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I finally had a chance to visit the new American Express Centurion Lounge in Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL) on a recent trip and was looking forward to being “wowed” after all the reports of this being a “game changer” lounge. I was simply not that impressed. First, let’s take a look at the club and then my thoughts.
You will find the lounge in Terminal E (one of the international terminals) near gate 11.
To prevent long lines spilling into the concourse, that often happens with Delta clubs because they never planned for long lines to get in, they have an inclined snake line for you to wait to get in when busy.
You access the club via certain American Express cards when traveling on a same-day itinerary:
- The Platinum Card® from American Express
- The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card
- Cardmember must be flying on a same-day Delta-marketed or Delta-operated flight booked on a U.S.-issued card.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card
- Cardmember must be flying on a same-day Delta-marketed or Delta-operated flight booked on a U.S.-issued card.
One of the things I like the most about a number of the Centurion Lounges is the ability to visit the spa — but, sadly, this lounge does not have one. I asked and was told they have other “experiences” to make up for this. Let’s see.
The club is large, and that is good because during our visit on a Sunday afternoon, it was PACKED. If you think everyone flocking to the club would have a big impact on the Delta clubs – you would be wrong. Take a look:
I guess this does not surprise me, as many guests will still not have access to the Centurion or, perhaps having visited here before, simply choose to stick with the Delta clubs instead. We move on.
Part of the “experience” the front desk rep talked about was the two outdoor spaces the lounge offers. One of the decks is large with great views for AvGeeks. The other is much smaller but has open views to the heavens. I did not spend much time outside during our visit because it was a HOT’lanta day and air conditioning was a better choice.
Delta Sky Clubs have consistently, over time, offered decent food choices, but like other Centurion clubs, the options here are better than Delta — but perhaps not as good as other Centurions in the system. I would call them all solid choices if a meal is the point of your visit. There is another big draw I think many will enjoy:
While the JFK Centurion offers a “speak easy” type bar, the ATL club has a whisky bar called “The Reserve” with over 40 complimentary choices. I was not in the mood early in the day to try one but other guests seemed to enjoy. Also this bar leads to the smaller outside deck should you wish to sample the drink choices outside.
So far with this mostly positive review regarding the features, the food and the drinks why would I not be impressed with this club? There are things that are disappointing. I was there during the Masters but none of the TVs were working and I was told they had been broken for almost a week. Thankfully the wifi, as in most Centurion clubs, was fast and free (the current password is AmericanExpress – not case sensitive).
The next thing that bugs me is you can only, like in the Centurion in Charlotte CLT airport, get one drink at a time per person, so you can not get one for your travel companion – AND – they card you every single time you order. What in the world is up with that? Delta has never ever done this to me at any club I have visited in Atlanta or elsewhere, so I can not see this is a local law/rule. Maybe readers can explain why this is.
This club, like most airline lounges nowadays, was packed! There were long lines at the bar, to get food, and to do anything. Yes, I know part of the problem is that almost everyone has lounge access with high-end Amex Platinum cards (and we bloggers are part of the problem by writing about them), but it is amazing to me that no matter how many big clubs are built, there never seems to be enough space for the demand.
Bottom line: this is a nice club and if you are flying out of a terminal on either side of E it is worth the visit and especially so if it is a nice day to enjoy the outside space. But if the lines are long the Delta E Sky Club right around the corner in E is a very good alternative as well as the F club a short walk or Air Train ride away.
Have you had a chance to visit the Centurion in Atlanta? Did you enjoy your visit? – Rene
- For rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, please visit this link.
- For rates and fees of The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, please visit this link.
- For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, please visit this link.
- For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card, please visit this link.
Advertiser Disclosure: Eye of the Flyer, a division of Chatterbox Entertainment, Inc., is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as CreditCards.com. Some or all of the card offers that appear on the website are from advertisers. Compensation may impact how and where card products appear on the site. This site does not include all card companies or all available card offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities. Some of the links on this page are affiliate or referral links. We may receive a commission or referral bonus for purchases or successful applications made during shopping sessions or signups initiated from clicking those links.
Responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
I went here, got a beer put it down at a table next to my luggage then went to get a plate of food. I was gone for 3 minutes and they threw away my beer. I had to flag down one of the employees to tell them to not throw away my food while im go get another beer. They should know if there is luggage there, they are probably still there or they should wait a few more minutes atleast.
@Anthony – (facepalm)!
At my age, I thought it was funny to have to show my id to get a glass of wine! First time that’s happened in many many years.
I’m genuinely appreciative now when I get carded! 🙂
@Sanda – At my age I forget where I put my ID! 🙁
When folks write about “decent food choices,” it would help to clarify what that means. We all have different ideas of what good food is.
One of the things I appreciate is knowing about vegetarian and vegan options. I’ve noticed that the JFK and SFO Sky clubs have amazing veg choices, but I’m a little disappointed by the offerings in ATL.
I was also not impressed on my visit. One reason in addition to those you noted: there are no to-go cups. I like to get a cup of tea on my way out of a Skyclub so I have it for a flight. Not an option at the AMEX club. I was also underwhelmed by the food, as this was advertised as a major upgrade over Skyclub. It was not. Average at best, just like Skyclub.
Haven’t been to this particular club yet but am a longtime SkyClub (CrownRoom) member. Crazy busy these days at ATL but I think that may fix itself with some of the access rules being implemented. Referencing you ID requirement, it is policy for all F&B establishments at the airport to card all patrons, regardless of any distinguishing qualities 😉
@Bryan – Never been carded at an ATL Skyclub ever.
I live in Atl! Always have to play the Delta shuffle of being screwed over by Delta on everything because it’s their hub! Was so ready for Amx lounge to open… what a disappointment!
Food was terrible! If walking by maybe…would not go out of the way. The real story is Delta lounges & Amx lounges have sank( stunk) for yrs Yet in spite of outrageous prices, remain full ! They don’t have to improve
It was much better in service and staff attitude right after it opened as the higher ups were there to observe!! Staff attitude has definitely taken a turn for the worse….very cranky!!! The rules are ???over the top… Carding with every drink? It takes lots longer to do so causing even longer lines ?? nuts !!!and some days till10:30 am you can only get bubbles with orange juice..no bubbles only…Alos if you do not have all of your Mex info on the app..it takes even longer to get into the lounge…It is sad tht I can only use the lounge in ATL as my most frequent airport stop..but now sooo disappointing.
The “Area” to line up for the drinks is terrible. Poor planning.
No one so far has mentioned the tiny men’s restroom with only 6 stalls.
@Frankie – Yeah for the size of the club another fail. I should have mentioned that in the post as well.
I was there the day after it opened and was impressed with the service and cleanliness although couldn’t find the iced tea to save my life. Fast forward six weeks and service was surly, plates were stacked up on unused tables, and for a lounge that has soup on offer…no bowls were available and one would have thought I had requested a kidney from the attendant when I asked about one. In short, back to ATL lounge status quo. The food is…fine (personally not a soul food fan) and in the future I will probably just hit up the SkyClub in A or E, depending on my flight and/or layover length-it’s nothing special-and I know where the tea is in SkyClub.
It will be interesting to see how the kosher food options (if any) at this club compare with those at the Sky Clubs. Personally I would rather see these Centurion clubs at airports that DON’T have Sky Clubs – for example, BWI.
All of them are missing the soda machine.
Doesn’t make sense to wait for 3 alcoholic and dozen more people just to have a diet Coke.