American Admirals Club at Charlotte (CLT) | Video

Seating: US Airways never came at us with high-fashion lounges so this re-dubbed American Airlines Admirals Club at Charlotte Douglas International (CLT) offers a pretty bland but comfortable sit-down. The largest collection of seats are cubeish leather loungers found throughout the lounge in a few different sections.

Cafe seating is limited but offers a spot for more intense snacking. You can also pull up to the bar for a friendly, perhaps drunken exchange with travel mates.

Food/Drink: Our mid-afternoon visit meant limited snacks. Bagged tortilla chips with salsa packets, apples, oranges, Biscoff wannabe cookies and the by-the-ton snack mix you find in just about every US Domestic lounge. A more robust food offering is typically offered around meal times (eg. bagels/oatmeal in the morning).

Wi-fi/Connectivity: Wi-fi was speedy enough for our normal social networking (twitter, Facebook, YouTube) and email. Power ports were convenient to most seats.

Service: There was an unusually large staff of attendants at the front desk. This might have been for reservations help on both US Airways and American Airlines as this visit was mid-merger. Our check-in using a Citi AAdvantage Executive Platinum card was simple, quick and friendly.

Showers: No showers.

Summary: With nicely sectioned seating areas and good dedicated workspaces, it can be a good lounge for a pre-flight drink or getting work done over a long connection. Snacks don’t exceed par though, so don’t bring an appetite. If the terminal is extra crowded and you can’t nab a center-terminal rocking chair, this Admirals Club might be a good solution. At busy times we’d probably skip shelling out for a paid, single-visit pass and go find a spot at a random terminal bar or restaurant.

Rating: 3 hops of 5. (Rated as a domestic US Lounge.)

How to get in: Admirals Club members and Citi AAdvantage Executive Platinum card holders have access to both Admirals Clubs at CLT Airport. Single visit passes are available for $50*.

*At time of post 19 January, 2015