Our Founder, Andrew Henderson, has been sharing this airport lounge hack with our readers for years.
One thing worth investing in as a nomad is decent flights. Rack up six figures in mileage each year, and you’ll probably decide to spend those few extra bucks buying the more comfortable flight.
One of the airport amenities nomads love is airport lounges. If you’ve ever visited an airport lounge in the States, you’d probably think these places were vastly overhyped. But rest assured, US airport lounges are not the norm.
Around the world, including in Europe, lounges offer excellent amenities from private shower rooms to all-you-can-eat-and-drink food and alcohol to pianists performing in front of brick pizza ovens.
On top of that, airport lounges offer free Wi-Fi in countries you may not have cellular service so that you can stay connected on a layover.
However, access to the world’s best airport lounges isn’t cheap. In fact, even paying thousands for an airline ticket doesn’t guarantee you access.
Lounges at many Middle Eastern airports are flat-out amazing, but only the upper crust with really expensive tickets can get the best access. Some of these lounges are truly spectacular. Think drinking top-shelf whiskey while having a pizza chef make your own personalized flatbreads.
If you don’t travel loads or are a bit thrifty and don’t always want to pay out for first-class tickets, there is a shortcut for getting airport lounge access that involves offshore strategies. Namely, your bank.
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Airport Lounge Access From Your Bank
Often, you will pass private lounges not controlled by any one airline. These lounges are set up by independent companies and contract with various smaller airlines that aren’t part of an alliance or don’t have much of a presence at that airport. They also sell access to companies like Priority Pass, which sells access to over 1,400+ lounges for one annual fee.
There are also a number of airports with private lounges operated directly by the credit card companies themselves. In order to be competitive, emerging world banks, primarily in Asia and the Middle East, are rolling out the red carpet for their depositors.
Erste Bank in central Europe offers this its Premier customers access to 1,100+ lounges around the world. Banks often have high deposit minimums, such as HSBC Premier, which starts at $75,000 and up. There are HSBC lounges in around 750 airport lounges worldwide. You simply need to open an account, flash your card, and boarding was, and you are in.
Opening a premier-level bank account at an offshore bank could be your ticket to free airport lounge access as banks expand their lounge network.
Outside of the Western world, where bank and credit card benefits are declining by the month, foreign banks are tripping over each other to provide more rewards and more luxuries. If you travel frequently or want to be comfortable when you do, the benefits of opening an offshore bank account continue to improve.
There are also times when it’s worth getting not a bank but a great credit card. US, European, and Australian citizens may find the American Express Platinum card worthwhile. American Express allows Platinum and Centurion cardholders to access more than 1,400 lounges.
Using our offshore travel hack, you can diversify away from your home country, move your savings to the safety of an offshore bank, and get free travel perks.
That’s what “going where you’re treated best” is all about.
Now you may ask, but what are the best offshore banks?
If you’re looking for the best offshore banks and you’re not sure where to help, we are here to begin. We help six- or seven-figure entrepreneurs or investors find the best offshore bank as part of a holistic offshore strategy. Apply to become a client here.
