DFW 6 Hour Layover

What a time to go to Madrid.  Though this winter has been our mildest yet, it was still a relief from the cold.  And though Spain has year long tourism, we found that February was one of the best months to go.  Tourism picks up noticeably in March. 

We used out air miles to get us there. Of course that means that you have to put up with milk runs, long layovers, and the like.  We had a six hour layover in one of our least liked airports, Dallas Fort Worth (DFW), in Texas.

We have been here before on our way to Mexico.  There as nothing there and of course we were starved and needed coffee.  So, we really weren’t looking forward to this part. I decided that it might be bearable if I brought some goodies with me and took a nap while there.  That’s where my research began.  And then came some good news, they’ve done some upgrades. Nothing spectacular but at least something. 

We noticed that they had a micro hotel available in the DFW airport, and I contemplated reserving a room for us.  I also was looking at a boarding room pass for us.  They are all very centrally located close to each other, so it was really a difference between what was offered and price.  I thought it would be nice to have a kind of sanctuary to go to and surprise my husband with.

We ended up getting day passes for the American Airlines. 

Here are my observations:

For the minute hotel:

The rooms were very small, about the size of my office at work. The rates were too high. The people working there were friendly and the rooms looked clean. The rooms offer Netflix and Direct TV.  You can take a shower, but you have to go to a separate area for the shower. This part I didn’t like. You can go out for food and drink, but there isn’t anything available there or included.  Overall, not a bad choice. My husband didn’t like the size but liked the privacy and he really didn’t like the price. If we did stay here, we would have wanted the deluxe room which was a bit bigger, and I would probably stay here if I was by myself. 

For the Admirals Club:

It was 50.00/pp or 99.00 membership fee. The membership fee works if you fly with the airline once in a while and could use the membership. Generally you get the membership and you take your spouse in for free.  There were complimentary drinks which included a red and white wine and beer. There were other premium drinks for purchase.  There were showers right there and I saw a good amount of people going through the door for them. This place can get crowded, we were lucky and set up shop at two of the reclining chairs along the far wall. These are well worth finding free and you are able to get a little shut eye. Be aware that there are only so many plugs close to these chairs to grab one while you can. There are tables and chairs all over the place which have plenty of plugs. If you leave your recliner, make sure you leave some stuff on it to save it, otherwise you chair is definitely going to be taken. The staff was pleasant and I drank my fair share of wine and mike his beer. 

Was it worth the $50/pp.  I think so and yet no.  It was worth it to find a place to rest for 6 hours, but it was also a bit high for really not getting that much out of it and it was pretty crowded.  Mike was of the same feeling.