1st look inside: Delta just opened its new Sky Club in Boston's international Terminal E
Quick summary
Boston Logan's long-awaited Terminal E expansion opened on Tuesday, and with it, Delta Air Lines' highly anticipated new Sky Club in the international terminal.
Delta moved its international departures to Terminal E last year, which allowed it to turn planes around faster. Previously, Delta, like United Airlines and American Airlines, would drop off international passengers at Terminal E, which has a passport control station, and then ferry the aircraft to its normal terminal.
However, the airline did not have a Sky Club location in E, leaving passengers to use the often-crowded Air France lounge in the terminal, which is accessible to Priority Pass customers.
Although the airline opened an "Express" concept lounge, it did not offer as many amenities as a normal club, and the airline promised a new, permanent lounge on its way.
The Terminal E expansion, which was begun in 2018, adds four gates to the terminal for a total of 16, along with space for Delta's spacious new lounge.
Both the Sky Club and the terminal opened Tuesday afternoon, and TPG got an exclusive early sneak preview of the lounge as airline staff prepared it to welcome its first passengers.
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Spacious, soaring and scrumptious
The new Sky Club, which sprawls across the terminal, offers nearly 21,000 feet of space — enough room for a large premium bar, a big dining area and more than 400 seats.
The airline says the lounge is meant to evoke the feel of a sailboat, with a curved design, mast-like columns and an oak motif meant to represent the hull; a call to the nearby Boston Harbor.
On that note, the airline leaned heavily into locality for the design, with art curated from artists with themes connected to the broader New England region and abroad, a nod to the international destinations flown from the terminal.
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There are a variety of seating options, with two-top dining tables, conference tables, armchairs, bar seating, semi-private booths and more.
The lounge additionally offers six sound-proof phone booths, allowing users to take phone calls in a quiet space without disturbing other visitors.
Near the halfway point of the lounge, a large three-sided bar abuts a massive wine refrigerator. As is the case at other SkyClubs, there are numerous complimentary options, along with premium wines, beers and spirits for sale.
At the end of the lounge, a buffet island and counter offer sandwiches, hot foods, small bites, snacks and desserts, including some local options like clam chowder or lobster rolls. There are also a few coffee and soft drink stations spread throughout the lounge.
Given the international focus of the lounge, particularly overnight transatlantic flights, food is especially important, Delta's managing director of lounges Claude Roussel told TPG.
"What we hear is a lot of guests like to eat their meals in the lounge," Roussel said, "especially when you have JFK or Boston departures, which are shorter flights, to Europe."
"What we're offering here will be perfect," he predicted.
At the far end of the lounge, there are five shower suites, including two larger accessible ones, along with bathrooms.
The lounge is Delta's third at Boston Logan, functioning alongside the airline's two Sky Club locations at Terminal A. Between the three, the airline has lounge space to accommodate more than 1,000 passengers at a time.
The Terminal E lounge is open daily from 1:30 p.m. and closes between 10:15 and 10:45 p.m., depending on flight departures.