I booked Air Canada Rouge from Vancouver to Los Angeles to connect to my Singapore Suites ticket from Los Angeles to Melbourne. To see the full details of my itinerary, see my post on how I booked these flights.

Before my flight I headed to the lounge. First, I stopped at the Transborder Air Canada counters at YVR to verify my documents and print out a boarding pass. Even though I checked in online, I think most passports require a verification of documents at the airport, although that could also be done at the gate.

I then went through security and US pre-clearance, which had one of the longest lines I’ve ever seen at YVR, although to be fair, it was a Monday morning and it was time for lots of families to head out on trips. The NEXUS security line was open, which was a complete lifesaver, although it was also the crew line and I kept on getting cut by lots of legacy carrier crews.

At this point I was extremely tired thanks to having a crazy night with some miles/points friends who were in Vancouver, so I apologize if photos don’t come out as well as they should. Some of the photos here are from previous visits to the lounge. The YVR Plaza Premium Lounge in the Transborder concourse is located a short walk after the US pre-clearance immigration area.

YVR Plaza Premium Lounge Transborder

This lounge is free to Canadian American Express Platinum holders, and also partners with Priority Pass.

Once the lounge agent swipes you in there’s a short hallway to the lounge area.

The lounge had lots of empty seating, a refreshing change from many jam-packed domestic lounges.

There were no tarmac views although the windows did feature a view of the immigration arrivals area and the amazing lovely CBSA agents.

The lounge is slightly more dated than the MLL but it had some decent breakfast selections, including fruit, yogurt, salad, and sandwiches. There was also a juice and coffee machine, as well as cereal, pastry, and bread selections.

There were also two hot options, which were scrambled eggs and a baked beans dish.

The only drawbacks for some maybe the lack of separate wifi access, as this lounge uses the same free Internet that’s provided by YVR in the terminal. I think this lounge is better than the Maple Leaf Lounge transborder, as there are generally fewer people resulting in peace and quiet, as well as a better food and beverage selection. The tradeoff is that you don’t get tarmac views and lounge-only wifi.

I had a few coffees, tried to stay awake, and then headed to my very first Rouge Flight!

As a Canadian, you can get enough miles for this flight with just a single credit card application with the American Express Aeroplan Gold Card, which offers 30,000 Aeroplan miles after $500 of spend within 3 months.

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