Waiting for hours at the airport can often prove tedious as well as expensive. Crowded waiting areas, overpriced food options and other inconveniences can all lead to a bad travel experience. However, with the right credit card, this can be changed and made comfortable and affordable for an air traveller. Airport lounge access is a major attraction of credit cards. With the right credit card, travellers can avail airport lounge facilities for free or at a very low cost – including comfortable seating, free Wi-Fi, snacks and drinks.
Why is an airport lounge access card important?
With the increasing number of domestic and international flights, spending time at the airport has become commonplace. Lounge access cards not only provide comfort and convenience, but also enhance your travel experience. These cards are extremely useful for frequent travellers, and even for low-spenders, there are many options that offer great perks without a high annual fee. But before you get an airport lounge access credit card, you need to keep in mind certain important points.
What to consider?
Spending conditions: Many cards only offer lounge access if you spend a certain amount each month or quarter.
Annual/joining fees: Compare the cost of the card with the benefits it offers.
Rewards and cashback: Consider how much savings the card offers on everyday expenses like shopping, travel, dining, or bill payments, not just lounge access.
Forex mark-up: This fee should be low if you travel internationally.
Read the T&Cs carefully: Sometimes the number of lounge visits, locations, and partner airports are limited.
Should you have more than one lounge card?
People often wonder if it’s necessary to have two or three different cards. The answer depends on your travel patterns. If you’re a frequent traveler, yes, having multiple cards is beneficial, as all cards have lounge visit limits. If you travel occasionally, one suitable card is sufficient. Also, keep in mind that managing multiple cards can sometimes be cumbersome.
Top 5 affordable credit cards in the market right now (Sep 2025):
1. IDFC First Bank Select Credit Card
- Enjoy 2 complimentary domestic lounge visits per quarter by spending Rs 20,000 in the current month to avail of benefit in the next month.
- Save on international transactions with a low forex mark-up fee of 1.99%.
- Enjoy 4 complimentary railway lounge visits per quarter without additional charges.
- Includes free trip cancellation cover up to Rs 10,000.
- Earn up to 10x accelerated reward points on select spends.
- Zero joining or annual fees.
2. Federal Bank Scapia Credit Card
- Enjoy unlimited domestic airport lounge access by spending Rs 10,000 on VISA or Rs 15,000 on RuPay in a billing cycle.
- Zero forex mark-up fee lets you save on international transactions.
- Earn 20% rewards on travel bookings.
- Earn 10% rewards on all eligible online & offline spends.
- Redeem Scapia Coins instantly for travel bookings on Scapia app (5 coins = ₹1).
- Zero joining/annual fee.
3. Standard Chartered EaseMyTrip Credit Card
- Enjoy 2 complimentary domestic airport lounge visits per calendar year.
- Enjoy flat discounts of 20% on hotel bookings and 10% on flight bookings done via the EaseMyTrip website/app (conditions apply).
- Earn 10x reward points per Rs 100 spent on direct hotel and airline bookings.
- Annual fee – Rs 350, waived on annual spends of Rs 50,000 or more.
4. Tata Neu Plus HDFC Bank Credit Card
- Enjoy up to 4 domestic lounge visits annually (one per quarter) on spends of Rs 50,000 in a calendar quarter.
- Receive 499 NeuCoins as Welcome benefit on completing your first transaction.
- Earn 7% rewards on Tata Neu (on select categories); 2% rewards when shopping with Tata partner brands (online and offline); 1% rewards on all other spends, excluding select categories.
- Zero joining fee for limited time
- Renewal fee – Rs 499, waived on annual spends of Rs 1 lakh in the preceding year.
5. Axis Bank ACE Credit Card – 4 lounge visits with great cashback on dining and bill payments.
- Enjoy 4 complimentary lounge visits each year to select domestic airports.
- Get 5% cashback on utility bill payments done via Google Pay (electricity, internet, gas, DTH, and mobile recharges).
- Earn 4% cashback on spends made via Swiggy, Zomato, and Ola, and 1.5% cashback on all other retail spends.
- Save with 1% fuel surcharge waiver on fuel transactions between Rs 400 and Rs 4,000.
- Avail up to 15% off at over 4000 partner restaurants across India under the Dining Delights program.
- Joining/annual fee – Rs 499; Waived from second year onwards on annual spends of Rs 2 lakh or more.
(Data source: Bankbazaar.com)
Summing up…
If you fly regularly, a good credit card with airport lounge access can completely transform your travel experience. But when choosing a card, don’t just look at lounge access; consider features like rewards, cashback, and forex charges. Most importantly, choose a card based on your spending patterns. The right choice will not only make travel easy and affordable, but also help you save on everyday expenses.
