Where Shtisel meets The Jetsons

Most airport hotels pride themselves on being modern and slick, a stopover to the future. But there’s one at JFK airport in New York that is the exact opposite. Inspired by the halcyon days of the early 1960s, the TWA Hotel takes guests back to a time when air travel was just starting to become popular and affordable. Think Happy Days or The Jetsons.

My wife and I were children of the sixties, so on our last night in the city before heading home, we decided to have some nostalgic fun, and also avoid any last-minute stress in getting to the airport from the city.

It was a memorable experience. From the huge sunken lounge in the space-age foyer to the teak panelling in every room, the recreation of TWA founder Howard Hughes’s office, the rooftop ski lodge and pool, beehive hair salon, vintage pop music and the real-life airplane that’s been turned into a cocktail bar, the hotel is a glorious time capsule of the early 60s.

The public areas are spacious, with special rooms and exhibits branching off the central foyer. It's a museum as much as a hotel. Even the food is good, considering that you are captive and can’t just wander off to try another restaurant if you don’t like the menu.

This encapsulates both the positive and negative aspects of staying there. The TWA hotel is a destination in its own right. It’s a shlep to get back on the airtrain to Queens, and a long way back to Manhattan. When you check in, you stay in. The only people you’re going to meet here are other guests.