In early December 2021, we arrived at Orlando Airport for a flight to New York on JetBlue. Before leaving the house, I checked the flight status using FlightAware (which is one of my seven must-have travel apps) and everything looked on schedule.
We have a system worked out for how early we have to leave for the airport, which takes into account the time needed to drop off our dog at “camp,” drive to the off-site parking lot and get a shuttle to the airport, check in and drop off our bags, get through security and to the gates on the tram. We build in a buffer in case we experience any delays, which means if everything works as planned, we get to the airport earlier than necessary.
On this day, everything went like clockwork. Camp, no traffic, parking lot bus to the airport, only carry-on bags so skipped the counter, no line at CLEAR and short wait at TSA Precheck luggage check, tram to the gates with 60 minutes to spare before boarding time.
At MCO, the amenities at gates 1-29 are the least appealing of the four departure areas. There’s a food court, On The Border restaurant, and a Starbucks in the central area with other restaurants by the gates. Fortunately, there is also The Club MCO lounge. We prefer the other The Club MCO lounge near the Delta gates (which is our favorite of the lounges at MCO) but you can’t pass up convenience.
Since we had plenty of time, we found two seats in the main area and waited. It took about 10-15 minutes but as promised, we received a text.
When we entered the club, it was the emptiest we’d ever seen. While it can sometimes be difficult to find a seat, we had our choice of getting a table by the window, a recliner chair, or seats in the work area.
The Club MCO has made several changes since reopening which are still in place. You are no longer able to get your food. Instead, you tell the staff what you want, and they plate it if the items are not pre-wrapped. The same goes for coffee or soft drinks. The breakfast menu is limited to a few items.
The Club MCO has its own bathrooms, including a shower room. However, that’s also closed until further notice and is being used to store the bath furniture.
The lounge is capping capacity and I’m not sure if this is a COVID precaution or because they’re not able to fully staff the lounge.
All things considered, this was not a major inconvenience to our trip. It was just interesting that in all the times we’d used the club before, we’d never been told it was full. We still got to visit and grab some food before our flight. It was more comfortable than the alternative of waiting in line for 30 minutes for a Starbucks coffee and heading to a crowded gate area before our full flight to JFK.
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