TWA Hotel

Character and identity

Set inside Eero Saarinen's 1962 TWA Flight Center at JFK, this 512-room property is a working monument to the jet age, restored by MCR Hotels in 2019 with two new guest wings flanking the original head house. The architecture is pure midcentury futurism: parabolic ceilings, hand-laid penny tiles, Solari split-flap boards, a recreation of Howard Hughes's office. Dining runs from Paris Café by Jean-Georges (menus drawn from period flight meals) to the Sunken Lounge, Connie Cocktail Lounge inside a 1958 Lockheed Constellation, and a rooftop pool with tiki bar overlooking the runways. The gym, at 10,000 square feet, is the largest of any hotel.

Who's it for

Bottom line

This is an experience hotel first and an airport hotel second, and the calculus only works if you actively want the Saarinen building, the runway views, and the period theatre. Book the Howard Hughes Presidential Suite if you want Runway 4L/22R as your backdrop, otherwise a Standard King does the job; pair it with a Paris Café dinner or a Daytripper layover.