The landmark TWA Terminal makes going to the airport (JFK to be exact) more of a fun excursion. Whether you are local and just want a unique spot for a bite to eat or on a long layover, the TWA Hotel is worth a visit. My visit was sparked by my favorite interior designer, HGTV’s very own Brian Patrick Flynn. I was lucky enough to win an Instagram contest that he held and I won a TWA Hotel gift card.
The hotel provides a calm yet fun environment despite the chaos that might be going on next door at the terminal. There are numerous sections filled with historical finds and fun interactive activities. You will feel as though Frank Sinatra or Marilyn Monroe will pop up at any time.
The highlight of our visit was chatting with a former pilot and his wife onboard the restored CONNIE, a Lockheed Constellation L-1649 Starliner, a couple from Manhattan spending the night before their early morning flight. The plane was completely restored to the original details and shipped to the hotel site for conversion into a cocktail bar.
The hotel not only draws travel enthusiasts but design and architect enthusiasts. When you enter, it is like stepping back in time as it has been revived perfectly to its original state of mid-century modern design. This site was closed for 18 years until it was renovated by the Brooklyn-based firm Lubrano Ciavarra Architects.
The glass-clad building features 512 rooms, a rooftop infinity pool, and a 10,000-square-foot observation deck that looks out over incoming international flights in Jamaica Bay. It’s these things that maybe we didn’t pay attention to when it was operating flights that it so awe-inspiring when you first walk through the doors and enter into the lobby & check-in area.
Located on the second floor in the heart of the 1962 Eero Saarinen-designed TWA terminal, the Paris Café by Jean-Georges encompassed the entire footprint of the terminal’s original Paris Café and Lisbon Lounge. The spaces were originally outfitted by famed Parisian industrial designer Raymond Loewy — the mind behind the 1955 Coca-Cola contour bottle, the 1959 TWA twin globes logo, the 1963 Studebaker Avanti and the 1962 Air Force One livery.
The rooftop pool is definitely the place for aviation gurus. It’s a spot for a swim in the heated pool mid-winter or cocktails and light eats. The swimming spot has a beach entry and underwater seating — not to mention a gleaming TWA logo mosaic in the signature colors of gold and red. It sits on the horizon of a thrilling scene — JFK’s bustling Runway 4 Left/22 Right, with views all the way to Jamaica Bay.
