A recent Reddit post makes us wonder what is and isn’t acceptable in lounges: can you and your family just stretch out and relax?

Family takes over Delta Sky Club in SEA

Over at the Delta subreddit, someone took a picture of a family in one of the Delta Sky Clubs at Seattle/Tacoma Airport (SEA). The family appears to have stretched out across multiple chairs and the floors and turned the space into a makeshift play area.

The author of the post further notes: “All of them had their shoes off too. What’s the worst you’ve seen?” The implication by the question is that the author finds the behavior to be unfitting for lounge attendees.

Our initial thoughts when seeing this scenario: what is acceptable?

We only agree in part with the premise that there is an issue–specifically regarding the wearing of shoes. Outside of that, it’s hard to make a determination from just a single photo.

Stick to family rooms when possible

Some lounges have family rooms inside them. We love it when lounges have this, even when we don’t have our children with us:

• There are often more entertaining things for kids to do in family rooms than in the rest of the lounge
• Children are still understanding the boundaries of “adult” human behavior, especially when it comes to spreading out
• Children and adults might have different volumes they consider to be “normal”

It’s not so much that family rooms isolate children and their noise from the rest of the lounge. It’s more that the lounge is giving them a space they consider to be more useful to them.

We know from experience of both Delta Sky Clubs in Seattle that neither has a family room. Thus, we can’t fault them for congregating out in public because there simply isn’t an alternative at those lounges.

Choose an isolated area of the lounge, if you must stretch out

That brings us to our next point: go stretch out in an isolated area of the lounge. It’s not entirely clear from the photo how crowded the rest of the lounge actually is. However, it does appear to be the upper floor of the lounge. That means it’s not the lounge near Gate A11 and instead it’s the lounge by Gate A1. The upper level of the lounge near Gate A11 is the Delta One Lounge.

Having been to the lounge near A1, the upper floor is a bit less crowded than the rest, away from the bar and the main dining area. Again, without knowing more about the crowd levels around, it seems like the family did the right thing in choosing an area with more space. You really don’t want to stretch out in high-traffic areas both out of respect for others and to prevent you from losing things.

Consider not going in a lounge

This is the “easy” thing that people without kids will be quick to point out. Do it anywhere but here. Of course, I think it’s also reasonable that people in the main terminal area would immediately think the same thing if they were instead outside the lounge. There’s no good area for kids to relax and have fun unless there is a dedicated area for it.

And even if there were an area, what if there was someone else’s child butting in on what would otherwise be personal play time with the family? I know our children would feel uncomfortable in that scenario and would prefer to stretch out elsewhere.

Again, there isn’t enough information provided to understand if the family should have chosen somewhere else to go. However, they have every right to be in the lounge that you have. Arguing they don’t belong is simply an incorrect argument, especially if they aren’t physically bothering you.

Getting real play time is better than screen time

This is a big one for us and why we would approve of what we see in the picture. Notice what’s not in the screen? Digital devices in front of the child. Granted, you can’t see the child’s face, but what you can see of the surroundings is that the child is getting plenty of real play time in. It also appears to be around the evening, which suggests the child might be getting some sleep during the next flight.

Would you want an overly tired child on a late flight? Certainly not! I know from experience that our children will feel overly tired if their eyes are glued to digital devices. Put away the iPads and bring out the toys, books, and stuffed animals. This will result in far better behavior on the upcoming flight, especially if you’d otherwise not appreciate traveling with children.

Keeping shoes on while in the lounge is a must

This is the one area we think the family is in the wrong. You have to leave your shoes on when in the lounge. Delta’s terms only tangentially reference this for conduct in Delta Sky Clubs:

Attire while in a Delta Sky Club must be in keeping with good taste and a dignified atmosphere.

Delta reserves the right to terminate any Membership or remove any Member or visitor for inappropriate conduct, including but not limited to conduct that’s undignified, disruptive, abusive or violent, or for failing to comply with Membership terms and conditions.

Whether you’re barefoot or have socks on, it’s all the same–no one wants to see feet. You don’t know when the last time the carpet was cleaned nor do you want to know what happened to it in the time since. Keep your shoes on and you won’t run into problems. We don’t think you’ll be thrown out without at least a warning, but we’d rather not push the boundaries.

Stay classy, Delta Sky Club guests.

Suggested reading:

• Flying First Class with the Family in Economy
• The Best Credit Cards for Airport Lounges for Families
• Amsterdam with Kids: Best Activities, Cheese, History, and Sweets