It was another early morning departure. I was on my way through Los Angeles heading east to Nashville for one last stop before returning home to wrap up the 2024 work travel year.
Having access to Delta Sky Clubs during long-haul cross-country travel is a huge asset, and this club in the remodeled Terminal 3 Sky Way at LAX is easily one of the best in Delta’s entire system.
Here is what I wrote on December 15, 2024 while sitting in the club before boarding:
“It’s another early one. One more stop before heading home and closing out this work year of travel.
I appreciate having access to Delta Sky Clubs during my travels, and this new Sky Club in the remodeled terminal here at LAX is really nice. The club is modern and spacious, has a lot of nice design details and even when it’s at capacity, doesn’t feel overcrowded. The layout makes it a great place to unwind before a flight and it even offers some outdoor space that overlooks the runway and terminals.
The food selection is solid, and while breakfast is pretty typical fare, I’ve found the lunch and evening services to offer a very good selection of food including freshly prepared items like street tacos and more at the back serving station. The club always has a good mix of fresh snacks, a variety of beverages as well as a full service bar.”
The spacious main lounge area inside the LAX Terminal 3 Sky Club, highlighting the wave-like illuminated ceiling acoustic light ribbons, central bar, and varied seating zones.
Architectural Layout and Crowding Dynamics
Terminal remodels often look great on paper but fail the practical test once passenger volume hits peak morning banks. What Delta did right in Terminal 3 is layout flow. The club covers over 30,000 square feet, but instead of one loud, chaotic cavern, it is divided into distinct zones:
- High-top quartz work counters with grounded power and USB connectivity.
- Private telephone booths for conference calls without background lounge hum.
- Curved leather booth alcoves for relaxed dining.
- An open-air Sky Deck with runway vistas.
Because of this zoning, even when the club is operating near passenger capacity, it never feels jammed. You can always find a quiet corner to knock out work or sit down with a hot meal.
A curved banquet alcove featuring saddle leather booth seating, marble cocktail tables, woven pendant shades, and an intricate mosaic tile mural of lush tropical palms.
Morning Breakfast Spread and Culinary Stations
For this early flight, I headed over to the buffet before boarding. The breakfast selection covers the essentials thoroughly: hot egg soufflés, savory sausage patties, seasoned roasted potatoes, hot oatmeal, fresh sliced pineapple, strawberries, blueberry scones, and warm croissants.
Gene’s morning breakfast on the quartz counter: hot egg soufflé bite, breakfast sausage patty, roasted potato wedge, oatmeal, fresh pineapple, strawberries, blueberry scone, croissant, orange juice, and hot Rishi tea.
During lunch and evening service, the food program steps up another notch. The back culinary station prepares fresh items to order, including authentic street tacos with seasoned meats, fresh cilantro, onions, and house salsas. Add in fresh snacks, espresso machines, and a full-service craft cocktail bar, and you can easily put together a quality meal without needing to hunt down terminal food court options.
The Outdoor Sky Deck
One of the standout amenities at this club is the outdoor Sky Deck. Delta designed an open-air terrace with glass safety screens that look directly out over the Terminal 3 gates and the south airfield runways.
The open-air Sky Deck outdoor terrace overlooking the airport gates and runways at night, featuring wicker egg swing chairs, deep outdoor sofas, and woven pendant lanterns.
The terrace even includes its own outdoor beverage counter connected directly to the central bar, complete with sleek red cove lighting and high barstools. Watching widebody jets taxi out while catching some fresh Southern California air before a cross-country flight is tough to beat.
The indoor and outdoor bar counter opening out onto the Sky Deck terrace under red architectural cove lighting with tarmac views beyond.
The Art Collection: Alex Gross Cabinet Card Superhero Series
One of the coolest design touches in this club is the artwork. Along one of the main corridors, Delta installed a curated gallery wall from artist Alex Gross titled the “Cabinet Card Superhero Series”.
Gross takes authentic, antique cabinet card photographs from the late 19th and early 20th centuries and meticulously paints over them using oil and acrylic, transforming historical figures into pop culture and comic book superheroes while keeping their original faces visible.
The complete gallery wall in the lounge concourse displaying Alex Gross’s Cabinet Card Superhero Series framed originals.
The official gallery information plaque detailing artist Alex Gross’s background and his technique of painting on vintage late 19th-century cabinet card photographs.
Seeing iconic historical portraits reimagined as superheroes brings real personality to what would otherwise be empty hallway space:
Alex Gross’s portrait of President Theodore Roosevelt reimagined as Mr. Incredible from The Incredibles on an antique cabinet card.
Alex Gross’s depiction of a Victorian gentleman transformed into Beast from X-Men holding a cocktail glass.
Alex Gross’s painting of an antique cabinet portrait reimagined as the Borg Queen from Star Trek.
An antique portrait photograph painted with traditional red Japanese Samurai armor and helmet.
An antique portrait photograph humorously transformed into Syndrome from The Incredibles.
The Field Verdict
The remodeled Delta Sky Club at LAX Terminal 3 sets a high benchmark for domestic airline lounges. Between the smart layout that absorbs crowds, the open-air Sky Deck, the quality made-to-order food, and the unique local art, it makes passing through LAX an enjoyable part of the journey rather than a chore.