The Lounge Fest Experience: Delta Sky Club Atlanta Concourse F

Delta Sky Club Atlanta Concourse F is one of numerous Sky Club lounges spread throughout the 7 terminals or concourses of Atlanta Airport. Unsurprising as it is essentially Delta Airlines biggest hub airport!

My recent Air France return trip routed via Atlanta, where Air France does not have it’s own lounge, thus Delta’s Sky Clubs were my best bet. Atlanta concourses are easy to hop around in, so I chose to spend the bulk of my layover here. This is supposed to be Flagship lounge which some consider to be the best in the airport. 

Access & Location

This lounge is located inside security of Concourse F.

You can find it near gate F10 and take some escalators up..

Delta has had to update it’s lounge usage policy several times this year to mitigate overcrowding in their lounges, which appears to have mixed affect.

In essence, as long as you are flying Domestic First Class or international Business you are fine. Access has been removed for most status holders who are on basic Economy tickets unless they possess another qualifying credential for Club access such as Club Membership, right Amex card etc

The full access control can be viewed directly Delta

Given all the additional restrictions, I should note the situation on the ground is still not great. Just before I arrived here I was in Concourse A Club briefly and it was sparling..

Delta Sky Club Atlanta Concourse F

After I got the escalators up, I was happy to see there was no lines here and being able to walk through. Off-course I was flying international Business Class so you can skip the main queue anyway..

One of the two friendly receptionist checked me in while I noticed they had a nice seating area just in front of the reception too!

Just past the reception you enter the lounge through this corridor that then splits into 4 different areas..

Immediately on the right is the main seating spaces with

There are several types of seating choices available with singular leather chairs, larger shared sofas, individual chairs by tables

If you take the stairs up, you will find another zone that currently seems to be designated as a work space..

On the left of the lounge past the buffet and bar you also have this space

Delta Sky Club Atlanta Terrace

As with other some other Sky Clubs, this Atlanta Club has a terrace accessible directly via a door before the stairs/in front of buffet area or from the second room past the bar..

The terrace, while roofed is otherwise open air, and boy it was hot. Super hot out there! After 5 minutes of taking a seat, I decided to move back in.

Delta Sky Club Atlanta Bar & Catering

I have to say, the buffet area looked like the most interesting area, not just because of the food. The rest of the lounge just felt drab and this area was better lit with the ceiling lighting fixture..

 

I was in the lounge around 6pm for my 8pm flight to Paris, so it was prime dinner time.

On the island you will find a selection of items to make a salad, fruits, desserts and then you have the hot options on the side of the wall..

I tried the chicken with lime rice and it was actually quite decent. A handful of condiments were available to dress your plate and jazz things up a tad.

Last but not least, the lounge also had a “fresh” item of the day station, which I could not take a picture of due to the crowds. On this day they were serving fresh Gyros that did look quite appealing.

After a quick bite, I headed to the bar for a drink and the gentleman serving was very nice and enthusiastic about his craft..

He made me a nice Mojito, included in the complementary cocktail selection. You can also enjoy a selection of beers and wines.

Most other premium drinks you have to pay.

Delta Sky Club Atlanta Showers

Right at the back of the lounge, you will find a corridor leading to restroom & showers. There are like other lounges first come first serve.

I did not have to wait for one when I wanted to use it..

Each shower room is fully stocked with various sized towels and fresh floor mats

In the wash basin and shower you will find full sized Alchemist products which are a nice touch.

I liked the design of these showers, they were rather spacious well thought out. The shower pressure was great too!

Overall Thoughts

I have to admit, for a flagship lounge in Delta’s most important hub serving mostly international long haul passengers, this is a rather uninspired offering. It felt very humdrum.

After 40 minutes or so in there, the place was literally swarming. Other than the terrace heat, I just could not find anywhere relaxing to sit without the noise or someone right by my shoulder. Delta has made great strides to control the overcrowding situation but that is not quite translating to any kind of premium experience in many locations.

The food offering was better here than many Delta Sky Clubs, though the Seattle Club looked more spacious. JFK has best catering, though on my recent visit, I also found it more packed than a London tube in rush hour. The whole experience was just about tolerable but I would not go out of my way to spend time here.

Delta is planning on launching a proper premium lounge that will be marketed as Delta One Lounges. These may finally bring them up to the American Flagship lounge standards, but only on few hub locations.

I sometimes ponder, should some Delta Sky Club even be designated as a Lounge? Or would it be more apt to call them Delta Cafeterias? What do you think?