Jetting off to the 1960s
I certainly wouldn’t say I got into mid-century modern architecture and design before the bandwagon, but I would argue I was ahead of the curve. I visited Palm Springs three years ago for their modernism week preview (including an open air double-decker bus tour around town, walking tours, shopping, and more). I’ve loved shopping at Space in downtown Lancaster ever since they opened (though I can’t go too often because, you know… my pocketbook). Perhaps exemplary of my deepest dedication — two years ago, I bought an art deco/mid-century house built in 1950 with all of its specialness still intact. In fact, I’m only the home’s third owner!
When I first read about the restored 1962 TWA Flight Center at the JFK Airport in Queens, I added it to my list of things to do before I die — and preferably sooner than later. Recently, my plans came to fruition.
The iconic property was designed by Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen (who is also credited with the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, the Washington Dulles Airport, the “Tulip” chair, among other well-known designs). The flight center was praised as, “the most dynamically modeled space of its era” and “perhaps the quintessential modern form, expressing movement and the whole concept of flight.”
The TWA’s hotel addition and flight center remodel was finished in 2019. It’s all situated beside a real working terminal; JetBlue flies out of this terminal and, if you pay for a premium room, you can watch the runway from your bed. You won’t hear the planes though — they’ve installed super thick, special glass to block out the noise. The website is user-friendly for booking, letting us know that valet parking was available, as well as how to book pool time (though more on that later). Check-in is at 4 p.m. — but if you pay $25 and arrive excited and rosy-cheeked like we did, you might be able to check-in a few hours sooner.
You can read a little about the famed Saarinen in the center of the space, including a number of photos of his other major projects, which prove that he lived, ate, and breathed architecture. One striking anecdote mentioned in this space is that Saarinen once showed up to the office and wondered why no one else was there since it was already after 8 a.m…. only to be informed it was Christmas Day! You can view a replica of his work space, as well as a replica of what a 1960s living room would have looked like. You better believe we stopped by later in our ‘60s gear and took some photos!
There are plenty of other fun sites to explore, including a game of Twister and an exhibition of vintage TWA uniforms. The hotel also features many up-to-date amenities, like the world’s largest hotel gym (though we didn’t even peek at it… fitness fell low on my list of priorities this visit). There is—of course—a great gift shop. I allowed myself to purchase a puzzle for my mom and a few small trinkets for myself (stopping way short of the $249 TWA sweater being sold, although it was admittedly super cute).
Pro tip: Be sure to use the restroom in the atrium so that you can see the Saarinen-designed paper towel dispenser sitting in the middle of the room. It’s large, but also quite unexpected; during my second visit, I helped a woman find it, and she in turn complimented my dress.
Outside sits Connie, a 1958 airplane turned cocktail lounge where you can order a “Vodka is My Co-Pilot” drink (their take on a dirty martini) or a “Control Tower Sour,” among other catchily-named drinks. We stopped in to see this unique bar during the day (while a commercial of some sort was being filmed).
Because it’s New York City, you should expect that you’ll be spending way more than you’re used to on food and beverages. One thing you can do to ease that particular pain is to pack and bring some drinks from home. There’s no ice machine you can visit, so be sure you bring lots of smaller bills for tipping the various services you’ll be requesting — like for ice and cups to be delivered to your room, as well as the valet driver when you want your car.
Once we were situated with our suits on and our free drinks in hand, we made our way to our one-hour and 45-minute pool reservation. Try to get there a little early because, unbeknownst to us, everyone else had the same appointment time, too; the elevators get busy and a line forms outside the pool. We weren’t early enough to snag lounge chairs beside the pool, but we did get two (almost) secluded chairs pointing to the runway. There’s a bar, of course (we later enjoyed a round of tasty Bloody Marys), as well as a snack/sandwich menu. After allowing the sun to warm us, we spent some time in the infinity pool, and fun people watching ensued.
With our pool appointment behind us, we returned to our room. The space didn’t fit a whole lot more than the king-sized bed, though it was also filled with period furniture reproductions and a rotary phone. (As a side note: There is a line of rotary phones in the flight center that allow you to make calls for free!) The room was comfortable and the shower was great, oversized and stocked with the expected toiletries (no bathtub, but when’s the last time you wanted to take a bath in a hotel room?). We each picked out something from our ‘60s wardrobe, and made our way to the terminal — through the long, red-carpeted “travel tube” that originally connected the terminal to the gate, made even a little bit more famous by its appearance in the 2002 Leonardo DiCaprio film, “Catch Me If You Can.”
We got drinks in the lobby bar and settled into the sunken lounge, which was noticeably needing some reupholstering — a bit surprising such shabbiness was allowed. The 1960s soundtrack lulled us into happy contentment.
It was right about then that we met a woman who was in the midst of trying to figure out if there was any hope of getting home to Ohio that night, after missing her connecting flight. Our new friend Danka kept us entertained with her travel stories, and sold us on why we should soon visit her mother country of Poland. Most noteworthy of her selling points? The U.S. dollar is strong there now. (“It’s four to one, you must visit!”)
My companion is the sort that attracts people; he’s friendly and smiles a lot. We had accompanied Danka outside so that she could smoke when a man and his beagle mix walked by and struck up a conversation. We learned Tommy was in the furniture business in Sag Harbor; he asked my boyfriend to keep his dog while he went to check on his wife’s incoming flight. It was a pleasant evening, so we watched the comings and goings until the couple returned. The wife was clearly exhausted from her trip and after thanking us for watching the dog, murmured as they strolled away: “Vacationing at an airport, how interesting.”
Before we went to bed, we were a little hungry, so we wandered down to the Food Hall, which is located where travelers once checked in for their flights. There are lots of options, but I have to report that the turkey panini we shared from Vinny’s was so good and the soft serve cone from Mister Softee (since 1956!) was a perfectly fun end to our snack… which veered pretty close to a meal.
The next day was our full day in the city, and because my aforementioned friendly boyfriend is originally from Long Island, he was able to navigate us with no issues on the various public transportation platforms we needed to arrive at Rockaway Beach. I have read about beaches in NYC but never really fathomed what they would be like, so it was great to walk around, Zillowing properties that were for sale to help get a feel for the area, purely out of curiosity. We walked to an outdoor pub on the bay side and had guacamole and chips as a snack, and a nice chat with the bartender about the area, as well. She told us that she commutes to Manhattan for her full-time job at the NY Department of Sanitation; there’s parking there and she gets started very early, so traffic isn’t bad. We took another walk, this time on the ocean-side, boardwalk-style, stopping to admire the skaters doing tricks and honing their skills.
It was time to return to our beloved hotel for one more night of dress up fun. We decided to eat in the Paris Café, which is located exactly where it was in 1962. Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten—having been awarded Michelin stars for 14 years and operating 36 restaurants—has been given the honor of creating the present-day menu. Our server suggested we start with the crispy salmon sushi, which we followed by sharing the cheddar cheeseburger. Both were great! (My sister, a co-owner of a catering company, would cringe at my lack of description!)
The next morning, it was time to leave by 11 a.m. I suppose we were ready, but we were also a little sad to be ending our vintage adventure. Friendly boyfriend drove us to the Brooklyn promenade, where we walked a little bit, then sat on a bench and watched the waterfront activity. On our way to the car, we stopped at a deli and shared a bagel with lox and cream cheese. It was a completely perfect ending to our NYC odyssey.
By Wendy Hess
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