurion lounge are down a level.
Sydney Airport Lounge Complex
Head down the escalators, and the Centurion lounge will be right in front of you, whereas the Emirates lounge will be to the right.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Exterior
I was checked in by a friendly lounge agent, and saw the signature leafy green wall on the entryway into the lounge.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Entrance Wall
American Express Centurion Lounge Sydney Seating and Atmosphere
The American Express Centurion lounge isn’t huge – it’s a long, thin rectangular room comprising of various areas of seating.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Seating
At the centre of this long room are two communal tables that sit eight seats each. These tables have power port access, and are a good height for getting some work done.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Seating
Then to the side were some booths with tables and chairs, which were the most occupied area of the lounge.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Seating
Then at the far end of the lounge was some more unconventional seating, including a long loveseat-style bench, as well as a circular bench around a faux tree.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Seating
There was a little nook at the end of the lounge with a couple more armchairs, though this area was tiny, and all the seats were taken.
This lounge doesn’t get a lot of natural light, as there’s only a window at the far end of the lounge, and it’s obstructed by an arrivals hallway. In this case there wasn’t even a plane parked there, though you will get runway views from the distance.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Tarmac Views
The actual usable space within the lounge isn’t particularly impressive, though I did find the lighting to be bright, and the seating to be comfortable. WiFi was also really fast here, measuring 193 Mbps down and 250 Mbps up.
American Express Centurion Lounge Centurion-Only Area
By the far end of the lounge there was a little partitioned-off area for Centurion members, which featured a few armchairs. Apart from the fact that service may be elevated, I can’t imagine actually enjoying sitting here any more than in the rest of the lounge.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Seating
American Express Centurion Lounge Sydney Food and Beverage
While the main lounging area was accessible by turning right, there was a little trapezoidal area to the left of the lounge, featuring restaurant-style seating.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Dining Area
The food spread was decent for a Centurion lounge, though not great – consistent with what I’ve experienced at other AmEx Centurion lounges. Catering at AmEx Centurion lounges seem to be a step down from other credit card lounges – for example, the Chase Sapphire lounges I’ve experienced have featured more elaborate catering.
There was pasta, stir fried noodles, chicken curry, buffalo wings and stir fried vegetables on offer – I didn’t notice this at the time, though this is an identical food selection to what was featured at the Plaza Premium lounge, so they must have the same caterer.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Food Spread
Similarly, the cold food spread featured cheese and charcuterie, a salad bar, and various desserts.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Food Spread
The only difference was the bakery area, which featured a couple of hot dogs in small dinner rolls, and a pizza that I didn’t find in the Plaza Premium lounge.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Food Spread
While the food spread is decent here, I do find AmEx Centurion Lounge catering in general to be a step down from other credit card lounges. That’s perhaps to be expected, as a much greater number of passengers have access to the Centurion lounge, and I know that Centurion cardholders get elevated catering.
American Express Centurion Lounge Sydney Bar and Barista Coffee
While the food spread may be identical to the Plaza Premium lounge, there’s a much upgraded drinks selection at the Centurion lounge, which features its own tended bar. This is the standout feature of the lounge, as a tended bar isn’t available at Qantas’ hub business class lounge (though it will be in the future).
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Bar
As you’d expect for a lounge down under, there was a substantial coffee menu, even featuring items such as piccolo and short macchiato. There were a few milk selections as well.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Barista Coffee Menu
I took the chance to have one of my last flat whites in Australia, and it was as good as the flat white I had at the Qantas lounge.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Coffee
There’s also a selection of complimentary red, white, and sparkling wine, and a variety of spirits as well.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Wines and Spirits Menu
In March the Centurion Lounge was running a spritz menu, including aperol spritz, limoncello spritz, and cucumber garden gin spritz. Meanwhile, it seems like as of this month there’s a quandong gin and tonic on offer, as well as negroni sbagliato. I’m sure that the bartender would be happy to whip up other options as well.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Drinks Menu
I will say that the one thing missing is a full cocktail menu – for example, the London and Hong Kong lounges both have cocktail menus put together by bartender Jim Meehan, which is missing here.
Overall, though, tended bars are a big asset in AmEx Centurion lounges, and this one is no exception.
American Express Centurion Lounge Sydney Shower Facilities
The Centurion lounge features three shower rooms, which you can request by asking reception. At the time of asking, there was no wait.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Showers
The shower rooms are very well-appointed, and look modern – they feature APPELLES Apothecary toiletries, an Australian brand. I’d already had a shower at the Qantas lounge, so just asked if I could peek into one of the shower rooms. The lounge manager obliged, and we had a good chat.
AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney Airport Shower Room
Conclusion: American Express Centurion Lounge Sydney
The AmEx Centurion Lounge Sydney gets a bad rep, so in that sense it was better than I was expecting. There isn’t a ton of natural light at this lounge, though there’s varied and plentiful seating. The food selection is okay, though the tended bar and coffee selection are great (despite the bar having fewer options here than at other AmEx Centurion lounges).
If you have an American Express Platinum or Centurion card, this lounge is a good option to visit. I’ll be sure to come by for a coffee and a drink or two before my flight when I’m next passing through Sydney Airport, or a shower if needed – just don’t have overly high expectations about the food otherwise.
What’s your favourite AmEx Centurion lounge out there?
