THE DISAPPOINTMENTS OF THE AIRPORT LOUNGE SCENE: From the comments: “The average business class or airline club lounge is far from tranquil. They are almost always packed, noisy and messy. Often you have to wait for a seat. The food is generally both sparse and unappealing. You must pay for drinks beyond the most basic swill. Over the past 10-15 years the clubs and lounges have spiraled downward, just like the airlines that provide them.”

I have a Priority Pass and American Express membership in most of them. They range from okay to slightly-better-than-okay in my experience. But I’ve never been to the Lufthansa lounge in Frankfurt. When I was a kid we hung out in the Pan Am lounge in Frankfurt before flying home from my dad’s stint at Heidelberg. It was nice, but not overwhelmingly so, in my memory. But that was back in the era when coach-class travel was nicer than First Class is today.