12 Aircraft You Can Sleep or Dine In
Most aircraft end their days in the scrapyard. Large empty spaces, often in deserts, are filled with row upon row of planes that airlines can no longer use economically, stripped of any valuable parts and spares. Many are recycled for their metal, mostly aluminum.
But a lucky few get a second life in a rather different role: they become hotels and restaurants. They will never fly again, but they get to host people — a reminiscence of their previous career.
For example, in 2014 Dutch airline KLM teamed up with Airbnb to re-decorate the interior of one of its retired McDonnell Douglas MD-11 aircraft as if it was an apartment, and held a contest to give away stays in it, like a regular Airbnb. That was a publicity stunt more than anything else, and the airplane later ended up scrapped anyway. But there are quite a few spots around the world where you can spend the night inside a real aircraft, or just have dinner or coffee in one.
Not quite like sailing the skies at 30,000 feet, but still a way to revive some of the former glory.
Here are some of them.
Jumbo Stay
This is perhaps the best-known aircraft hotel in the world, offering the chance to stay in no less than the Queen of the Skies.
There are 74 beds, divided into dormitories and rooms, plus a suite in the cockpit. Shared four-bed rooms start at $50, while the cockpit suite starts at $204.
TPG editor-at-large Zach Honig had the chance to visit recently -- stay tuned for a review!
This particular aircraft, built in 1976 for Singapore Airlines and then sold to Pan Am, last flew in 2002 with Swedish airline TransJet. It was then stored, no longer airworthy, at Arlanda airport (ARN) in Stockholm until it re-opened as the Jumbo Hostel in 2009.
Hotel Costa Verde
At this Costa Rican hotel in the jungle, you can sleep not just in one, but two different aircraft.
A 1965-vintage Boeing 727 that used to fly with Colombian airline Avianca has been totally refurbished with teak wood furniture and linings on the inside, and placed on a 50ft pedestal with views of the ocean.
The concept must have proven a success since the hotel recently added a front fuselage section from a McDonnell Douglas MD-80, also with completely refurbished, cozy, wooden interiors -- which it calls the "Cockpit Cottage."
Prices start at $210 in the low season for the Cockpit Cottage and $260 for the 727.
Vliegtuigsuite Teuge
A Soviet-made Ilyushin Il-18 airliner that once upon a time flew for East German airline Interflug (including missions as VIP transport for the country's leadership) has been converted into a magnificent suite for two, complete with sauna and Jacuzzi.
This one isn't cheap: prices start at $420 per night. Teuge is about 60 miles from Amsterdam airport.
Woodlyn Park
It is difficult to classify Woodlyn Park. Is it a hotel? Is it a theme park?
A 1950s-era Bristol freighter aircraft is just one of the several unique lodgings, scattered around an old farm, where you can sleep. There are also a Hobbit motel -- this is, after all, New Zealand, home of the Lord of the Rings movies -- an old patrol boat, and a train.
To find the place, you'll need to drive about 100 miles south from Auckland. Prices start at about $120 per night.
Winvian's Helicopter Cottage
A Sikorsky HH-3F Sea King helicopter that used to fly with the US Coast Guard is one of the attractions of Winvian Farm, a 113-acre estate turned into a luxury retreat in rural Connecticut, about 100 miles from Manhattan.
The chopper has been embedded in one the cottages. The cockpit has been left pretty much as it was, while the cabin has been turned into a cozy living room plus kitchen. Not enough room for the king size bed, though, which had to be left outside right next to the airframe.
Helicopters, it turns out, are expensive on the ground as well: The suite will set you back a minimum of $699 a night.
The Jet Star - Apple Camping
This is your chance to sleep in a private jet, although you won't leave the ground -- in this case, the grounds of Apple Camping in Wales, UK, where a four-engined Lockheed Jetstar can be had for $160 and up.
Built in the 1960s and 1970s to carry up to nine passengers -- Elvis Presley had one -- it can sleep up to four in its hotel incarnation.
An annex has been added at the rear of the cabin in order to fit a double bed, but the cockpit and cabin have preserved more or less the original state.
There's an Xbox game console in the cockpit with flight-themed games, too. Other than the monitor for the Xbox, the flight deck is preserved faithfully and looks ready to fly.
Runway34
A hangar at the edge of Zurich airport provides a spectacular setting for this restaurant, whose centerpiece is a Soviet-made Ilyushin Il-14 aircraft. In military service between 1957 and 1992, it flew to its final home in Zurich in 2005.
While dining tables are arranged all around the aircraft, the cabin has been turned into a cocktail bar and lounge.
El Avión
Not far from the Hotel Costa Verde in Quepos, Costa Rica, you'll find a Fairchild C-123 Provider military transport repurposed as a bar. Originally assigned to covert operations in support of the Nicaraguan contras, this twin-engine, propeller plane was abandoned at San Jose Airport, Costa Rica.
It was later bought for $3,000, disassembled and reassembled to serve as a bar next to one of Costa Rica's national parks.
La Tante Royale DC-10 Restaurant
After the bankruptcy of national airline Ghana Airways, this DC-10 was nearly sold for scrap. However it was saved at the last minute and it opened as a restaurant in 2013.
It specialises in Ghanaian cuisine and has proven popular enough to merit its own entry in Wikipedia as well as numerous mentions in the international media, including our own. It's the second-biggest plane on this list after the 747.
McDonald's
Who said all McDonald's are the same? In Taupo, New Zealand, you can have your Big Mac inside one of the most iconic aircraft in aviation history, a DC-3. There are thousands still flying after 80 years; this is an aviation legend.
Boeing KC-97
The Boeing KC-97 was developed towards the end of the WWII, and in the initial years of the Cold War it fulfilled numerous missions such as troop transport and refuelling. It also sprung a commercial derivative, the Boeing 377 Stratocruiser.
This 1953 airframe has been turned into a dining room that seats 42 guests and sits today in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
TPG featured card
at American Express's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 3X | Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases. |
Pros
- Delta SkyClub access when flying Delta
- Annual companion ticket for travel on Delta (upon renewal)
- Ability to earn MQDs through spending
- Various statement credits for eligible purchases
Cons
- Steep annual fee of $650
- Other Delta cobranded cards offer superior earning categories
- Earn 100,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $6,000 or more in purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership and an additional 25,000 bonus miles after you make an additional $3,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months, starting from the date that your account is opened. Offer Ends 04/01/2026.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members receive 15 Visits per Medallion® Year to the Delta Sky Club® when flying Delta and can unlock an unlimited number of Visits after spending $75,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Plus, you’ll receive four One-Time Guest Passes each Medallion Year so you can share the experience with family and friends when traveling Delta together.
- Enjoy complimentary access to The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. and select international locations (as set forth on the Centurion Lounge Website), Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge in the U.S. (see the Centurion Lounge Website for more information on Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge availability), and Escape Lounges when flying on a Delta flight booked with the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card. § To access Sidecar by The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 90 minutes of their departing flight (including layovers). To access The Centurion® Lounge, Card Members must arrive within 3 hours of their departing flight. Effective July 8, 2026, during a layover, Card Members must arrive within 5 hours of the connecting flight.
- Receive $2,500 Medallion® Qualification Dollars with MQD Headstart each Medallion Qualification Year and earn $1 MQD for each $10 in purchases on your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card with MQD Boost to get closer to Status next Medallion Year.
- Enjoy a Companion Certificate on a Delta First, Delta Comfort, or Delta Main round-trip flight to select destinations each year after renewal of your Card. The Companion Certificate requires payment of government-imposed taxes and fees of between $22 and $250 (for itineraries with up to four flight segments). Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. Delta Basic experiences are not eligible for this benefit.
- $240 Resy Credit: When you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card for eligible purchases with U.S. Resy restaurants, you can earn up to $20 each month in statement credits. Enrollment required.
- $120 Rideshare Credit: Earn up to $10 back in statement credits each month after you use your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card to pay for U.S. rideshare purchases with select providers. Enrollment required.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
- With your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, receive upgrade priority over others with the same Medallion tier, product and fare experience purchased, and Million Miler milestone when you fly with Delta.
- Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees. Enjoy international travel without additional fees on purchases made abroad.
- $650 Annual Fee.
- Apply with confidence. Know if you're approved for a Card with no impact to your credit score. If you're approved and you choose to accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
- Terms Apply.
- See Rates & Fees