Update, 6/11: The Dan Lounges in Terminal 3, Concourses B and C are now showing up on the Priority Pass site again!
DansDeals readers have commented below that they are now enjoying the lounge once again.
You can view which credit cards provide Priority Pass lounge access in this chart.
HT: David
Originally posted on 2/19:
Lounges in Natbag, or Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, have long been lacking. El Al’s King David Lounge is very good, but no other airlines have their own lounge.
A few years ago, Priority Pass cardholders had a couple options to choose from in Natbag.
Schmoozy Bar was an excellent place to pick up a few bottles of wine for free. Unfortunately, they were a COVID fatality.
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The Dan Lounge has long been available for Priority Pass cardholders. It’s certainly nothing to write home about. Or in the words of Ben Chafetz, A”H, a man who even inspired his mailman:
But it was a decent enough place to hang out before a flight. Alas, as of the past several days they are no longer accepting Priority Pass and have been removed from the Priority Pass website.
You can still access Dan lounges if you’re flying in business class, if you have a card like the United Club℠ Infinite Card or Citi AAdvantage Executive World Elite Consumer Mastercard, or Star Alliance Gold or OneWorld Sapphire/Emerald status and flying on that alliance.
Hopefully we’ll see some more airline lounges in Natbag, that should be far superior to the Dan lounges.
Will you miss having Priority Pass access to the Dan Lounge?
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173 Comments On "Dan Lounge In Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport Is Back On Priority Pass"
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So corny to call it Natbag, like, we get it.
What’s corny about it? That’s what locals call it.
Is your clientele israeli locals? also, I lived there close to 10 years and i remember most people (including israelis) calling it “ben Gurion”
@Josh Were you in an Anglo bubble? I can assure you most people say natbag or ha-sdeh… In fact, I just checked an Israeli Hebrew-language frequent flyer Whatsapp group I’m in, and literally the only time Ben Gurion appeared was when someone had posted a PR or news item.
And what about my first comment??
Because when texting it would be easier to write natbag then ben Gurion.
Its not wrong its just a bit corny and wannabe similar to calling JFK “Kennedy”
No, it’s not at all like that.
Plenty of people refer to JFK airport as Kennedy. Is that odd?
It will always be Idlewild to me. Not too far from the Interboro.
The triborough bridge too
Its not odd its a bit corny and not like what most people refer to it. From Dans answer you see that he seems to agree that most people don’t refer to it as Kennedy, the difference of opinion was when referring to TLV.
Although, kudos to Dan for allowing my earlier comment although it was calling his sentence corny..
Natbag stands for namal teufa Ben gurion
Not corny. Useful to know what the locals call it.
Corny bc it sounds like nut bag.
“Ben Gurion International Airport, commonly known by the Hebrew-language acronym Natbag, is the main international airport of Israel. Situated on the northern outskirts of the city of Lod, it is the busiest airport in the country. Wikipedia”
Delta status is not enough to get in, D1 only
Not true; I’ve gotten in being a delta platinum medallion
On a different skyteam carrier not on DL
It was like a mikvah, won’t be missed
Which mikvas have you been to?
Ok yeshiva dining room, sounds better now?
Will you miss having Priority Pass access to the Dan Lounge?
*************
Yes, because for simple folks like us that never fly business class we now have no free lounge access.
AA and United club cards give access, though they’re not cheap cards.
where can i check if united club bussines give acsess ?
United Explorer card doesn not have access to the lounge currently, I just tried a couple of weeks ago and it didn’t work.
Why would explorer work for lounges?
could be Barry D means the 2 annual united club passes that come with the explorer
Well, clearly those only work at United clubs.
Is there a united club in tlv ?
I’m standing at the dan lounge for ten minutes and they won’t let me in with the club card
Dan teaches how to fly business for cheap with points etc. So join the game & fly business too!
terrible news gam zu letova
Maybe I was too skittish, but it was even harder to find kosher food there then a normal lounge. Fruit without a hechsher in E”Y…….. It was a just a marginally more comfortable place to sleep from 2AM till your 5AM flight. Crowded…..
I even had to exit the lounge to get my wife a bottle of water because they only had tap.
hopefully those who would really value it will get their money’s worth now.
True. I really liked that El Al’s KDL lounge had a mehadrin hechsher with shmita l’chumra!
what hechsher?
Yes, we will miss it. Was a decent place to hang out for an hour. No frills, but better than nothing for those of us who only have priority pass.
Does the United Club Business Card get you in there?
From the last time I checked, yes.
where u check ?
No it does not
I just used Priority pass to get into the Dan lounge last Monday Feb 13th, must have been from the last days
Indeed.
By then it was already removed from the Amex site
Friday morning they were already removed from priority pass website but no problem scanning me in with priority pass. The workers were very accommodating and it was a great place to plug in my CPAP and rest for a couple hours on a whirlwind (10 hours on the ground) trip to Israel.
You may have been the last to get in 🙂
I was there with my wife and kids this past Thursday night. It was weird that I wasn’t able to see that the Dan lounges were accepted with Priority Pass in TLV. But when I got to the counter they took the card and scanned me in no problem.
I used it 2 months ago, I enjoyed it, better than nothing, I’ll definitely miss it.
Can you use American express platinum card?
No
Does delta silver get you in?
Not even Delta diamond
Noone is paying attention. This year in Jerusalem! Will it be for Pesach? Only God knows.
Why only one suitcase?
Lucky if you can bring anything on a rescue flight!
I was there for my first time a couple weeks ago. I didnt see any kind of teudah for the prepared food. Is any of it kosher? Such a shame if not.
Rabanut
Was better then nothing but really not worth it, any updates if and when united is opening a club lounge in tlv?
Will definitely miss it.
Who is the one cancelling the contract (which side was loosing $) priority pass or Dan?
Almost certainly Dan
Why would they? Don’t they get nicely reimbursed by PP? and i cant see them caring to much about overcrowding.. that’s not the Israeli mentality
Usually what happens is the lounges try to get more money and PP doesn’t want to pay more.
I have had very poor results finding any priority pass lounges recently in a bunch of airports/ terminals I flew through. Are they still around?
I experienced the same. No lounge access at LYS, OTP and now TLV. I almost certain that the first two had PriorityPass access in the past
I have visited both dan lounges many many times, and although it wasn’t The Pier first it definitely was better then nothing, and with easy access requirements it was a great option.. will be really missed
Don’t forget that the Israeli Amex Platinum still gets you in for free, unlimited visits. The Israeli Plat also gets a free Platinum AU and has no $75K spend requirement for guesting privileges at Centurion lounges. The card is really looking better and better..
Cost per year?
$27.14 per month
It’s $27 a month yes in usd
Any way for Americans to apply?
I would say that there potentially is if you have an Israeli bank account (a regular bank, not via the Post Office…). You can get the Plat issued and tied to your bank. If a bank will sign off on it, Amex will not object. Pretty painless to do that, it’s a very standard thing here for regular consumer bank accounts (I.e. absolutely nothing to do with private banking and all that, in case that was what it came across as)
There is an unpublished trick that certain people are eligible for that gets you 50% off the AF, i.e. only $160/year including a free full Platinum AU. At that price, the card is a moneymaker after credits, gifts, and Platinum-exclusive promotions, even before taking into account the (now relevant) Dan access and Centurion lounge guesting privileges for both main and AU without needing to spend $75K.
do you have the link or DP for this trick?
I ha an account at Bank Hapoalim, How do i get this card with 50% off Af?
I saw in my Isracard account that i can get more credit cards but didn’t find it as valuable?
Although it is mediocre, I will definitely miss it, this may be the tipping point to downgrade my CSR.
for those of us “Israeli locals” who are your “clientel” and are based in Israel (and who call it נתבג, despite someone getting himself all worked up about it for some reason which escapes me) it’s a loss and makes the CSR marginally less worthwhile (still worth it for the 1.5X redemptions etc. but a bit less so). It’s also honestly a loss especially on short trips to Europe when I’ll often fly with a low-cost carrier like wizzair; always nice to pay next to nothing for your ticket but still be able to hang out somewhere marginally nicer and get a quick cup of coffee. The food always was awful, no big loss there.
Seems like you are getting all worked up about a small comment someone suggested on this forum..
Never the less, most of dans “clients” have a lot more ways to a priority pass other then the CSR (venture x, platinum, business platinum hilton aspire..)
What I think Henry was pointing out is that when speaking or typing in ENGLISH it is not commonly referred to as natbag..
Tried last night without success
With Priority pass?
Just to clarify for the non-Israelis. Israelis love using acronyms for everything, hence NaTBaG is short for Namal Te’ufa Ben Gurion.
The Dan E lounge for UA business class passengers is open, not Priority Pass but certainly better than the regular Dan. Seems like they have many more pay to enter clients in the Dan B and C now as well as business/frequent fliers. It’s about money? PP not paying them enough? Overcrowding?
How is is that some cards still get you in ? If it’s removed from priority pass isn’t it removed for every card that offers priority pass ?
Can I claim my United one time pass in Ben Gurion?
No
What a crying shame.
Wasn’t great, but far better than sitting in the airport..
Hey Dan, what can we do to pressure PP to up their game? Anyway to get them to partner with one of the new lounges that they’re building?
I feel like this is happening too often.. EWR had similar as well.
The lounge in Eilat Ramon airport is still on the PP site but seemed temporarily closed last week according to reports.
Do I have to be flying American to access the lounge with Citi advantage executive card?
Natbag is an abbreviation
=Namal teufa ben gurion airport
Meh, not going to be missed. Was overcrowded, very poor food and generally unpleasant. Prefer paying 50₪ for kafe maafe in the fast food area.
Where do you check that United club card gives access?
There used to be a way to check, but it’s gone now.
But in the past they have accepted the United Club membership card for entry.
Is there still an actual club card given out? United tells me to access on the app, does Dan accept digital cards?
Try and let us know.
Nothing like Fattal
Nothing like its cost 😉
Arbel- Just improved it. Now it’s same sitch as Fattal but with Duty Free access.
Before security makes it not tempting
1st World problems
3rd world airports have better lounges and more mehadrin kosher food than the Dan.
I flew out of Zimbabwe and was amazed at how many of the snacks were kosher.
Guys let’s not sleep on JFK T4, pretty lousy priority pass lounges there too…
Plaza Premium’s Virgin is great
Last time I flew Elal JFK T4 I was told I cant access plaza premium because it was a different security section. ELAL’s gates are in the 60’s while the lounge is in the 50’s.
Is that true that I can’t get to the lounge
When did you fly?
We flew in June and had no issues.
Sorry my mistake.
Was ELAL from EWR Terminal B.
Tried accessing “Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse operated by Plaza Premium Group” which is in “Terminal B after security, first elevators on the right, near Gate B51”
However Elal is gate 62 which is from a different security check.
if you have time just go to the lounge first than out and back through security for elal…
it’s a hassle but better than sitting next to gate 62…
last time flew delta was able to get in with my amex plat great lounge wit great service ,showers,food and spirits!!!!!!!!
plaza premium isn’t accessible with pp, only amex platinum, amex centurion, capital one venture x, venture (only twice a year), and spark business (only twice a year) cards can get you in
I was just at Dan lounge with priority pass on Friday the 17th
Appears to have gone into effect on the 18th.
Hi Dan can i get into the lounge with United club infinite card even if I am not flying united
can someone clarify how the Israeli’s amex platinum access dan and if indeed the American amex platinum wont work
They need to swipe the physical Israeli Amex Plat to get free access – no Google/Apple Pay versions accepted. An American Amex Platinum will not work since access was based on Priority Pass, not a direct agreement with Dan Lounge like Amex Israel has in place.
same with Virgin club/plaza prem. in JFK T4 need hard card won’t accept apple etc.
Any other way to get in?
Can I get in with United Business Mileage plus or United Explorer?
the salads or dips had very good hechsher (rabbinical supervision)
so did the crackers and cookies
also the milk and yogurts
so it was a nice place for a lite kosher little pre flight meal
I was just there end of January
the staff was accomodating
they showed me the original packaging of the salads and baked goods
so I can check the supervision
I will miss it !
This is a terrible lounge. My wife and I had an early morning flight out of TLV and we showed up at the Dan Lounge around 5 am. The food was laughable — cold cereal was the best choice — and it was cheek to jowl crowded. We would have left to just sit in the terminal, but somehow we managed to get the last table on the right side next to the coffee machine, so we each had 2 square feet of space. Good riddance!
I just got into the Dan lounge by having a klm ticket with sky priority on it because of Delta Platinum Status…
Ewr and LGA both have brand new terminals but no pp lounges. A real shame.
Just searched in my account on prioritypass.com for lounges in TLV
Dan lounge came up but says: THE LOUNGE IS NOT AVAILABLE FOR ACCESS UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE.
the desk agent in the lounge asked me to show her that message in the app so she can take a picture of it and print it out to hang on the door.
Was in Ben Gurion sunday night. Went to Dan lounges (on concourse B and C). Staff at both of them told me that it’s only temporary (though don’t know if they know what they’re talking about).
i recently flew back from TLV (last week) and used my priority pass to get into the lounge.
It ended this week.
Bde
do you thin they are gonna open any new lounges that take priority pass
Major loss for me… as I pass thru a lot. Was shockingly just denied entrance and learned about it the hard way …
1. Does United infinite or AA exec gets you in there without other requirements (not having to be flying that airline or business )
I signed up for the ink business preferred card-requiring I spend $6000 in 3 months with 90,000 bonus point. I called Chase to see how far along I was with my miles and they told me the deal is I have to spend $15,000 in three months to get 100,000 points. How can I get the original deal I signed up for? Thanks
Ink Preferred is $15K spend.
does the united presidential plus card get you in?
Just tried this week to get into the Dan lounge with the United Club Infinite card and they did not let me in
Did you show them your United Club membership card? Is that no longer valid for entry?
Maybe try asking United at checkin for a lounge invitation based on your club membership?
Living in Israel 4 decades. Dan is correct.
Natbag is what Israelis usually call the airport, though they can call it ‘Ben Gurion’ or ‘the airport’.
How great you have the energy & time to squabble over such a petty thing. Henry, Josh, Chuchem –
Your wives are very lucky women.
Food was terrible, but better to get in and have a drink than do nothing outside…
any reasonable other way to get in or to pressure PP?
called chase to complain but they said they had no impact and couldn’t reduce the fee because of it…
I just found this post as I search my app for priority pass. Dmanittttttt. While it sucked as a lounge was still something. BDE
Dan at TLV airport is back on the App!
**priority pass is back to Tel Aviv**
They are accepting priority pass as of yesterday June 10, 2023
Is there a gemach, group or thread that of someone is in the airport they can text to see if a member is there and let nonmembers in?
Make one on DDF?
Haha, yes let’s see how fast we can get them to drop priority pass again!
Will be there tonight. Hoping it improved a bit.
Wonder who gave in,
1.Dan lounge saw a huge drop in revenue so they figured they will stick with priority pass price, or 2. priority pass received a lot of heat from the credit card companies and customers and renegotiated for a higher price,
if the 2nd is true I hope they asked Dan lounge from some improvements or they are just keeping this lounge agreement alive until they can secure a contract of a better one….. Well, I agree something is better than nothing as it stands now, priority pass TLV Dan lounge location is very uncompetitive and unattractive to most travelers…. Especially when you competed to the rest of the world airports
Another angle:
PassportCard (the largest Israeli travel insurance company) has a flight delay=lounge access product included in their policies. This is run by collinson, ie. Priority Pass.
Maybe the policy holders noticed that there isn’t a PP lounge in TLV and the pressure came from passportcard to collinson to get the Dan lounges back in the program?
Not much in there, and they pour you soda from a 2 liter bottle into glasses…
I used it a week ago. IMO, it was worse than just using an empty gate area and paying for a good croissant .
I can confirm it. I was there last night and it was pretty packed as usual.
+1
yay! terrible powdered soup and mayonnaise salad for everyone!
😀
What’s wrong with going to a shmorg before your flight? 🙂
Do they admit you with the United one time pass cards?
No
No that only works at united club lounges
No
They didn’t allow in pp in May
AA Platinum status and above gets you entry, although you must have the physical card with you, not just have status stamped on your ticket. I look forward to the day they improve the place, but it is safe to say they are victims of their clientele.
United Gold status gives access to the Dan lounge +1 companion
Still can’t believe they named the lounge after you!
Funny I know it’s not the case but it always makes me think of Dans Deals when I go
Was just there on Tuesday. It was nice and quiet. Food was good as well as bar.
Did you get in with priority pass?
I was there on Wednesday and they didn’t let me use priority pass. I was flying in business so I got in however I was unable to bring in a friend
Thank you so much for the post- I have a flight tonight and am enjoying the lounge!!
Awesome!
Just called priority pass to confirm because I’ll be flying out of tlv next week and they told me it’s not why is that
https://www.dansdeals.com/points-travel/goodbye-israels-last-priority-pass-lounge/#comment-1636479
as a secondary capital one venture x cardholder you just have to show the cc to enter the Dan Lounge?
No, you need to request a Priority Pass card and show that.
Friday 6/2 I was there. As a joke I asked about priority pass. The agent told me it may be coming back but she hopes not
Hi Dan, I am currently in the Dan lounge at TLV, I was able to enter with my priority pass!
Is the ink business preferred accepted in the Dan Lounge?
No.
https://www.dansdeals.com/credit-cards/wondering-current-lounge-access-benefits-primary-secondary-amex-capital-one-chase-citi-cardholders-comparison-chart/
Yes, priority pass grants lounge access again.
I was there yesterday (around 12pm local time) and it was pretty empty, food options wasn’t amazing but decent. Salads, breads and spread. Yogurts, pastries and fruits and coffee. I was able to bring in another person with priority pass.