AMEX cuts lounge benefits and replaces them with café upgrades

Travelers departing from John F. Kennedy Airport no longer have the privilege of using the luxurious amenities in the American Express lounge.

American Express (Amex) has confirmed that it has removed Equinox Body Lab from the Centurion Lounge in Terminal 4 ahead of the holiday season.

The Equinox Body Lab provided lounge members with the opportunity to take advantage of activities such as yoga and pre-flight meditation sessions.

The credit card company replaced Body Lab with a full-service coffee bar called Blue Roast by American Express.

The café offers a variety of caffeinated drinks such as espresso, cold drinks and seasonal coffees.

The menu also includes smoothies, avocado toast and chia pudding.

This was Amex’s second Centurion Lounge, replacing the Equinox Body Lab with a coffee bar.

The company first added a Blue Roast Bar to its lounge at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) in 2023.

Equinox is a fitness company with over 300 locations in the US, UK and Canada.

Amex and Equinox began their partnership in 2020 when the credit card company began offering eligible cardholders a statement credit of up to $25 per month.

The two-story JFK Centurion Lounge opened in 2020 and included the Equinox Body Lab.

This was the first Equinox Body Lab ever to be included in the company’s airport lounges.

In addition to yoga and meditation, members could participate in stretching sessions via the Variis by Equinox (now Equinox+) app and use vibroacoustic chairs.

The Body Lab at JFK was open to all Amex Centurion Lounge members 18 years of age or older.

Despite the closure, Amex is still offering up to $300 credit towards annual statements for eligible monthly Equinox Fitness Club membership fees or digital memberships.

Amex lounge members must have at least one qualifying card, such as the Platinum Card, Amex Centurion Card and Delta SkyMiles Reserve Amex Card.

Before entering the lounge, members are required to present their boarding pass, boarding pass confirming the date of travel and an identity document.

All members can purchase guest passes for up to two travelers, which range from $30 to $50 per person.

Guests of members under two years of age will have free admission.

Eligible members and guests entering the JFK Lounge will have access to premium bars, a digital library and high-speed Internet.

They will also have access to printers and copiers, flight monitors, televisions, showers and top-quality food.

The JFK Centurion Lounge is located in Terminal 4 and is open from 5:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. seven days a week.

Amex was notably the first credit card company to open an airport lounge after the lounge debuted at Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) in Las Vegas in 2013.

There are currently 26 successful Amex Centurion lounges in airports around the world.

In 2024, the company quietly introduced noticeable changes to the rules regarding cards and the organization of entry to salons.

Amex recently introduced a digital waitlist that allows eligible cardholders to jump in line to gain access to any U.S. lounge.

These members will receive a notification when they can enter the lounge and will be given 15 minutes to check in.

Amex has already faced backlash due to the decline in point values ​​in the years since the Covid-19 pandemic.

The backlash intensified in August 2024 when eBay customers could no longer pay for products with Amex cards.

In a statement, American Express said eBay’s costs for accepting AmEx cards are “comparable to what eBay pays for similar cards on other networks” and that AmEx cardholders typically spend twice as much on eBay as on other networks.

Despite the problems, US News and World Report revealed that its Delta SkyMiles Blue card was the best credit card deal in January 2025.

The Daily Mail has reached out to American Express for comment.