American Express is being flexible muscular waiting room with the opening of an exclusive club inside one of Tallest skyscrapers in New York City.
The issuer is building what it calls a “New York Centurion” inside the 93-story One Vanderbilt building in midtown Manhattan, just a few blocks from Grand Central Terminal and Bryant Park.
While the named space is invite-only Centurion Card from American Express, the lounge will actually be open to everyone. Here’s what we know so far.
Information about the Centurion Card has been independently collected by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
What is the opening date of Centurion New York?
Centurion New York will open in March. Reservations are expected to open in late February.
What’s inside the New York Centurion?
The exclusive Centurion Club will offer all Amex cardholders a luxurious escape from the hustle and bustle of New York.
Amenities include a comprehensive dining menu, extensive drink list, and plenty of space to relax and socialize with other cardholders.
Celebrity chef Daniel Boulud, best known for his Michelin-starred restaurant Daniel, will arrange a casual and fine dining menu for Centurion New York, though it’s unclear if the dishes will be free.
Centurion New York will have specially trained concierge staff who will be able to assist cardholders with any personalized request, from dining reservations to travel planning.
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Although the size and layout of the lounge is a well-kept secret, Amex advertises that the space was designed by renowned studio Yabu Pushelberg. The walls will be adorned with a rotating selection of artwork curated by Artsy, an online art marketplace. If you are interested, these pieces will be available for purchase.
Your sense of smell will also be amazed as Diptyque creates a distinctive scent that will be pumped into the living room.
While some utilities will be available to all cardholders, many will be exclusive to cardholders. Centurion Card (“black”).
This includes exclusive members-only events, some of which will be dedicated to learning more about wine, according to information shared by Centurion cardholders with TPG. Other events will focus on arts, culture and lifestyle programming.
There will be a private dining space in the lounge, where Centurion cardholders can reserve for business meetings or other special occasions. Other private rooms and seating areas will be reserved for Centurion members.
How do I get access to Centurion New York?
While some may think that Centurion New York will be limited to black card holders, that is not the case.
All of American Express cardholders will be able to access Centurion New York if reservations are made through Resy, according to people familiar with the matter, including Amex membership experts.
In fact, members of the public, including those who don’t yet have an Amex card, will also be able to make reservations to visit Centurion New York. Pre-orders are expected to open in late February, and we’ll update this story with more details as they become available.
Once you’ve secured a reservation — there’s no word yet on how difficult it will be — access will be free for all cardholders and members of the general public. It’s not clear how long each booking window will last or how many guests you can bring into the lounge.
While the lounge will be open to all cardholders, Centurion Card holders will have priority access and expanded availability.
While Amex never shared too many details about the Centurion card experience, black card invite only are usually reserved for very famous individuals and businesses with monthly expenses of up to hundreds of thousands of dollars and extremely high net worth.
The issuer used to offer Centurion cards to celebrities, CEOs and other VIPs. The Centurion card comes with a $5,000 annual fee (in addition to the $10,000 one-time start fee).
We’ll update this story with more access details as they become available, but most Amex cardholders will likely be delighted that the issuer won’t limit the club to those with top card.
Where is Centurion New York located?
Centurion New York opened in March on the 55th floor of the One Vanderbilt building, the fourth tallest skyscraper in New York City.
One Vanderbilt is located just steps from Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan’s Midtown East section.
In addition to the Centurion Club, the building also houses a Thrilling observatory opening in 2021. Summit One Vanderbilt is also home to Apres, a terrace and a lounge headed by iconic hotelier and restaurateur Danny Meyer’s Union Square Events.
bottom line
As Amex faced increased competition the words Chase and capital one In the areas of premium credit cards and airport lounge spaces, the company once again raised the bar in what it means to be a cardholder with the opening of Centurion New York.
While we’ll reserve judgment until we fully review the new lounge, Centurion New York is poised to become a luxury space in the heart of Manhattan that is sure to be quite popular with cardholders. (and members of the public) live or work in or visit New York City.
While there may be more Centurion clubs out of the airport in the works, I imagine that the initial focus will be on enhancing the New York experience. In the past, Amex has opened lounges for cardholders in places like Vail, Colorado; Deer Valley, Utah; and Tokyoalthough Centurion New York will become the issuer’s first permanent club outside the airport.
Interestingly, Amex will also be welcoming non-cardholders into the lounge, although it is likely that fewer reservations will be issued to members of the public. Of course, it is also possible that the publisher will try to monetize the experience of being in the club with expensive food and drink offerings.
As opening time approaches, stay tuned to TPG for more details and a full Centurion New York review.
For more on American Express Centurion Lounges, check out:
