Continental has introduced the first credit card with the added benefit of lounge access for its elite-level and Presidents Club members. The Continental Airlines Presidential Plus World MasterCard offers a Presidents Club membership as long as you carry the card. As the cardholder, you and your family or you and two guests, can unwind between flights in any of Continental’s 27 airport lounges. You will also have access to over 40 affiliated lounges worldwide, including Northwest WorldClub lounges and Delta Crown Room.

EliteAccess Priority Airport Services is included. This service offers special airport check-in lines, eService Center check-in and continental.com check-in. The cardholder and anyone traveling in the same reservation can use priority check-in lines at the airport, express security lines (where available), boarding at any time through special lines and priority bag tags so your bags are among the first to arrive at the carousel.

For every $25,000 in purchases, up to 14 times a year, you will earn 2,000 Flex Elite Qualification Miles (Flex EQMs). These miles do not expire, and you can redeem them toward Elite status at any time in future years.

As a cardholder you receive double OnePass miles when you use the card to purchase tickets directly from Continental. You will also earn double miles for hotel stays and car rentals you pay for with the card and five miles per dollar spent at participating OnePass dining restaurants. All other purchases will earn one mile per dollar spent.

For the first 12 months of owning the card, you will receive a 5 percent discount on Continental tickets. This offer is for new Continental MasterCard cardholders only.

Additional benefits include no preset spending limit, online year-end summaries, online fraud protection, travel insurance, trip cancellation insurance, rental car collision/loss damage waivers, roadside assistance and more.

This all comes with a rather hefty annual price tag of $375 — but if you compare this cost with the cost of lounge membership, it doesn’t look quite so steep. An annual Presidents Club lounge membership for non-elite members is $375 and the cost for elite-members is lower: $350 for Silver Elite, $300 for Gold and $275 for Platinum members.

If you already have a Presidents Club membership, you will be reimbursed for the unused portion of the membership. And if you would like to have a spouse membership, the cost would be $150 more per year. If you have an additional cardholder, they will not receive a Presidents Club membership, but their purchases will count toward the Flex EQMs.

Currently, only Continental Airlines Elite and Presidents Club members are being invited to apply for the card, but if you are not currently an Elite or President’s Club member, you can try calling (888) 202-3360 to apply for the card.