Our Guide to the Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver (US Departures)

The Plaza Premium lounge in Vancouver International Airport (YVR) is one of 5 such lounges at this location. It's located in the US Departures Concourse and was renovated just a few years ago.

To access the lounge, you'll need a valid same-day boarding pass from any airline and a paid entry fee, membership, or premium credit card – preferably one from our list of Canada's best lounge access credit cards.

This guide explains the different ways you can access the lounge, describes the visiting experience, and more.

How to access the US Departures Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver

There are 5 Plaza Premium Lounges in Vancouver International Airport: 2 in the Domestic Concourse, 2 in the International Departures Concourse, and 1 in the US Transborder Concourse.

Before your flight leaves from the US Transborder Concourse, you can relax in the Plaza Premium Lounge located in Pier E near Gate E88. It's open every day from 4:45 AM – 9:00 PM PT (Monday through Thursday and 4:45 AM – 10 PM PT (Friday through Sunday.

Once you reach the front desk, you'll need to present a valid, same-day boarding pass issued by any airline and one of the following:

Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver: Entry fee

Plaza Premium Lounge fees vary by location, length of stay, and age. To access the US Departures lounge in Pier E, the entry fees are as follows:

You can save money by taking advantage of deals like:

• 20% off with a Smart Traveller digital membership
• Up to 50% off with a PPL Pass Americas, which grants 2 3-hour visits at any lounge in North or South America for $80 USD
• Up to 50% off with a PPL Pass Canada, which grants 5 – 10 3-hour visits to any lounge in Canada for $155 – $295 USD

You can reserve your seat in a lounge up to a year in advance with the online booking service, or reserve entry for a group of 10 or more at least 1 week in advance. Bring a printed copy of your booking confirmation email to the lounge to ensure smooth entry.

Note: PPL Passes are shareable, transferable, and valid for up to 12 months after purchase.

Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver: Membership

DragonPass members can access every Plaza Premium Lounge in Canada for free with unlimited or limited complimentary lounge visits. If you're out of free passes, you'll need to pay $32 – $35 USD for each 2-hour visit, which saves up to 57% off the admission price.

Priority Pass members can also access every Plaza Premium Lounge in Canada by using the unlimited or limited complimentary lounge access included in their membership. After you use your free passes, lounge access costs $35 USD per 2-hour visit, saving you 57% on regular admission.

Credit cards with Plaza Premium Lounge access

Whether you prefer American Express, Mastercard, or Visa, you have several options for getting access to airport lounges with your credit card.

The easiest method is to flash a card with the Amex Global Lounge Collection, the Mastercard Travel Pass, or the Visa Airport Companion Program. Depending on how many complimentary visits remain on your card, you could get in for free.

Here are the premium credit cards in Canada you can use to get into the Plaza Premium Lounge in the US Departures Concourse for free:

Credit card	Annual Fee	Welcome Bonus	Free Plaza Premium Lounge Visits
The Platinum Card	$799	Up to 100,000 bonus points (terms)	Unlimited (with at least $20,000 spent in 1 year)
Scotiabank American Express Platinum Card	$399	$200 GeniusCash + Up to 60,000 100,000 bonus points (terms)	10 (+4 for supplemental cardholders)
BMO Ascend World Elite Mastercard	$150	$150 GeniusCash + Up to 115,000 bonus points, first year free (terms)	4
RBC Avion Visa Infinite Privilege	$399	Up to 100,000 bonus points (terms)	6
TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege Card	$599	Up to 100,000 bonus points (terms)	6
Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite + Card	$150	$50 GeniusCash + 25,000 bonus points (terms)	6
American Express Gold Rewards Card	$250	Up to 60,000 bonus points (terms)	4 (Canadian lounges only)
CIBC Aventura Gold Visa Card	$139	Up to 45,000 bonus points, first year annual fee rebate (terms)	4
CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite Card	$139	Up to 45,000 bonus points, first year annual fee waived† (terms)	4
Desjardins Odyssey Visa Infinite Privilege	$395	None	6

Most of these cards let you purchase extra passes for $32 USD. American Express Gold Rewards Card holders need to pay $35 USD instead.

Even if your card doesn't offer any free visits, you may still be able to benefit from a free membership. Both the Tangerine Money-Back World Mastercard and the Rogers Red World Elite Mastercard include a free DragonPass membership, which you can use to enter the lounge for $32 USD – $35 USD per guest.

If you need a business credit card, check out these options:

• The Business Platinum Card from American Express for unlimited lounge access (if you reach $20,000 in spending for the year
• Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Business Card for 6 annual free visits
• BMO Ascend World Elite Business Mastercard for 2 annual free visits.

The US Departures Plaza Premium Lounge experience in Vancouver

Hours:

• Monday – Thursday: 4:45 AM – 9:00 PM PT
• Friday – Sunday: 4:45 AM – 10:00 PM PT

Location: US Transborder Concourse, Pier E, Level 3, near Gate E88

Maximum stay: 6 hours

Payment forms accepted: Alipay, American Express, Mastercard, PayPal, WeChat Pay, Visa

Amenities:

• Accessible facilities and washrooms
• Complimentary food and drink
• Complimentary house beer, liquor, and wine (9:00 AM – close)
• Fax machine, printer, and photocopier*
• Flight monitors
• Premium bar service* (9:00 AM – close)
• Showers*
• Televisions
• Vegetarian and gluten-free dining options (upon request)
• Wi-Fi and charging stations

* Available at additional cost

Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver: Atmosphere

Image credit: Plaza Premium Lounge

The Plaza Premium Lounge in the US Departures Concourse seats 132 guests with a thoughtful layout and décor. The palette of muted blues, greens, and light wood creates a lively and convivial atmosphere – or it could be the fact that this lounge is almost always full.

Because the US pre-clearance zone closes at 9:00 or 10:00 PM, the lounge does too; US travellers on later flights are welcome to use the Plaza Premium Lounge in the International Concourse.

"Plaza Premium Lounge at the US Departures area is perfectly adequate if you keep your expectations sensible. The biggest issue was the seating. Tables were packed rather closely together, so the lounge felt more crowded than relaxing. It was also clearly understaffed. As more guests arrived, used tables sat uncleared for quite a while, making it difficult to find a clean place to sit." – 4-Star Google review by The Duke Approves

Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver: Comfort

Image credit: Plaza Premium Lounge

The lounge's seating is organized around its pride and joy – an enormous square marble bar. Head past reception, and it'll be the first thing you see, as well as:

• TV room: Look to your immediate left, behind the gold screen, for a handful of dove-grey leather tub chairs with side tables arranged around a TV on the wall.
• Conversation area: To the left of the bar is a series of tall tables with 3 – 4 seats arranged around them. Behind the frosted glass screens against the wall, you'll find a few pairs of padded chairs and small gold side tables.
• Bar seating area: The central bar in front of you has about a dozen high-top chairs surrounding 3 of its sides.
• Dining area: Turn right after reception and walk past the bar, food serving area, and the hallway to the washrooms. On the right side of the lounge, you'll find 10 seats on a long bench, 2 long banquet tables with 8 chairs each, and 2 green half-booths, each with seating for 6.
• Work area: If you continue past the dining area, you'll find a counter lining the far wall sporting overhead work lights, electrical outlets, and seating for about 10.
• Window seating area: The far wall of the lounge isn't really a wall, but a series of floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the arrivals hall. You probably won't find an outlet, but you can find a seat in a brown leather lounge chair with a side table, and people-watch.

Traffic flow around the central bar is good, and folks with mobility issues should have room to navigate as long as the lounge isn't too packed.

"The lounge was clean and modern, with a relaxing atmosphere. There were plenty of comfortable seats by the window and nice natural lighting…The staff were very friendly and polite. They greeted me warmly and quickly cleared used dishes from tables. WiFi was fast and stable. There were enough charging ports near most seats. The washrooms were clean and well stocked.

Overall, I had a pleasant experience. The Plaza Premium Lounge at U.S. Departures is a great spot to relax before a flight — definitely one of the best options for travelers flying to the U.S. from YVR." – 5-Star Google review by Patcharakamon H

Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver: Dining

Image credit: Plaza Premium Lounge

Hungry guests will be pleased to find the buffet to the immediate right of the reception desk. The hot food counter offers 4 large warming trays, 2 soup tureens, and plenty of snacks and pastries. Salad, fruit, cold drinks, and dessert wait in the fridge at the end of the counter, while the alcoholic and non-alcoholic drink stations border the dining area.

Plaza Premium Lounges aren't known for their culinary offerings, but good customer service makes up for a lot, at least at this location.

The staff keep dishes clear and trays full of Asian and Italian cuisine – although the large number of diners occasionally leaves the bar unstaffed.

"The food is buffet-style with plenty of solid options—fresh, well-stocked, and way above typical airport food. Service was consistently great too, with staff staying on top of clearing tables and helping guests without being intrusive.

There's also a full bar available if you want something beyond what's included, though that comes at an extra charge. Still, with the quality of the included offerings (especially that IPA), it hardly feels necessary." – 5-Star Google review by Danny Real

Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver: Entertainment

The US Departures Plaza Premium Lounge emphasizes guests entertaining themselves more than providing things to do. The lounge has 9 televisions (mostly around the bar) showing news, sports, and flight info, but no magazines or children's play areas.

Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver: Rules and restrictions

There's a short list of DON'Ts to remember while visiting the US Departures Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver:

• DON'T bring outside food or beverages
• DON'T carry food or beverages outside
• DON'T dress inappropriately
• DON'T leave minors unattended
• DON'T smoke
• DON'T watch videos or listen to music without a pair of headphones

The admission of pets and service animals is subject to the lounge's discretion – make sure to call ahead if you're travelling with a furry friend.

Is the US Departures Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver worth it?

We wanted to see what real travellers had to say about using this lounge, so we checked out Reddit threads.

The general opinion is that the lounge is pretty basic – and that it might not be worth the standalone entry fee:

That said, if you don't mind a simple lounge with few frills, it's not bad for filling a few hours between flights. This user noted that they preferred it to the Air Canada lounge:

If your needs are simple and you've got free access, the Plaza Premium Lounge can be a nice spot to wait before your flight. Is it worth $100+? Probably not, but families flying with children might appreciate the amenities and convenience.

FAQ

Can you tell me how to access Plaza Premium Lounge YVR?

To access the Plaza Premium Lounge at YVR, head to the US Transborder Departure Pier E at Gate E88. When you enter the lounge, you'll have to show your same-day boarding pass and pay the entry fee or show your membership or eligible credit card.

Can anyone access Plaza Premium Lounges?

Anyone with a same-day boarding pass can access the lounge as long as there's space and the traveller pays the appropriate entrance fee. You can avoid the fee if you have a lounge membership that gives you free access or a premium credit card that includes lounge access.

How much is the Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver?

The entry price for the Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver depends on how long you're staying (2 to 6 hours), whether you're paying for shower access, and whether you're travelling with children. Be prepared to pay between $61 CAD and $202 CAD.

Which cards are accepted at Plaza Premium Lounges in Canada?

Plaza Premium Lounges in Canada aren't tied to one card network. Access usually comes through DragonPass – via Visa Airport Companion or Mastercard Travel Pass – Priority Pass on select Amex cards, or direct partnerships like the American Express Gold Rewards Card. Free visits and guest privileges vary by card.

Where is the Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver Airport?

The Plaza Premium Lounge in Vancouver Airport is located in the US Transborder Departure Pier. Specifically, you'll go to Pier E and look for Gate E88. It's just around the corner from security screening, and it's the pier opposite the food court.