There’s been a lot of news this week about the new Airspace lounge in JFK’s T5 terminal. But a new lounge has entered the Atlanta market and is a game changer for those that have access yet the news in the blogosphere has been relatively muted.

The Club at ATL opened yesterday and is even running a promotion where members can bring in guests for free during the promotion period.

I had the opportunity to enjoy the complimentary beverages at the Club at ATL thanks to my priority pass select membership from my Platinum Card® from American Express and the results are surprising. I think this lounge may be a game changer and the new lounge I’ll visit when in the international terminal in Atlanta.

I used my Priority Pass select membership, one of the benefits of the Platinum card, to gain access the Club at ATL for free by simply showing my Priority Pass card. If I didn’t have the Priority Pass select card, I could have used one of my two complimentary entrances I received from signing up for the Lounge Club membership through my Ink Plus® Business Card or my Ink Bold® Business Card.

The lounge is located in the upper level of the international terminal.

It’s directly across the atrium from the new Delta Sky Club which is bigger and has a Sky Deck, so there must have been a compelling reason for me to visit.

Upon entering I was greeted by name and they told me I was among the first few visitors. I took a quick tour of the lounge and started out down the left side of the lounge. There was a small seating area with regular snacks.

Just past the snack bar was a new coffee machine and refrigerators with water.

The view of from this lounge isn’t as good as the Delta Sky Club in the F concourse, but it wasn’t all that bad of a view. I could see planes departing from the north runways just over the “Fly Delta Jets” sign.

Heading back over to the other side of the lounge, I went past the front entrance and a hallway to the showers. The seating area is much larger on the right side and is also located near the larger snack area and the bar.

I was hoping to break in the bar, but one person beat me to it. Fortunately, I was able to be the first to break open the Johnnie Walker Black with a Johnnie Walker Black on the rocks.

The drink selection was impressive and the best part is everything you see in this picture is complimentary. There were a few additional items to the left that were on the luxury menu, but this selection was just perfect for me.

To the left of the bar is a small business area. The wifi worked throughout the lounge.

The snack area on the right side of the lounge is a little larger and had slightly more substantial snack offerings including cheese, fruit, chips, cookies and hot soup with baguette bread rolls.

You’ll have pretty much the same view from the right side of the lounge as you would from the left side of the lounge. Again, not as compelling a view from the Sky Club.

I got a quick tour of the shower facilities and it appeared there were two showers available.

Bottom Line

The addition of the Club at ATL will certainly give more competition to the new Delta Sky Club in the international terminal. The complimentary drink selection at the Club at ATL is much better than the Sky Club but the views are slightly worse. I’ll likely visit this lounge next time I’m in the international terminal and am looking for a drink.

The complimentary bar selection in the lounge made up for the fact I was in the worst seat on a 45 minute regional jet flight where drink service rarely makes it all the way to the back.

What do you think, will the drink selection in this lounge be enough to cause you to visit over the Delta Sky Club next time you are in Atlanta’s international terminal?

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