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Walk into the space and you’ll be greeted with the familiar Sky Club entryway look and feel, along with the standard check-in kiosk and customer service desk.

The lounge has 246 seats, more than a dozen of which as you proceed down you’ll see a hallway lined with artwork on one side and large windows overlooking the terminal on the other.

Design features

Throughout, this Sky Club invokes the influence of the “Queen City” — nicknamed the city of Charlotte, named for Queen Charlotte — displayed through artwork, wallpaper and other design touches.

“We believe it’s designed for the Queen City with a neoclassical look and feel,” said Tim Genovese, director of operations for Delta Sky Clubs, speaking to TPG ahead of the opening.

There’s also plenty of greenery, Genovese noted, drawing on Charlotte’s famous green spaces.

Eating and drinking

Often, the focal point of a good airport lounge is an attractive bar, and that’s certainly the case here, with a white marble bar top accented by floral designs – both on the bar and above the brown leather seats.

The bar anchors a spacious space with high-top and lounge-style seating, where guests can sit and sip. Guests can choose from a variety of beverages, cocktails or a cup of Starbucks-brewed coffee. There is also plenty of food from the nearby buffet.

Along with beer, wine and spirits, two drink stations offer numerous non-alcoholic options for caffeine or hydration during your journey.

Visiting the food spread, I was about to ask a Delta team member what local culinary touches I could find—before I spotted Southern-inspired biscuits with ham and pimento cheese and some hearty desserts.

With Charlotte being a major business hub, Delta sees catering to business travelers as the primary focus of this outpost.

“Charlotte clearly has a prime business environment and we certainly hope to appeal to that market,” Genovese said.

Along with working space and plenty of outlets — including USB-C slots — there’s a half-dozen soundproof phone booths for hopping on Zoom calls.

Some of them you’ll find — with additional seating — on an open-air mezzanine overlooking the airport’s concourse.

Alternatively, you can trade that view for one of the airport airfield in the quiet functional space of the lounge, located behind the Sky Club entrance. Pro tip: Look up on your way to catch some of the most impressive artistic touches throughout the facility adorning the ceiling.

The lounge’s restrooms resemble the impressive Great Gatsby Aesthetically, with navy, white and gold patterned tile and a white marble vanity. Touchless “wave to open” doors complement those features, not to mention Grown Alchemist products offered throughout Delta’s lounge network and in its Delta One cabins.

Access to Delta Sky Club Charlotte

To get into this Sky Club, you have a few options. Here are some of the top ones:

You can enter Delta Sky Club up to three hours before flight departure.

Delta’s CLT strategy

Opening a Sky Club in Charlotte — at American’s Fortress hub — is certainly a significant move for Delta, as its footprint at the airport is about 3% of American Airlines’ this year, according to data from aviation analytics firm Sirius.

However, major US carriers operating lounges on their competitors’ strongest turf is actually a bit more common than you might think.

In fact, as of Wednesday, Charlotte was the only American hub airport where Delta did not Run the Sky Club.

American, for its part, has an Admirals Club at Delta’s home base of Atlanta — and at several United-dominated airports.

Delta has clubs at some of United’s top hubs, as do United Delta and American.

“We definitely have clubs in all the top markets,” Genovese pointed out, noting that the carrier saw an opportunity to occupy the mezzanine-level space when Charlotte opened its new suite this fall.

“Airport real estate is hard to come by,” he said.

Most notably, Charlotte has an American Express Centurion lounge, but it’s an easy 20-minute one-way walk from Delta’s gates.

Obviously, this will fill a void for Delta fliers — and cardmembers with Amex Platinum — in their wallets.

2024’s first and only new Sky Club

It’s also worth noting that the unveiling of this Charlotte outpost puts a bow (a holiday bow, you might say) on an eventful 2024 for new Delta lounge openings.

This year also brought improved, expanded Sky Clubs in Miami and at New York’s LaGuardia Airport (LGA).

Ironically, though, Charlotte is the first and only all-new Sky Club to debut in 2024 — just 13 days before the end of the year, no less.

Expect more in 2025, Genovese says — including an all-new Sky Club set to open between now and the summer below the fourth Delta One lounge at Seattle Tacoma International Airport (SEA).

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