I have wanted to stay at the TWA Hotel ever since I heard that Eero Saarinen's 1962 TWA Flight Center was being converted into a hotel... but it seemed silly to stay there on a trip to NYC. Finally, our trip back from Rio for New Year's Eve 2024 included a plane change at JFK... so it was time. In the end we had to rejigger our flights and push back on some "updated schedules", but in the end we had about 36 hours at the hotel, and we LIVED IT UP.
We arrived very early on January 2, and happily paid the fee for early check in. The hotel is stunning, with a large lobby and lounge space taking advantage of Saarinen's soaring building. We went to our room through the repurposed "flight tube", squealing all the way (okay, I was squealing). The room had a broad view back to the the terminal... and we later discovered that the terminal had a view back to the rooms.
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| "flight tube" |
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| sunrise from room 633 |
After dropping off our bags we ran around the hotel, admiring some of the installations like a replica 1962 living room:
a replica beauty salon:
Then, at 8am, we presented ourselves at the POOL. It's on the roof of one of the hotel wings, heated extra hot on the January morning.
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| the pool overlooks runway 4 left / 22 right |
Absolutely glorious.
We spent an hour admiring the runway view, soaking in the water, and even doing a lap or two. Unsurprisingly, we were alone. Occasionally someone would pop outside, bundled up, to have a look, but they usually hurried back downstairs. I love a good pool, and this one was extraordinary!
Then back downstairs where we continued to roam the hotel, taking in the upstairs lounge areas, admiring the historical flight crew uniforms, and luxuriating in all that intense red carpeting. We had a delightful breakfast at the Paris Cafe by Jean-Georges, giggling because that meal was more expensive than any we had had in Rio, and then back to the room for a nap -- you will be unsurprised to learn that I did not sleep at all on our red-eye from Rio.
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| Wil in the Ambassador's Lounge |
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| one of the two Solari boards in the hotel |
In the afternoon we hit the gift shop (hooray!) and then did a cocktail crawl, starting with a trip to visit Connie, a 1958 Lockheed-Martin Continental that has been converted to a lounge.
It was really fun to try out the old seats and sip cocktails on the old girl. We met a flight attendant who admired my vintage TWA bag... which was funny because I had stealthily snapped a photo of his adorable airplane socks!
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| sneaky socks pic |
We continued our cocktail crawl with a visit to the (now open) Pool Bar, transformed for winter into a Apres-Ski Chalet. (Apparently in the summer it's totally open, but they enclose it for winter.) To be honest it was nothing special -- I bet it would be lovelier in the summer.
Of course, we had another long dip in the pool, noticing a guy who was live-streaming the action on the runway. I just read that it's no longer allowed to live stream without express permission from the hotel, and they're very careful about what can be taken on the roof. Makes sense, since it's an airport after all!
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| note the vintage TWA flight bag! |
Finally, we settled in for a nightcap at the Sunken Lounge, where we felt very jetset while sipping on cocktails. Seriously, if I ever have a longish layover at JFK I will make my way over to the bar. It just feels swanky.
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| the Solari board in the Sunken Lounge kept changing the messages all day and night |
The next morning there was another swim, more meandering and admiring the art, and then it was time to fly home.
Staying at the TWA Hotel was a dream come true -- it felt like a vacation in and of itself, even though we had just spent a week in Rio. A great way to kick off the new year. Thanks to Mom for giving me a night at the TWA Hotel as a birthday present!
Travel Tuesday is a project I'm working on to get old photos and memories out of notebooks and onto this blog.
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