The TWA Hotel at JFK
After our month-long trip in Europe and the UK, in late September of 2023, we decided to have a special layover in JFK at the TWA Hotel.
For those that have never heard of this hotel, it all started when the TWA Flight Center closed in 2001. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey sought to redevelop the terminal, but since the main building was protected as an historical landmark in 1994, and then listed on the Registry of Historic places in 2005, it couldn’t be demolished. Thus, it went unused until 2008 when it was then added as part of Terminal 5 for JetBlue Airways.
Smartly, in April of 2015, JetBlue and a hotel developer negotiated the rights to turn the main building into a hotel. In July of the same year, New York Governor, Andrew Cuomo, confirmed that the Saarinen building would be converted into a new on-site hotel.
In 2016, ground was broken to begin the project. Two topping out ceremonies were held for each hotel tower in 2017 and in October of 2018, Lockheed Constellation L-1649 Starliner (“Connie”) was shipped to the hotel site for conversion into a cocktail bar. The Starliner arrived at the hotel site at the end of November 2018. The hotel opened May 19, 2019.
Our Stay
From the minute you exit terminal five and walk towards the hotel, you can hear groovy 1960’s music playing outside and soon, historic markers of the former terminal are everywhere. It’s as though you are about to step back in time to the swinging 60s the minute you go through the door.
Once inside, you are legitimately in the former terminal - to the left are the check-in desks, which used to be flight check-in desks, and to the right, they have transformed those desks into iconic food stations.
Up the stairs, you have the main terminal area, decked out in red carpet, with the old flight update tickers still “ticking”. There are instagram-worthy spots, a store, a French restaurant that overlooks the terminal and the rest of JFK (they do not have dedicated gluten-free options), several bars (including the one in “Connie”), a rooftop heated pool, overlooking the runway, and so much more.
By far, this is the best layover hotel that could exist. Check out our videos above and below to see more. Although pricey, we definitely recommend making a reservation for a night!
HOW TO GET THERE
From whichever terminal you’re flying into, you will see signs in the airport on how to get to the hotel. From our international flight, we took the Tram to terminal 5, then took an elevator down to the first floor, exited the airport, and walked along the pathway (part of it is outside) that was well-signed, until we reached the hotel.