The Delta One Lounge at LAX absolutely blew us away with the delicious food and incredible service once inside the lounge. But the real treat was the check-in facility that made it feel like we were flying private.

View other posts in this series:

• Trip Introduction: Thankful in The Bahamas
• WOW: Delta One Lounge LAX is Incredible (this post)
• Review: Delta One 767-300ER LAX-JFK
• Review: Delta One Lounge JFK
• Fun in the Sun: A Review of Grand Hyatt Baha Mar
• Grand Hyatt Baha Mar – Breakfast Restaurants
• Grand Hyatt Baha Mar – Dinner Restaurants
• Grand Hyatt Baha Mar – Activities
• Grand Hyatt Baha Mar – Pools and Beach
• Wet and Wild Excitement: Baha Bay Water Park
• Grand Hyatt Baha Mar Thanksgiving Activities
• Review: Copa Airlines 737-800 Business Class NAS-PTY
• Review: Copa Club PTY Terminal 2
• Review: Copa Airlines 737-MAX 9 Business Class PTY-LAX

Location

The Delta One Lounge at LAX can be found in Terminals 2/3 where most of Delta’s gates can be found. If you’re connecting, you’ll find the entrance (as shown in the picture above) just past security screening towards the Terminal 3 gates. Easy airside connections are available from Tom Bradley International Terminal. If your origin is LAX, you’ll find a much more convenient entrance at the Arrivals level, at the end of Terminal 3.

Access

The Delta One Lounge at LAX is open from 4:30AM to 11:30PM.

Only the following customers can access the Delta One Lounge:

• Same-day departing or arriving Delta One ticketed passengers (this includes the domestic Delta One experience as well as all Delta One international tickets).
• Delta 360° members departing or arriving on a same-day Delta first class ticket. Eligible Delta 360° members can bring two guests or their immediate family for an entry fee of $100/person.
• Same-day departing or connecting partner flights in qualifying cabins (note that unlike in Delta One cabins, arriving passengers on these flights do not receive access):
  • Air France La Premiere and long-haul Business Class
  • LATAM Premium Business Class
  • KLM Business Class
  • Korean Air First Class and Prestige Class
  • Virgin Atlantic Upper Class

Customers who are upgraded to Delta One (such as using Regional or Global Upgrade Certificates) or based on elite upgrades clearing are also eligible to use the facilities.

Note that unlike other Delta Sky Club lounges, there is no three-hour restriction to visit the lounge. In fact, we checked in four hours before our flight to have a nice dinner before our flight and there was no problem visiting the lounge that early.

Entry to Delta One Lounges tends to be more restrictive than United Polaris Lounges or American Flagship Lounges. At LAX, the tough access meant a very private experience even in the evening and at no time did the lounge feel anywhere near at capacity. If you’re flying on qualifying partner airlines in eligible class of service out of LAX, I highly recommend you come here if time permits.

We accessed the lounge based on our purchased Delta One ticket to New York JFK.

Dedicated Check-In Facility

If your journey originates at LAX, you’d be best served to start off at the Arrivals level at the end of Terminal 3. If you’re being dropped off via car, you’ll find a dedicated curb for Delta One customers. I’ve seen workers standing by here awaiting passengers as I drove by the sign other times, but this time no one was standing here to assist us. It’s really no big deal since the entrance is just across the crosswalk.

Once you arrive at the doors, you’ll need to pull up your Delta One tickets to gain entry. There seemed to be a number of other confused passengers looking for the normal check-in counters, so I can see why they want to confirm access up front. By the way, did you know that the entry requirements for this facility are different than for the Delta One lounge?

Once inside, there were no lines as we waited for our bags to be tagged all the way to our final destination. I think I confused the representatives given that I booked LAX-JFK on a separate ticket from JFK-NAS (it was cheaper this way as I didn’t need first class on the second segment), so we were asked to take a seat while they got it sorted out on their end.

I came into the space here wondering how often it gets used and yet here we were using it as intended. We chose a few seats in the waiting area. While we were waiting, several staff members came by to check in on us and ask if anything else was needed. One agent even showed us the “secret” of the chairs–that you can fully recline them into a comfortable bed. The kids really started to relax once they found out about the trick.

There’s also a small selection of drinks (including alcohol) and snacks. The kids each ate some M&M’s while Jenn opted for some water. I wasn’t feeling thirsty at the time but appreciated the option.

Once our bags were through-checked to our final destination, we proceeded to the private security clearance. The TSA agents here seemed happy and friendly. There was no yelling here. In fact, the experience was so pleasant that Alex asked me if we paid extra for this and if we can do this every time. If only we could be here every time we left LAX!

After clearing security, it was a quick elevator ride up to the Delta One Lounge. There is no need to show credentials once off the elevator; just enter the passageway and you’re admitted into the lounge. The entire check-in process is incredibly seamless, and truly makes you feel like you’re flying private.

Seating

Once inside, you’ll find quite a bit of seating available. Practically everywhere you sit, you’ll find a place setting and wait staff eager to tend to your needs. Popular areas to hang out were on the outside patio and by the lone TV in the lounge. It should be noted that we were in this lounge between 5:00PM and 8:30PM on a Saturday evening and it was never more than 20% full by my estimate.

Note that most tables here are intended for one or two people. There are nooks where two tables are near each other if you have a bigger party, but clearly most customers using the facility are not going to bring their family (whoops).

There is a slight problem with sitting outside that I should note. When a bigger plane pulls into Gate 31A, the engine noise gets fairly loud as it echoes off the walls. It detracts from the otherwise calm and pleasing ambience, but really that’s the only thing “wrong” with the lounge that I can point out.

If you are outside, there are heat lamps in the evening.

Food

First off, any lounge that has a sushi chef is a welcome sight. We made sure to keep him busy.

There is also a selection of desserts. There were staff members waiting by the display asking if we needed any assistance ordering any desserts. Aside from this display, you’re not going to find a buffet in this lounge; all dining is a la carte.

We chose a couple of tables in the back, where we met Chelsea who was eager to take care of us. She explained that everything here is free, with the exception of the last page in the menu that houses premium alcohol offerings, and that there is no expectation of tipping here though she will accept it if you insist.

The kids got coloring books when they sat down. Char recognized it as the same coloring book she received earlier in the year at the Indianapolis Sky Club.

The menus were distributed and naturally our first reaction was to look at the sushi section. Keep in mind that the dishes all seemed to be more like tapas, giving you the ability to try a few different varieties rather than filling up on a single dish.

The lounge does also have a kids menu. Personally I think it’s adorable they call it the “Future Million Miler” menu. The kids have a loooooong way to go to hit that threshold.

Jenn and I started out with some drinks: the Cucumber Lychee Chumai on the left and the How D’ya Like Them Apples? on the right. The lychee drink actually wasn’t all that sweet, so it might be a good option if you’re looking for something a bit lighter in taste. We both agreed that the other drink was better.

I ordered the tekka maki, which was excellent. The quality of the fish was superb and I appreciated the fresh wasabi.

The hamachi crudo was our favorite dish–we ended up ordering three of these because why not?–and if you eat it with all the accoutrements, you’ll agree that the freshness and the simplicity of the dish simply cannot be beat.

The hand roll is a big slab of unagi (freshwater eel) that hits the spot if you’re looking for that delicious eel sauce.

Jenn ordered the bento box. While you can’t customize the included dishes, you can choose to receive only a subset of the items if you don’t want the full thing. Jenn chose just the miso black cod and the matcha panna cotta. Both dishes were excellent.

Go figure that I also ordered fish tacos and yet I was so eager to eat them that I didn’t take a picture of them. That’s a bit embarrassing, but I did enjoy them. If you’d prefer, you can add on some avocado, as suggested by Chelsea. They do provide spicy habanero sauce to accompany the fish tacos so use it sparingly.

The kids meals were similarly fresh and delicious. Each child ordered a plate of macaroni pasta.

And then they also split a pizza. Personally, I wouldn’t mind this being on the adult menu. You can tell it’s freshly made from scratch, with a light crust and lots of gooey melted cheese.

Dessert this evening was the brown butter ice cream sundae with apples on the side. We also added on some madeleines for Alex (he originally wanted 15 but we talked him down from that impressive number).

And we also ordered a couple of slices of cake: lemon chiffon and chocolate.

Jenn also ordered some tea, which was presented in a elaborate yet thoughtful way.

The meal was simply divine from start to finish and we left here completely stuffed. It’s an awesome to have what could easily be considered a fine dining experience as we waited in an airport for our time to board. The service here provided by Chelsea and team was excellent and incredibly attentive. We came here feeling a bit hungry and left feeling rather impressed by the whole experience.

Other Amenities

When we entered the Delta One Lounge at LAX, we were immediately greeted by a representative who gave us a short tour of the facilities and handed us a card detailing everything that can be found at the lounge. If you are looking for time at the massage chairs, please note that there can be a wait in excess of 30 minutes. I discovered that the hard way when I mistakenly assumed it would be readily available and thus wasn’t able to experience it before our flight boarded.

The shower suites are in the adjacent Delta Sky Club. I didn’t get a chance to check them out on this trip (I took a shower at home before leaving for this trip) but I did check them out previously.

The restrooms at the Delta One Lounge at LAX were quite nice, with private rooms that were quite beautiful. I normally don’t call an airport bathroom “beautiful” but I think it applies here.

The Best Lounge at LAX?

I want to address the elephant in the room right now. Is this the best lounge at LAX? I’m going to first ignore The Private Suite, since that’s a completely different type of product–you need to pay a significant amount for that access. But how about the comparison to the also-excellent Qantas First Class Lounge over in Tom Bradley International Terminal? I actually think the Delta One Lounge looks comparatively better in many regards:

• The experience is far superior if originating in LAX with the Delta One check-in facility.
• At the Delta One Lounge, there is a view of the runway and natural lighting. The same can’t be said of the Qantas First Class Lounge.
• I found the food and service to be marginally better at the Delta One Lounge as compared to the Qantas First Class Lounge.

The main advantages the Qantas First Class Lounge has over the Delta One Lounge is that the shower suites are located inside the Qantas lounge (rather than needing to go to an adjacent lounge to use their shower facilities) and that the access is much easier to get into (non-AA and non-Alaska Emeralds can get in on a domestic economy flight).

In my humble opinion, all things considered, I’m prepared to say this is the best lounge available at LAX, though I still love the Qantas First Class Lounge too!

Recommendation: Absolutely Yes

If you’re flying in Delta One out of LAX, the overall experience is amazing. A comfortable place to check in, a private security screening facility, and immediate access to a seemingly never-crowded lounge with excellent dining and attentive service. It actually made us forget we were in one of the busiest airports in the United States. Aside from the rush of traffic driving into LAX, once we were inside, we were perfectly at ease. This is luxury and it’s a must-do if you’re flying Delta One.

This potentially adds value to even Regional Upgrade Certificates, if you can find availability on those flights, as it now gives lounge access on top of a comfortable flight.

If you’re flying Delta’s partners in business class, I would similarly recommend coming here, as the dining and service tops what would otherwise be available in partner lounges.

I wouldn’t go so far as to say you should upgrade any ticket from economy to Delta One just to try this, but if you were on the edge considering it and afraid to take the leap, just know that you’re going to walk away a satisfied customer.

What are your thoughts on the Delta One Lounge LAX?