- Introduction: Amsterdam Via Britain And Indonesia (Sort Of)
- Review: Delta Sky Club Los Angeles LAX
- Review: The Club At SJC
- Review: Delta First Class CRJ-900 San Jose To Los Angeles
- Review: Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse Los Angeles LAX
- Review: Virgin Atlantic Upper Class A340 Los Angeles To London Heathrow
- Review: British Airways Galleries Lounge London Heathrow
- Review: British Airways Club Europe A320 London Heathrow To Amsterdam
- Review: Garuda Indonesia First Class 777-300ER Amsterdam To London Gatwick
- Review: Andaz Liverpool Street London
- Review: Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse London Heathrow
- Review: Virgin Atlantic Upper Class A340 London Heathrow To Los Angeles
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Since my amazing Virgin Atlantic Upper Class fare to London involved a routing originating from San Jose, I of course had to fly up to San Jose in the morning in order to fly back to LAX at 12:30pm and onward to London.
Although I was tempted to book the 10:40am flight from LAX to San Jose, which in theory would be the same aircraft (and indeed, was the same aircraft) as the turnaround flight back to Los Angeles, which would minimize my travel time, I’m a bit of an anxious flyer travel-wise. Since the flight from LAX-SJC was on a separate and unrelated ticket, I decided to take the 8:15am flight from Los Angeles to minimize any concerns over cancelled flights or last minute plane swaps, however minor the risk.
I had about twenty minutes to kill in Terminal 5 at LAX, so I thought I’d check out the newly refurbished Sky Club, which I had complimentary access to thanks to a credit card with lounge benefits.
Although I’ve been at the Sky Club in Terminal 5 on many, many occasions and seen the club’s improvements in fits and starts, it really did seem wholly refreshed.
For one thing, the area just beyond the entry is now an art gallery as well as a seating area. While I didn’t necessarily treat the gallery area as I would, say, the Rijksmuseum, it was a pleasant and interesting touch. There was a neon-based map of Los Angeles that immediately caught my eye. Generally, the art selection was a bit on the edgier side, which I appreciated.
A new seating nook was created off to to the right, and while it wasn’t large, there seemed to be an ample variety of seating, all of which looked visually attractive.
To me, the major upgrade at the Sky Club is the new food counter directly opposite the bar, which is attractively lighted and outfitted in a sexy-looking white quartz-type surface and accented with floral arrangements. It’s a very spacious and long counter, with a bit of a Starbucks setup at the end — two types of espresso machines as well as a regular Starbucks machine and a selection of syrups and dairy additives.
Food presentation definitely seemed nicer, and little touches like real salt and pepper grinders, or a selection of pre-peeled hard boiled eggs on a gleaming white egg tray, lended the whole station an overall calmer and more generous feel.
On the other side of the food station, Delta has set up a “cafe”-type seating area with a number of dining tables and chairs, which felt like a useful addition.
Delta Sky Club LAX Bottom Line
While I really just popped into the Sky Club to grab a coffee and a little bit of cereal, I was impressed that Delta had managed to really give the LAX Sky Club a genuine facelift. It felt “fresh,” as well as more intuitively laid out.
At the end of the day, the food selections aren’t any grander or more varied than they were before, but I appreciated that they were at least presented in an appealing manner.
I definitely look forward to returning again before my next Delta flight and trying out some of the selections at the bar and getting a better sense of how the club operates during busier hours (since the Sky Club was rather empty at 7:30 in the morning on a Wednesday).
At the end of the day, I still think the Sky Club at JFK is more of a stunner with its outdoor terrace, but this is an improvement over the existing Sky Club in Los Angeles — which, to be fair, was not that dated to begin with, especially compared to the Admirals Club and United Club at LAX.
The food at the LAX Sky Club has been better than other locations.
The times I visited there was a nice selection of sandwiches and some sides.
Far better than that chicken salad and bag soup they have at most locations.
I've question regarding staying in Delta SkyAwards Lounge. It's possible to get to Delta lounge with ticket in business flying from LAX to SJO?
@Biffster, You certainly raise a valid point. I especially enjoyed your British proverb of sorts. We have something similar in Asia.
Unfortunately most American lounges and premium cabins pale in comparison to the lounges in Asia. Delta Lounges are quite the step above United Airlines. Even still, you should take a look at Maple Leaf Lounges after their budget cuts.
The food is not even applique as you would call them. Stale, cold...
@Biffster, You certainly raise a valid point. I especially enjoyed your British proverb of sorts. We have something similar in Asia.
Unfortunately most American lounges and premium cabins pale in comparison to the lounges in Asia. Delta Lounges are quite the step above United Airlines. Even still, you should take a look at Maple Leaf Lounges after their budget cuts.
The food is not even applique as you would call them. Stale, cold muffins. Broken coffee machine.
It is true that it's been diluted. I'm not too sure about Delta but for Air Canada lounges there are a lot of members who access it through the frequent flyer program especially so with Air Canada and United being Star Alliance members; anyone with a Gold Status on Star Alliance will be able to access their lounges. Hence understandably, the food costs would likely be quite a high operational cost.
Maybe it's time for you to stop paying full price and get into the credit card points game. Instead of getting 1-3% cashback with your cards, you get more value spending $75,000 and using it for a premium ticket.
I fly only once per month, but since my hub is ATL I've settled on Delta, whom I've been dating exclusively for roughly the last two years. I don't have status, but always pay for first class and have also purchased an "Executive" club membership so I have a place to be reasonably isolated with my own thoughts. The food is like that in the Marriott concierge lounges, or maybe not even that "good", which...
I fly only once per month, but since my hub is ATL I've settled on Delta, whom I've been dating exclusively for roughly the last two years. I don't have status, but always pay for first class and have also purchased an "Executive" club membership so I have a place to be reasonably isolated with my own thoughts. The food is like that in the Marriott concierge lounges, or maybe not even that "good", which I find a bit shameful. The rest of the accoutrements are passable, but as one of the (apparently) few who actually pay FULL price for these "perks" I've found that most of these once-glorious extras have been diluted to the point of being little more than appliqué. Or, as the Brits would say, "All face and no trousers."
I am a Silver Medallion flyer who flys Delta whenever it is possible and I stopped by the LAX Delta SkyClub en route to Australia on a family vacation and paid extra cash to get my family in the Crown Room with me as we had a five hour layover. After a while family wanted to head out for dinner and I was getting work done so I sent them along and told them to...
I am a Silver Medallion flyer who flys Delta whenever it is possible and I stopped by the LAX Delta SkyClub en route to Australia on a family vacation and paid extra cash to get my family in the Crown Room with me as we had a five hour layover. After a while family wanted to head out for dinner and I was getting work done so I sent them along and told them to bring me back something. The staff wouldn't let them bring me a soft pretzel and a salad back into the lounge, so I had to leave the lounge and go sit at a gate downstairs by myself and eat with my food in my lap. Isn't the lounge meant to reward the premium customers with an enhanced travel experience? This seems to me to be yet another example of leaders publishing rules rather than teaching and empowering their staff to think about how they can give their customers loyalty inducing experiences. What a dud of a Delta premium customer experience!
@Darla if you're flying Korean you're departing from Tom Bradley (the main international terminal serving the vast majority of foreign carriers). Bradley is separated from the Delta terminal (T5) by T4 (AA). You'll have access to the Korean Air lounge inside TBIT. It's definitely not something to go out of your way to visit. On a few of my most recent flights, I've arrived at the airport just at the baggage drop cutoff, and been...
@Darla if you're flying Korean you're departing from Tom Bradley (the main international terminal serving the vast majority of foreign carriers). Bradley is separated from the Delta terminal (T5) by T4 (AA). You'll have access to the Korean Air lounge inside TBIT. It's definitely not something to go out of your way to visit. On a few of my most recent flights, I've arrived at the airport just at the baggage drop cutoff, and been through to the boarding area just as people were starting to board. You have enough time to buy a couple snacks and then walk on...that's a much more pleasant experience to me than sitting a boring lounge.
Yes, liquor is definitely still available. I'm still disappointed in general for having only one low-carb food available... the tuna salad. Everything else is carby, and bad for your heart and waistline.
I haven't been in there since July 2012. And 20-some years ago when I was a road warrior I spent more time in Delta Crown Rooms than at home.
Food was never a strong point. Porridge and Hard-boiled eggs ?? I'm thinking that would be a very poor choice for "cabin comfort" on a long flight.
Nick didn't show any pictures, so I sure hope liquor is still available.
Never seen the SkyClub LAX that empty before!
Honestly it looks like every other SkyClub I've been in (SEA, JFK, ATL).
Perhaps I'm spoiled by AS Board Rooms, but I've always been disappointed in SkyClubs.
At least it's better than Uniteds garbage offering.
Hey Ben! Saw your article - congrats man, that's so cool! I've been a follower of your blog for a few years now - you're one of The Game's best in my opinion. Thanks for all the incredible insights over the years!!
Correction: That middle dispenser looks more like Life cereal, not Rice Chex.
@Christian I haven't been to the lounge, but I think those are cereal dispensers, not SToS. Looks like corn flakes, Rice Chex (?), and raisin bran.
I have an award ticket booked using Delta miles on Korean Air-business class, would this be one of the lounges that I could use or do I have other choices in LAX? Your favorites? Thanks!
Sounds decent at LAX. Maybe Delta can quit neglecting the SkyDumps at their home airport, ATL. All but one of them in ATL make you wonder if you would not be better off being in the crowded concourse.
No opinion on the Snack Towers of Sadness?