‘Next level’: Airport perk Aussies set to froth over

A huge competitor to Qantas reckons its new airport experience is like “nothing before,” and one feature could be a game changer.

It’s the airport perk travellers crave but few get to experience: an airline lounge stocked with free food, a cheeky glass of wine on the house and a place to unwind and recharge before the long haul back to Australia.

But a major competitor to Qantas reckons it’s got the upper hand with its “next level” airline club.

US carrier Delta has gone luxe on its lounge.

“We have never done anything like this before,” Delta’s vice president of Skyclubs and lounge experience Claude Roussel told news.com.au.

He was speaking at the launch of the world’s first ever “Delta One” lounge, the fanciest the carrier has ever opened. It welcomes passengers from June 26.

And there’s a feature which could be a game changer for travellers who have the funds, or frequent flyer miles, to sit at the pointy end.

The downside for Australians: it’s in New York. At JFK airport to be precise.

But Mr Roussel said Aussies – some of the keenest travellers to New York – were a key target for Delta.

“We will serve Australians (travelling to New York) and Australians connecting through New York – if they’re on Delta One they will enter this lounge.”

One prominet airline blogger has already deemed it “probably the best lounge in the US”.

Delta is keen to attract Australians to its new, swanky, lounge. (Photo by Charley TRIBALLEAU / AFP)

Delta One is the carrier’s name for its business class and the brand has been carried over to this lounge.

A similar lounge in Los Angeles, a key US jumping off point for Australians, is due to open by the end of the year.

The new Delta One lounge at New York's JFK airport is the first one ever to open. Picture: Benedict Brook/news.com.au.

Inside is an art-filled, art deco inspired 3700sq metre space with natural light, gold accented dark wood and 515 seats, many of them leather armchairs pleading with you to sink into them. Charging ports abound.

Delta claims the lounge has unique features, especially for the US, and boasts a top-tier restaurant, walk up eatery, mini spa, a valet, shoe shiner, “relaxation pods”, a cosy nook with fireplace and a “serenity lounge”.

All free of course – if you have the right status to get across the threshold.

The terrace, ringed, is one of the defining features of the big 3700sqm lounge. Picture: Benedict Brook/news.com.au.

Game changer lounge feature

But it might be the terrace that persuades picky passengers to give the Delta One lounge a try.

Some lounges don’t even have windows. The terrace, by contrast, is a huge, bright, fresh airy and relaxing space. A bit like kicking back in a plant filled orangery – if one had been built next to a runway. The roof can be opened in summer up and the windows dimmed if its gets too bright.

If calm is what you clamour for in a lounge this is about as far from the airport hubbub as you can get.

The terrace at the new Delta One lounge at New York's JFK airport. Picture: Benedict Brook/news.com.au.

Dish Aussies will love

Australians make up the eighth biggest cohort of visitors passing through the Big Apple.

According to New York City tourism bosses, 446,000 Aussies visited in 2023, more than from Spain or China.

The Market self-service eatery certainly has a dish Australians will be familiar with. Alongside mini charcuterie plates, ham and gooey gruyere baguettes and desserts including Biscoff cookie banana caramel pud is a pimped up, down under delicacy: smashed avocado, or in this case “smashed avocado toast tartine” topped with slithers of cucumber and watermelon radish.

Herb chicken salad croissant and smashed avocado toast tartine at the Market in the Delta One lounge. Picture: Benedict Brook/news.com.au.

It’s perhaps no surprise that plate made the cut when the boss is an avo addict.

“I eat an avocado every single day” Mr Roussel divulged to news.com.au.

“A touch of olive oil, salt, pepper, lemon. It could be morning, lunch, night; they’re very good for you.”

But it’s the lounge’s restaurant that he is particularly proud of.

“The food offering, we believe is going to be the top of what people experience.

“We don’t believe there’s anything like it in the US”.

The Brasseries is a full sit down affair, a boon for passengers who want to eat but maximise their sleep on board. Useful too for Aussies who can grab a bite before the early evening flight to LA to connect to Australia. Delta flies daily to Sydney from the US and, from December, three times a week to Brisbane.

There’s more avocado in the restaurant, as part of a Hamachi crude fish dish with chilli and radish. Steak tartare, cauliflower steak, and, naturally, New York cheesecake, are also on the menu.

Delta says its Brasserie restaurant is like nothing seen in US airport lounges before. Picture: Benedict Brook/news.com.au.

‘Next level’ lounge

“Some lounges have a nice buffet or whatever but here at every seat you can receive personalised service,” said Mr Roussel. “The lounge really is next level”.

Personal service to potentially 500 people is not easy. So every few metres is what is essentially a tiny bar with a staff member ready to pounce should you look beverage-less.

The lounge's Icon bar if you prefer to chat to the bartenders Picture: Benedict Brook/news.com.au.

And if you do grab some avo toast, a staff members should bring cutlery to you within seconds.

After a bite you could head to the wellness area where you can get a massage or a “reawakening eye treatment” with cryotherapy ice globes. You can also see it a massage chair or even take a nap in a relaxation pod.

Or take a shower and put your clothes in a seemingly magic closet which a valet can access from outside. Twenty minutes later your clothes will return, all fresh and steamed them while you preened.

Scattered throughout the lounge are staff with their own mini bars ready to pour you a drink. Picture: Benedict Brook/news.com.au.

Not easy to get inside

These days, many lounges are open to a multitude of travellers – some welcome certain credit card holders and some economy class passengers, for a fee of course.

But with the Delta One lounge, it’s more limited. You’ll have to be flying business class with Delta or one of its partners to get in.

Aviation, especially for premium passengers, is cutthroat. Delta competes with Qantas, Air New Zealand, Hawaiian, American, United, Air Canada, Japan Air Lines and more besides in offering one stop flights from New York to Australia. Qantas plans to offer the first ever non-stop New York to Sydney non-stop flights in the coming years.

Delta hopes its new Delta One lounge will bring some of the high rollers, or even those treating themselves to a business class splurge, onto their metal.