What is an airport concierge service and will it help you clear screening faster? Photo / Douglas Bagg, Unsplash
What is an airport concierge service and will it help you clear screening faster? Photo / Douglas Bagg, Unsplash
While you’re queuing in airport limbo, waiting to declare the melting Christmas treats in your hand luggage, know that there is a not-so secret VIP service to help you skim through the crowds.
I first came across the concierge service during Auckland’s arrivals backlog in September this year, with international travellers reporting an average of 44 minutes to be processed in arrivals and almost an hour from check in to clearing security.
While some were complaining of “madhouse” conditions there was another group of travellers who were getting the VIP treatment.
The airport concierge service offers anything from “priority processing” at passport control up to a full pōwhiri welcome to arrivals - in case you fancied arriving with style.
However, one of the biggest perks for the $165 VIP service is the chance to sail through the ‘escorted’ crew lanes at biosecurity - while the rest of the Christmas travellers wait around like turkeys.
“With international arrivals, the concierge service would typically use the allocated ‘escorted’ lanes through Customs and Biosecurity New Zealand,” says a spokesperson for Auckland Airport.
Although all travellers are still subject to the same security and screening checks, people using the service are provided with a personal airport concierge to guide them through. If there is a wait at least you’ll have some company.
The fast-track racket: Is it worth paying for quicker airport screening?
Auckland is hardly the only airport to offer a streamlined airport process. Los Angeles International - Hollywood’s gateway to the skies - is home to several private VIP services including a private terminal and luggage transfers. After losing two connecting flights and eighty minutes of my life in the LAX CBP line, even the US$4950 ($7955) annual membership fee begins to look more reasonable. Almost.
High-end queue-skipping services are nothing new. In recent years these fast-track services themselves have been streamlined.
Travelling through airports in Edinburgh and London last year provided a worrying glimpse into the future of travel. And it cost $14 for the privilege. Kiosks advertising self-service “fast track” to bypass queues for security screening.
At Luton Airport the service advertises itself by providing a clear perspex window onto the queues of hoi polloiwho didn’t pay the fast-track tax.
Premium screening: Does fast track screening save you any time in security screening? Photo / Elaine Thompson, AP
In the United States even the government is getting in on the act with the TSA’s Global Entry subscriptions - from $140 travellers can pre-register with security screening to skip the line. Though this is sadly not available to travellers on a New Zealand passport.
While a paid-for priority travel queue might be a good thing for individual travellers, it’s unclear if it does much to speed up the rest of the system.
Does providing kickbacks to airports from fast-track schemes offer any incentive to fix the congestion problem?
Earlier this year Biosecurity NZ invited 6000 passengers to trial express lanes at Auckland Airport, to cut down waiting times for passengers deemed low-risk, with nothing to declare. They were not charged for this.
Unlike other airports the Auckland Airport concierge service is still a subdued, slightly secretive affair. There is still some glamour in the service that doesn’t advertise itself with a QR code and shouty capital letters.
What is included in Auckland’s concierge service
The concierge service costs from $43 per passenger domestic and $165 international.
For this fee travellers are greeted by an airport concierge and escort for biosecurity screening, who will take you to onward travel. Porter service and luggage transfer is additional.
Arriving travellers are still subject to full Customs and Biosecurity checks. The concierge will wait until the process of completing screening or checks is completed before continuing with the service.
It is available for passengers either arriving or departing Auckland Airport to make the journey as “seamless and stress-free as possible”.
The service requires three days notice and a maximum party size of 10.
