Chase Sapphire Lounge - San Diego Airport

I haven't been playing the Travel Credit Card points game that long so I've been playing catchup on using all the different benefits I've been missing all these years. One of the nice perks the higher-tier Travel Credit Cards are the access to airport lounges. Some cards like American Express and Chase have their own branded lounges and they are usually decked out. One of the great perks for the higher tier cards like American Express Platinum card, is the Priority Pass, which grants you access to a network of hundreds of third-party lounges across the world.

The Priority Pass lounges have been a hit and miss. They are much smaller and usually more crowded than the official credit card-branded lounges. San Diego has been extremely lacking in dedicated airport lounges and for the longest time, the Aspire Lounge was the only lounge available at the San Diego Airport (and only available in Terminal 2. It's pretty small and usually very crowded. The amenities are pretty sparse, usually baked goods, cereal, fruits and salad. There are coffee machine that grind the coffee beans per cup but the soda offerings are from a single multipurpose fountain serving different flavors from a single fountain. But the lack of amenities and large crowds, plus being spoiled from other lounges, has pretty much kept me away from this lounge.

Aspire Lounge crowd

Chase has been slowly building up their brand of lounges. Currently there are only 8 Chase lounges in the US, including San Diego. The Chase Sapphire Lounge opened December 2024 in San Diego Terminal 2, providing another option other than Aspire. The Chase Sapphire Reserved cardholders (which is the more premium version) gets unlimited access to these lounges. Chase Sapphire preferred cardholders (which I hold) do not get access to the lounge. BUT, if you are a Priority Pass holder, you can get access to this lounge once per calendar year. So being a Priority Pass member through AMEX, I can use this lounge once this year. I was able to use it earlier this year.

The San Diego Chase Sapphire Lounge is probably smaller that the counterparts in other cities, but it is much bigger than the Aspire Lounge. It features a full bar, extensive buffet section, private relaxtion pods, family rooms and spacious restrooms. Some rooms provide scenic views of the airfield (I've been in lounges that had no windows whatsoever).

Nice spacious seating areas with nice views. The seating area has plenty of outlets and charging stations.

Nice bar area, although I'm not a drinker

The buffet area was well stocked. Some warm dishes such as egg fritatta, chickpea and sweet potato hash, bean stew, and assorted breakfast dishes such as banana/fig smoothies, fruit bowls, and french toast. There is a coffee machine, juice station, and a fridge with canned drinks/sodas.

The dishes seem well put together and alot of care in presentation put into it. The frittata was nicely made and most likely made with real eggs (and not some type of instant eggs). The curried chickpeas and sweet potato hash had red onion, crispy kale and a hint of ginger and lemon. Very nice.

The vegan white bean shaksuka was nicely seasons, and the beans cooked very well.

You can also choose from a menu of made to order small plates via a QRC code of the tables. The menu changes regularly (probably monthly). There are some items that are curated by Oscar's Mexican Seafood. You can also order cocktail though the QRC menu, but I'm not much of a drinker.

I decided on the Green Chili and mushroom Egg Benedict and the Egg and Cheese Bao. The eggs benedict was okay, I wish the egg yolk was more runny. Still good. The Egg and cheese boa was a nice touch. The boa itself was soft and seem freshly made and the egg was nice and soft.

The Chase Sapphire Lounge is a much needed addition to the San Diego Airport. If you have to means to use it, definitely take advantage of it

Chase Sapphire Lounge

3835 N Harbor Dr Terminal 2

San Diego, CA 92101

Hours: 5am to 10pm Daily