20 Important Things to Know Before Visiting the TWA Hotel
On a recent trip to Paris, I booked a positioning flight to JFK the day before my transatlantic flight. This gave me the opportunity to stay at the famous TWA Hotel at JFK airport. It is an extremely cool place, but here’s some tips for visiting the TWA Hotel if you’re planning a trip.
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Hotel Highlights – A Blast From The Past
It’s built out of the old TWA Terminal
The original TWA Flight Center opened in 1962 and operated as a flight center until 2001. It was designed at a historical landmark and construction on the hotel didn’t begin until 2016.
The TWA Hotel opened in 2019, turning the old terminal into a top-tier hotel. As you walk though the hotel, you can tell how much of it was kept true to the original. The check in desk is where passengers would have checked their luggage at the ticket counter back in the day.
There is so much history wrapped up in this hotel harking back to the “golden age of aviation.” It is no wonder why it’s a sought after spot for historians and aviation geeks!
There’s a bar in an old Connie airplane
The Connie Cocktail Lounge is located just outside the terminal and was built out of a decommissioned Lockheed Constellation.
On your way out to the aircraft, the hallway walls tell the story of how this particular plane – one of the last 4 of it’s kind left in the world – found its way to the TWA Hotel. The signs also explain what it took to restore it to its current state and transform it into the cocktail lounge. Understanding all the effort that went into it really made the lounge so much more impressive and helped me enjoy the experience more.
The cocktail lounge is only accessible via a set of stairs. Inside, it features a variety of seating arrangements, including old airplane seats. The plane is not well insulated, so it was pretty cold inside during my visit in March. We had our drinks but didn’t linger too long.
Part of the hotel is a museum
Throughout the hotel are various exhibits. One displays the TWA crew uniforms throughout the years. Another shows Howard Hughes’ office.
My favorite exhibit was the one that compared prices for different products (ex. houses, cars, a hamburger) in 1962 vs. today. While most things are grossly more expensive today, it was surprising to see that plane tickets are actually pretty reasonable. 60 years ago plane travel was more of a novelty for the rich, but now it’s accessible to the masses, allowing for more routes to be flown and a more interconnected world.
The 1960s decor includes the light switches and rotary phones
The guest rooms are thoughtfully decorated to blend modern day necessities with the 1960s aesthetic. Mid-century modern reigns supreme, but with a modern, minimalistic touch. I loved that the phone in the room was a working rotary phone, but couldn’t help but laugh at the contemporary TV remote sitting next to it. It’s clear a lot of thought and intention went into the room, which really enhanced the experience.
Sadly, you can’t try any Tab soda
Every evening at 7PM, the departures board in the sunken lounge displays the Tab logo in their daily “Toast to Tab.” If you don’t know, Tab was the original diet soda. Think of it like the predecessor to Diet Coke. Tab was invented in 1963 and was eventually discontinued 57 years later in 2020.
I thought the “Toast to Tab” was a lame concept since there was none offered. I understand that you can’t access it anymore, but I felt the TWA Hotel missed the mark on this by calling it a toast when it was nothing more than a sign on the board.
A Plane Spotting Paradise
Be sure to book a runway-view room
This is a really important thing to keep in mind! The runway views are arguably one of the biggest attractions of the hotel, but not every room has a view. If it’s important to you, make sure you select the right room type when booking.
Of course, the runway view rooms are pricier than the others, but I think it’s well worth the splurge. After running searches for several dates, the lowest runway view I found was $358/night (prepaid).
You won’t see planes takeoff all day
The JFK airport utilizes several different runways for planes to take off and land. When we woke up in the morning, we could see planes taxiing, but they were airborne behind buildings and just out of sight. However, later in the day, another runway was used with a much better view!
There are a lot of factors that can impact why one runway is used over another. Things such as noise ordinances, weather, and air traffic can impact the decision. Just know that your views may change throughout the day.
Bring your swimsuit – there’s a pool on the roof
The TWA Hotel features a pool on the roof that is heated to 95 degrees year-round. We visited at the beginning of March and would have braved the cold for a swim if it weren’t for the howling winds.
Towels are included and there’s also a bar next to the pool if you want to relax by the pool sipping your favorite drink while watching planes take off and land.
In winter and spring, you don’t need to make a reservation and guests can swim free ($25 fee for visitors). In peak season – summer and fall – reservations are required and there’s a cover charge of $25 for guests and $50 for visitors (children’s rates are available too). During peak season there is also a 1 hour and 45 minute maximum stay.
The rooms are well insulated from sound
You’d think an airport hotel right next to an active runway would be so noisy you wouldn’t be able to sleep. Thankfully, the TWA hotel was well designed and I didn’t notice any outside noise during our stay.
There are also blackout curtains that cover the floor-to-ceiling windows with the touch of a button to keep all the light out.
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Enjoying Your Stay
The TWA Hotel is home to the world’s largest hotel gym
At over 10,000 square feet, the hotel gym at the TWA Hotel is the largest hotel gym in the world. It’s also one of the nicest fitness facilities I’ve ever visited (and I used to work in fitness!). In addition to a couple dozen Pelotons and a yoga room, they every piece of equipment I could dream of.
This is the one part of the hotel that is NOT 1960s-themed. Instead, it’s fully modern and completely decked out.
If you’re a guest of the hotel, you can access the gym for free during your stay. However, if you’re just visiting, you can use the gym by purchasing a day pass for $25. The locker rooms include day-use lockers, showers, and plenty of amenities if you want to freshen up post-workout or before your flight.
There’s a free photo booth in the lobby
Near the sunken lounge you’ll find a photo booth where you can take photos for free. You can choose from black & white or color photographs and you get 3 photos per strip (and 2 copies). There’s technically no limit on how many photos you can take, but be respectful if it’s busy.
You can also have the photos emailed to you. They send you both the individual photos and a GIF!
The lobby plays loud music from the 1950s/60s all day
The music in the lobby features hit like “The Locomotion” and “Fly Me to the Moon” playing all day and night. The playlist isn’t very long, so if you stick around long enough, you’ll notice the songs repeat.
While the music certainly helps set the mood and transport you back in time, it is very loud and is distracting if you’re trying to get any work done from the lobby. We had a 2PM checkout but were working until 5PM, so I had to take a couple of calls for work with “Sugar, Sugar” playing in the background.
The sunken lounge isn’t open all day
One of the most iconic features of the TWA Hotel lobby is the stunning sunken lounge with floor to ceiling windows looking out onto the Connie airplane. While you can take in the view anytime day or night, the sunken lounge is only open at certain times. We were there on a Wednesday and it didn’t open until 4PM. The tables just above the sunken seating area were available. It wasn’t clear what the logic behind this was, but it was a bit frustrating.
You can buy souvenirs to commemorate your stay
Right off of the lobby is the most robust hotel gift shop I’ve ever seen. You can buy everything from bath robes and amenity kits to Jenga and sneakers. Items range in price from a $1 pencil to a $750 clock! You can also shop online and have these items shipped to your home.
If you want something free to remember your stay, you can take a bar of soap, a notepad, or pencils from your hotel room. And of course, you can always keep your room key!
Expect to pay airport prices for food and drinks
It’s not cheap to stay at a the TWA Hotel, and that extends beyond the rooms. Breakfast is not included and can be pretty pricey depending on where you eat. We had breakfast in the Paris Cafe and my avocado toast with an egg on top was $22 – it was good but not worth the markup. Thomas got an omelet and was disappointed.
The Food Hall near the entrance has somewhat more affordable options, but they didn’t have many healthy offerings.
You don’t have to be a guest to visit the TWA Hotel
The TWA Hotel is open for both guests and visitors, so even if you only have a few hours during a layover, you can come check it out. Visitors can access all the public areas for free, but you’ll need to purchase a $25 day pass for the gym and make a $25-50 reservation to access the pool.
You also have the option to just book a day-use room, which can be very convenient if you have a long layover at JFK and want to catch a few hours of sleep.
Booking Details
The TWA Hotel is independent
The TWA Hotel is not owned by any of the major hotel chains (ex. Marriott, Hilton, etc). The downside to this is that you cannot earn hotel points like you would if you stayed elsewhere.
As of now, you cannot book the TWA hotel through the Amex, Chase, or Capital One portals. In some portals it doesn’t show up in the search at all. In others it shows no availability for any dates, despite the TWA website having plenty of availability.
This hotel has a super convenient location for an overnight layover and is a tourist attraction all it’s own, but it comes at a price. The lowest rate I found after playing around with the search dates at $216 (prepaid) but peak dates will start over $300. On the plus side, most people would only need 1 night here.
A late checkout will cost you
Not only are the base room prices pretty expensive, but the hotel will charge you for late checkouts. It’s $50 if you want a 2PM checkout and $125 if you want a 5PM checkout.
You can also book a day-use room if you aren’t staying overnight. These start at $149 for a few hours and go up from there based on time. The day-use rates are identical for all room types.
The hotel is pet friendly
You can bring your 4 legged friend with you during your stay! To bring your pet, you have to add them to the booking when you make the reservation and pay a $75 fee per pet, which is valid for the whole stay.
Note that there are a few areas of the hotel where pets aren’t welcome and the AirTrain at JFK only allows small animals in pet carriers.
How to get to the TWA hotel from JFK
If you are accessing the TWA Hotel from another terminal at JFK, you can ride the air train for free between terminals. The TWA Hotel shares a stop with Terminal 5. From there, you can follow the signs to the hotel. Be prepared for a bit of a walk and dress accordingly, as much of it is outside.
If you are driving, you can drive directly to the front doors of the hotel and use their valet parking service.
Hopefully these tips for visiting the TWA Hotel will make your trip as seamless as possible. Don’t forget to pin this post for future planning!
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