Airlines Rankings

Delta (10/10)

• Member #: 9924076392

• Pros: T-Mobile WiFi, mostly nonstop flights, Delta lounges (w/ card)

• Cons: Expensive, sometimes charging doesn’t work, no flights to certain areas like El Paso

• Review: I see Delta as the most premium mainstream airlines. The airport where I’m currently live near SLC is Delta based as there are two Delta lounges and has it’s own floor just for check-in.

Southwest (9/10)

• Member #: Andyluong2000

• 2025: Open seating; Major changes in 2026

• Pros: T-Mobile WiFi, frequent deals and cheap flights, choose basic as refund to points isn’t bad

• Cons: No lounges, premium options useless

• Review: My whole childhood was using Southwest flights. It is a good all rounder airlines as many don’t need extra travel benefits.

Frontier (8/10)

• Member #: 90109885860

• Pros: Cheapest

• Cons: Same price as others if you add extras, no bottom storage, seats are average

• Review: It helps a lot that I am military as you really only get to bring one bag if not. I was able to get a $85 round trip between SLC and SFO. If you add other features to match the experience of airlines, the price will be the same so just switch to the other ones.

Others

• American Airlines: Used when traveling relating to the military but forgot

• International Airlines: Don’t remember when flying to Tokyo, London, and Cancun

Airport/Lounges Rankings

Airport crowds are probably unavoidable wherever you go but the city location, size, and features make them different. Lounges I use are from the following: Centurion, Chase, Delta, USO and Priority Pass.

• Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) - 7/10

  • Lounges: Centurion > Priority Pass > Delta

• Denver (DEN) - 9/10

  • Biggest, many layovers flights go here, free bus for military

  • Lounges: Delta, Centurion

• Dulles (IAD) - 7/10

• El Paso (ELP) - 5/10

  • No lounges, many outbound flights needing layovers

• Las Vegas (LAS) - 8/10

  • Best Chase lounge, slot machines

• Los Angeles (LAX) - 8/10

  • Lounges: USO (Biggest), Delta

• New York, LaGuardia (LGA) - 7/10

• Phoenix (PHX) - 7/10

  • Cancelled flight

  • Lounges: Chase > Centurion > Delta > Escape

• Oakland (OAK) - 6/10

  • Escape lounge, Poor and dangerous

• Arlington, Ronald Reagan Washington National (DCA) - 7/10

• Sacramento (SMF) - 7/10

  • IHG vibes

  • Lounges: Escape x2

• Salt Lake City (SLC) - 10/10

  • My main, Delta based,

  • Lounges: Delta x2 > Centurion > USO

• San Jose Mineta (SJC) - 8/10

  • Lounges: The Club x 2

• San Diego (SAN) - 8/10

  • Lounges: Chase

• San Francisco (SFO) - 9/10

  • Cheap

  • Lounges: USO

Lounges 

Centurion (8/10)

• Visited Locations: SLC, SFO

• Pros: Most accessible, many drinks options

• Cons: Waitlist can be terrible (~40 minutes)

• Review: This is the lounge for most people as yes you’ll need the Amex Platnium but airline lounges are too specifc and there are way more of these lounges than others like Chase.

Delta Sky Club (9/10)

• Visited Locations: SLC, DFW

• Pros: New lounges are very big

• Cons: Premium drinks are extra, no wait

• Review: Premium flights better mean premium lounges and this one is.
  

Chase (10/10)

• Visited Locations: IAD, SAN

• Pros: All drinks are free, QR code ordering

• Cons: Limited locations

• Review: I enjoyed the most when I’m at the Chase lounges.

The Club (7/10)

• Locations: SJC

• Pros: QR code ordering, multiple in some airports

• Cons: Average size

• Review: Under the Priority Pass system, I would say this is the best one.

Escape (6/10)

• Locations: OAK

• Pros: Friendly staff

• Cons: Small size

• Review: If there’s only this lounge in the whole airport like in OAK, then it does the job.

Others

• Cancun: Mera Business Lounge (International)

• Minute Suites: Not really one and just a room

Car Rentals

With a credit card (ex. Chase Preferred) with primary car rental insurance, my experiences are renting cars at the cheapest rate I can find and excluding all protections.

AVIS - 10/10

• Member #: 5KJ044

• Pros: Best mix between service and price

• Cons: Special service inconsistent

Budget - 9/10

• Member #: X9D66H, Connected: Delta

• Pros: Cheapest

• Cons: No rewards program

National - 8/10

• Pros: Best service, premium cars and experience

• Cons: Expensive

Enterprise - 8/10

• Member #: 4PJQ59J, Status: Plus (1/4)

• Pros: Great service, most popular

• Cons: No reward benefits from credit cards, average price

Hertz - 7/10

• Member #: 20660794, Status: Five Star (2/3)

• Pros: Prices are sometimes cheap

• Cons: Bad service