Dallas Fort Worth Terminal E is where you will find your gate for your Delta flight. If you are renting a car and haven’t experienced this city of an airport just recognize that it will be a bit of a ride to and from the car rental counters. It’s a well-managed process but one of the most frustrating because of the time it could take, so consider that when making your decision of where you are staying and what your reliance of a car may be. In this case, you need to decide if the airport convenience outweighs the need to get around once on the ground. I have experienced both and just recently abandoned the car – more about why in “The familiar, Let’s Talk About Frisco”.
If you are looking for your coffee upon arrival, there is a Peet’s Coffee Shop. If you arrive early on your return, don’t expect too much if you don’t have access to a lounge. There is a BBQ joint, a 7-11, a market, a play area for kids, a new video game area and just a few other dining and shopping options.
By virtue of my American Express card, I use the Delta lounge and/or the American Express Centurion lounge. AMEX far outweighs the Delta lounge, and these are hard to come by across the country so definitely use it when you can. In this case, just be sure to do some planning ahead of time (did you rent that car?). I’ll start with some feedback about this Delta lounge. It’s located near the gates that seem to be used to head back to NY. If you’ve seen one, you’ve seen most, however, like most things not everything is created equal. In this case, bigger is better and new is best. This one can be crowded. The food choices are like others with your standard carrots and hummus, grilled chicken, soup, some other cold salads for lunch. The bartenders here and at all the Delta lounges I have visited are very friendly and accommodating.
The AMEX lounge has recently moved, so ignore most of the signage, it’s now next to Applebee’s in Terminal D. I have been to this lounge twice. Now that I have lounge access I purposely get to the airport earlier because I want to leverage this benefit and all things considered, it’s a better practice anyway. I used to be much more aggressive getting to the airport. You can settle in, grab food, drink, relax and get some work done pre-flight. If you are checking a bag (and flying Delta), you will need to take the rental bus or your shared ride to Terminal E. Once you drop your bag, check-in, and go through security, look for the signs to the SkyLink (when opened in 2005 it was the world’s largest airport train system). There are two entrances/exits at the Delta terminal. It’s a short walk to the Skylink, a short wait and a short ride to Terminal D. It seems to be a very convenient and easy to use the system. It will take you about 10-12 minutes from gate to lounge and vice-versa. Once you get off the tram, make a right, go down the long escalator, make another right, go about 20 yards and make another right to the corridor toward the elevator. The elevator to the lounge will open on the opposite side. Follow in reverse to get back to your gate. Notice the gate ranges for the two stops at Terminal E to get closer to your gate or if you want to stop in to the Delta lounge. If you don’t have to worry about a bag, which 9 out of 10 times, I don’t and I’m sure the same for you, you can head right to Terminal D to check in there. Take the north side drop off if you want to use TSA-Pre and then expect a 3-5 minute walk to the lounge. If you want to get closer you can get dropped off on the south side and you will be about 20 yards from the elevator; just turn left. There is no TSA-Pre lane here. There is a priority lane though so my wait was negligible. I was handed a TSA-Pre card so was able to leave my shoes on but had to take out my electronics.
The front desk was a bit more hospitable during my first visit then second. My first was just a walk thru so I’ll focus more on my second. The theme was it was difficult to connect my iPad to Wi-Fi on both occurrences. They have cookies near the entrance/exit and they have lockers to store your bag.
This lounge is much nicer than the Delta lounge in Dallas. The bar is well appointed (I need to do some more discovery to find out which liquors / beers / wines are complimentary, but word is they all are). I ordered a mimosa and Bloody Mary both of which were well made. The breakfast was delicious (I had a frittata) and the service pretty good. There is a coffee station complimented with teas and a water station. It seems to be both business friendly and family friendly.
