Kansas City Delta Sky Club Review: The Only Airline Lounge at MCI

Kansas City International Airport (MCI) is no longer a blast from the past. A 40-gate airport terminal opened in 2023, replacing the three horseshoe-shaped terminals that were inefficient, dreary and dated. With the renovation came a Delta Sky Club.

The old terminals were built in 1972 and had few amenities pre-security and even fewer after passing through TSA checkpoints. The old Delta Air Lines area had a couple of toilets and a kiosk selling packaged snacks. If you wanted something else, you had to leave the glassed-in secure area.

That’s not the case anymore with about 50 food, beverage and shopping venues in the terminal and the 11,200-square-foot Delta Sky Club, which is Delta’s first new Sky Club market in several years.

It’s the only airline lounge at MCI.

The Kansas City Sky Club is open from 4:15 a.m. to 6:15 p.m. Sunday through Friday and 4:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Saturday.

The entrance to the Sky Club is near the B gates in an area called the City Market, which is after security and near the gate area. It’s light and bright and looks like one of the many art pieces in the terminal.

Elevators go from the gate level to the lounge level, and once inside, you’ll find plenty of seating and colorful art on the walls from regional artists.

It’s warm and inviting while also being clean and sleek.

There are a variety of seating options for up to 200 people, many with tables that are perfect for working or eating at. Others are set up for socializing or television viewing, and there are even a few sofas.

Most areas of the lounge have a view of the control tower and some of the gates out of floor-to- ceiling windows.

On this visit, the tarmac was covered from the first snow of the season. It was too cold to enjoy either of the Sky Decks that have views of the airport, even though there were heaters and things seemed to be dry. Both decks have glass walls and covers but are still outside. Being inside was much more pleasant.

The lounge also has Wi-Fi available along with bathroom facilities.

The Sky Club at MCI has a full bar in an open area with plenty of seating. There’s also a nonalcoholic beverage station with drip and espresso-based coffees, flavored waters and soft drinks.

Since it was the holiday season, there was a festive hot chocolate bar that hit the spot on a cold and snowy day.

The food buffet was set up well with a good traffic flow and a variety of hot and cold foods.

The marinara meatballs were especially tasty along with a broccoli dish. It was nice to have a table where I could put my food and not have to balance it on my lap or on a tiny table like I do at some other Sky Clubs.

To enter the Kansas City Sky Club and the more than 50 other Sky Club locations, passengers need to be flying Delta and have a Sky Club membership, be flying in Delta One or have access through a credit card.

Medallion members of the Delta SkyMiles program can buy an annual membership for an individual for $695 or 69,500 miles. An executive membership is $1,495 or 149,500 miles for a member and two guests.

The Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card and Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card provide cardholders with 15 Sky Club visits per year when traveling on a Delta-operated or Delta-market flight. The Platinum Card® from American Express and The Business Platinum Card® from American Express provide cardholders with 10 visits per year. Terms apply.

Eligible passengers can enter a Delta Sky Club within three hours of their scheduled departure time with a same-day boarding pass.

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Overall, the Sky Club at Kansas City International Airport is a spacious and beautiful place to relax and get something to eat and drink before a flight. It’s a welcome change to the dark and dreary departure areas of the old terminals.

I even heard a million-miler say it was one of the nicest Delta Sky Clubs he had ever been to, and I agree.

There are several seating varieties, most with great views of all the aviation action going on, and even two outdoor deck areas that would be great in nice weather.