Alaska Airlines lounges are affordable with good ambiance and amenities such as a pancake machine, as per last year's guide. In my latest travels, I visited the recently renovated Seattle/Tacoma Airport (SEA) Concourse C and found the airline lounge just right.

Alaska Airlines renovating its lounges

Recently, Alaska Airlines updated its lounge policies alongside Alaska Airlines’ ongoing general renovations of its lounges. The policies were updated to address overcrowding in the lounges, as airline lounges are intended to be a calming, quiet place for passengers versus the bustle and crowds of the general airport.

As Sangita Woerner, senior vice president of marketing and guest experience at Alaska Airlines, said in a February 9, 2022 airline statement about the lounge upgrade investments;

Being a regular user of Alaska Airlines for my traveling needs, I do seek out their lounges – mostly for the pancake machine and the views. I also have found other airlines’ access policies to their airline lounges overly restrictive compared to the few times a year I would use a lounge.

A renovated lounge restarts my day

I was pleasantly surprised to find that the C Concourse lounge so welcoming after now paying $30 to enter as a First Class passenger flying less 2,100 miles – or just 121 miles. I was able to find a window seat and get planespotting quickly.

The lounge has been freshly renovated with an additional 3,000 square feet and 60 more seats created by repurposing office space.

I also used the famous pancake machine and got not just one but two pairs of small pancakes. Additionally, I was able get as much Starbucks coffee as I could want to charge up. I could also get limitless orange juice and even a Coca-Cola with lime before heading to my flight if this was insufficient. If I wanted, I could request an alcoholic beverage. However, for several reasons, I declined.

I appreciated having windowsills to set my cameras and more down on. You can see where I was set up to the left of the below photo with my blue backpack. Maybe a bit rude, but as a planespotter, I like the ability to grab my equipment quickly.

Photo: Joe Kunzler | Simple Flying

WiFi was decent and free for me to be able to check in on work and e-mail. But then again, I use WiFi on the road to keep in touch and stream only music on Spotify, not movies.

Does the renovated Alaska Airlines C Concourse meet its goals?

Important question, considering Woerner’s quote above about guests loving the lounges and providing value. For an additional $30 to my Alaska Airlines First Class ticket, I was able to get the following:

• A relatively safe and quiet space to do planespotting
• Limitless pancakes and beverages
• Free WiFi above and beyond the airport’s free service
• A multitude of seating options

As such, I believe I got value for my latest trip to an Alaska Airlines lounge. Really appreciate a place to recharge and, in the case of the Concourse C lounge, take in the views of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. One can even see a photo of me planespotting and one of my planespotting photos:

What do you expect from an airline lounge? Please share in the comments section.