Capital One to cut lounge access for Venture Rewards and Spark Miles cardholders

There’s some bad news for select Capital One cardholders, but it may be welcome news for others.

Capital One has announced that effective Jan. 1, 2025, Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card and Capital One Spark Miles for Business cardholders will no longer receive access to Capital One’s airport lounges. While cardholders currently receive two complimentary airport lounge visits per year for either Capital One lounges or Plaza Premium lounges, that’ll no longer be the case come 2025.

Here’s the official word on this change from Capital One:

Effective January 1, 2025, Venture and Spark Miles cardholders will no longer receive complimentary lounge access. You will have 2 complimentary visits to Capital One Lounges or Plaza Premium Lounges to use by December 31, 2024. Venture and Spark Miles cardholders can access Capital One Lounges at a special rate of $45 for themselves and their guests.

If you hold either of these cards, you still have over a year to acclimate to this downgrade. While it’s a shame these cardholders will lose out, lounge access was a pretty generous perk for these low-annual-fee offerings. A reduced rate of $45 (normally $65) for cardholders and their guests isn’t a significant blow.

Why did Capital One decide to make this change? One of the likely reasons for the move is overcrowding concerns at Capital One’s three lounges at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), Denver International Airport (DEN) and Washington, D.C.’s Dulles International Airport (IAD). So, while it’s bad news for cardholders of the Venture Rewards and Spark Miles for Business — losing out on a perk for nothing in return is never great — it’s a small plus for other Capital One cardholders who will enjoy lounge access with fewer crowds and less noise.

With Capital One still relatively new to the airport lounge landscape, it makes sense that the issuer is still tweaking its process. It’s never ideal for cardholders to lose out on an admittedly generous perk. However, if you want a card with Capital One lounge access from 2025 on, you can still add the valuable Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card or the Capital One Venture X Business to your wallet.

Related: Best credit cards for airport lounge access