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Delta Air Lines just unveiled a sweet perk for its fanciest flyers.
The carrier announced Tuesday that it will be opening its biggest-ever lounge, the Delta One Lounge, at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport this week. The art deco-style space, which stretches across more than 39,000 square feet, includes a bar, a bakery, and design touches from Italian fashion house Missoni. It opens Wednesday.
“Our teams have spared no detail to ensure Delta One Lounge guests receive a truly memorable experience,” said Claude Roussel, the Delta vice president in charge of the companies lounges, a company blog post. “It’s a new era for Delta — this Lounge is raising the bar across the board, from the amenities to the food and beverage offerings to the level of personalized service. We want our guests to feel the difference here; moreover, we want them to feel welcomed and valued from the moment they step through the door.”
Though some larger, more expensive so-called “legacy” airlines like Delta have been creeping into the territory of their budget peers, high-end features like the lounge are still the kind of thing that drives a lot of revenue growth. Last quarter, an analyst pointed out on the airline’s earnings call that “main cabin” business was up 4% year-over-year, but “premium” business was up 10%.
“We’ve said that if you look at the longer-term trends, we really haven’t been adding coach seats into the domestic arena over the past 10 years,” Delta president Glen Hauenstein said on the call. “And so all of our growth has been in the premium products and services.”
The lounges are for adults only (or children under two). They can bring up to two guests outside of their immediate family for $100 apiece. For flyers eager to get in, they’ll have to have:
🎟️ A Delta One ticket (two notches above first-class)
🎟️ A first-class ticket as Delta 360 members (meaning they were among the highest-tier Diamond Medallion-status frequent flyers invited into the exclusive level)
🎟️ A first-class or business-class ticket or (in some cases) business-class ticket from Air France, LATAM, KLM, Korean Air, or Virgin Atlantic
Delta says that it is working to open Delta One lounges at LAX and Boston Logan International before the end of the year.