If you’re staying at the Sheraton Atlanta Airport during their Club Lounge renovations, be sure to call before paying to upgrade to a club floor room! I was upgraded automatically as a Starwood Platinum, but if I had spent money or points for lounge access on my recent stay, I’d feel tricked.

They’re selling Club Level rooms for about $20-$25 more a night depending on your rate. There’s no notice on the website, room descriptions, or email confirmation that the club lounge is under renovation, though when you enter the lobby there’s a display showing what the new, larger lounge will look like.

In the meantime, there’s a temporary lounge set up on the 11th floor that offers non-alcoholic beverages and computer access and the evening appetizers are served in a roped off section of the 1900 Bar. Breakfast is in the restaurant. All of that is perfectly fine.

Sheraton Atlanta Airport Temporary Lounge

What did leave something to be desired was the haphazard, inconsistent communication.

I called ahead to see if the lounge would be open on New Year’s Eve. That’s when I found out that the club lounge was under renovation so the evening hors d’oeuvres would be served in the bar. No mention was made of a temporary lounge, so I stopped on the way and picked up bottled water for my stay before dropping off the rental car.

At check-in, they told me about the evening appetizers in the bar and about the 24 hour temporary lounge on the 11th floor. Guess I didn’t need to buy the bottled water after all. I was also given a print out outlining my options.

I swung by the temporary lounge which was basic, but fine. The evening appetizers in the bar were cheese, veggies and dip, and little pizza bites as the hot option. A scanty spread compared to other hotels, but again, perfectly fine.

The next morning I grabbed an early breakfast in the restaurant and rather than linger at my table for a second cup of tea, swung by the lounge to get some to go and some more bottled water since I’d finished mine.

My key didn’t work. I ran back down to the front desk to get it reprogrammed which is when I was informed (in a tone that suggested I should have known) that the temporary lounge was closed for the holidays!

• The taped sign on the door hadn’t been updated
• The paper outlining lounge benefits did not indicate a closure
• No mention of holiday hours had been made on the phone or during check in

They suggested I have breakfast in the restaurant and when I informed them I had, but just wanted some bottled water and hot tea, they looked around helplessly and told me they didn’t have any suggestions.

So depending on the day, paying for a club level floor is basically like a more expensive breakfast package. Before you book, consider calling to find out when/if the temporary lounge will be open.

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