Due to a significant change in the access policy which will be in effect in 2019, a reader of The Gate is so outraged at Delta Air Lines and its network of Sky Club lounges that he sent to me an e-mail message to please call it to your attention.
Delta Sky Club Access Change Coming in 2019
The following announcement pertains not only to members of Delta Sky Club and their guests, but also to holders of the Delta Reserve credit card and their guests:
Effective January 1, 2019, Delta Sky Club members may only use the Club in conjunction with same-day ticketed air travel on Delta or its partner airlines and will no longer have access to partner lounges.
For members of the Centurion Card and Platinum Card from American Express, the wording is a bit different, seemingly indicating that the new policy is only for guests of the members and not for the members themselves:
Effective January 1, 2019, guests of Platinum and Centurion American Express Card Members must be traveling on a Delta coded or Delta operated flight to access the Club.
“Even with a membership, you still can’t get in unless flying Delta!” the reader exclaimed. “Insane!”
In this article which I wrote back in November of 2016, the following membership options — payment plans of 12 monthly installments requires a one-year contract and initiation fee — included unlimited access to 251 Delta Sky Clubs and partner lounges amidst a price increase which became effective in 2017:
- Executive Membership You can guest up to a maximum of two people per visit at no additional charge — which is your best option if frequent guest access is important to you. The rate for one year is:
- 2016: $695.00, 110,000 SkyMiles or $59.99 per month
- 2017: $745.00 or 70,000 SkyMiles or $65.00 per month
- Individual Membership You can guest up to a maximum of two people per visit at the rate of $29.00 per person per visit — which is your best option if you typically travel alone and rarely need guest access. The rate for one year is:
- 2016: $450.00, 70,000 SkyMiles or $39.99 per month
- 2017: $495.00 or 47,000 SkyMiles or $45.00 per month
Summary
This is actually old news, as some weblogs first brought the policy change to the attention of their readers back in November of 2017 — but no source was yet available to quote it; so I held off on reporting on it.
I can understand why the reader — whose name I am keeping anonymous — would be outraged, which is the word he used: rates had increased two years prior to the forthcoming change in access policy; and access will be more restrictive. No longer can members use a Sky Club lounge if they are at the airport and preparing to fly as passengers on different airlines which are not partners of Delta Air Lines.
I offered my reasons in this article which I wrote on Monday, October 19, 2015 as to why I personally would not pay $59.00 for a one-time visit to a Delta Sky Club — but that is just my opinion…
…but then again, the Delta Sky Club at Concourse B at the international airport which serves the greater Atlanta metropolitan area is certainly very nice; and you can see 70 photographs of it at its grand opening in this article I wrote on Thursday,
All photographs ©2016 by Brian Cohen.
