With many traditional airport lounges experiencing overcrowding, airlines have been looking at different ways to maintain the luxury experience promised to travelers with loyalty status or a high fare class.
Both United (UAL) and Delta (DAL) now have grab-and-go locations where travelers can bypass the main lounge and quickly grab a cold snack, while others have been experimenting with lounges aimed at attracting travelers with various interests.
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New airport lounges with games are designed to attract certain kinds of travelers.
Photo by Boris Roessler/picture alliance via Getty Images
New lounge ‘lowers the stakes and creates opportunity to try something new,’ founder says
At the start of the year, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) opened the doors to a new lounge called “Sky Gamerz.”
The new lounge in the airport’s Terminal N is tailored specifically for video game fans and those looking to play while they wait for a flight. It is decorated in the style of retro gaming rooms popular in the 1970s and 1980s before the rise of the internet. The room has machines with classic games such as Atari, Frogger, and Donkey Kong, as well as screens with more modern Nintendo (NTDOF) and golf simulation games.
Related: Airlines are cracking down on lounge crowding in a way you won’t like
“Retro is always a safe bet because what we find is that even children like retro video games,” H. Lamar Willis, one of the entrepreneurs behind the concept, said in a statement. “Donkey Kong, Ms. Pacman, and Frogger are all games kids are not familiar with but are excited by. […] This lowers the stakes and also creates that opportunity to try something new.”
Willis said he was inspired by the number of airport visitors playing video and other types of games on their phones and devices at airport gates; he got the idea to create a dedicated space for people to game. Terminal N is a new terminal added to the north end of the airport in 2021, and it needs to be accessed by special shuttle train as it is not connected to the main passageway.
Most flights taking off from there are shorter domestic routes run by regional carriers like Alaska Airlines (ALK) .
Airports don’t usually have many entertainment spaces
Unlike the traditional lounge offering free food and drinks to a select group of travelers with access, Sky Gamerz is open to anyone who walks in. An adjoining bar, which is also designed in the retro game room style with pink and green neon lights, offers a selection of drinks and bar snacks for a price.
Sky Gamerz opened in Seattle International Airport in January 2025.
SeaTac International Airport
“There aren’t a lot of entertainment spaces in airports,” Willis said further. “In order to be successful, we wanted to also have a food and beverage element to it. Good food and beverage combined with gaming hasn’t really been done anywhere in the airport space.”
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A similar concept has already been successfully tested at Denver International Airport (DEN). Located in its Concourse A area, the Golf Simulator Oasis allows travelers to book 15-minute slots in which they can practice their swing in front of a screen.
While this is a paid activity starting at $20 for 15 minutes, it has proven to be popular by travelers looking for different ways to pass the time between flights.
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