Spending time in the East Village or living it up in Times Square? Here are the best hotels to book when visiting New York City
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New York is always a thrill to visit; the ultimate must-see bucket-list destination of dazzling skyscrapers, elegant avenues, honking yellow taxis and iconic landmarks infused with an intoxicating energy that draws you in. Often touted as the city that never sleeps, New York is certainly keen on hotels. New addresses crop up as fast as others are revamped, offering the traveller choice as diverse as the New York neighbourhoods they reside in, from hipster Williamsburg to the historic Upper East Side. Not to mention the types of hotels on offer, from small boutiques and budget boltholes to luxury legends.
Whether you’re a first timer eager for a glimpse of Times Square’s neon glow or a regular visitor wanting to live like a local in a quieter neighbourhood, choosing where to stay in the Big Apple is a tough task, so here are 13 of our favourite hotels in New York to get you in the mood.
The best hotels in New York City
At a glance
1. The William Vale
Check-in for showstopping Manhattan skyline views from across the East River in Brooklyn. Stay for the creative Williamsburg location, friendly five-star service, and clean, bright, modern rooms with artistic appeal. It cuts a striking figure, set in a striking modern 23-storey tower with a white lattice steel frame, lauding it over the historic Brooklyn landscape. Here, every inch is designed to maximise the view: each of the 183 rooms features floor-to-ceiling windows and a spacious balcony. The 22nd-floor rooftop bar, Westlight, is an alfresco hotspot, especially come golden hour. There’s also an 18-metre pool and a winter spa with outdoor barrel saunas and cedar tubs for soaking in.
Address: 111 North 12th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11249
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2. The Beekman
History seeps from every corner of this exquisitely designed five-star hotel, near the East River and swanky Tin Building food hall in Lower Manhattan. It’s set in an elegant, once-abandoned skyscraper dating to 1881 that’s been renovated with incredible attention to detail and feels like a darkened private club with an old New York atmosphere. There are 287 rooms – including two turret suites – all kitted out with antique furniture, and pinch-me comfortable beds. At the hotel’s heart is the Bar Room set at the bottom of a showstopping nine-storey Victorian atrium topped with a skylight. Come the weekend, it’s the perfect setting for the hotel’s popular jazz brunch sessions.
Address: 123 Nassau Street, New York, NY 10038
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3. The Arlo
A sought-after Midtown West Manhattan location is a big draw of this stylish no-frills hotel with a sleek design. You’ll be within walking district of New York first-timer hotspots like Times Square, the Empire State Building, Broadway for theatre shows and on the doorstep of Hudson Yards, New York’s newest development, dubbed a city within the city. For respite from the city, there’s a casual day-to-night café bar and a tiny, but buzzy rooftop bar with glittery New York skyscraper views. Rooms are compact, but some of the bigger ones have outdoor terraces.
Address: 351 West 38th Street, New York, NY 10018
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4. Moxy NYC East Village
Marriot’s Moxy East Village is all about the groovy vibe, inspired by its free-spirited East Village location, home to some of New York’s best nightlife. Union Square with its farmers’ market is on the doorstep, while the 285 compact, simply designed rooms have floor-to-ceiling windows and a Japanese-Scandi feel. The buzzy rooftop bar, Ready, and ground-floor coffee shop, Alphabet, are funky riots of colour and art, while sultry Little Sister basement bar harks back to area’s 1990s lounge scene. Throw in a lowish-price tag, and you have a fun, good-value, well-located New York stay.
Address: 105 West 28th Street, New York, NY 10001
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5. Warren Street Hotel
Firmdale’s latest luxury New York hotel occupies a bold blue steel and glass building in Tribeca, an exclusive, often overlooked neighbourhood of lower Manhattan with historic cobblestone streets, lined with galleries, restaurants and bars. English country garden style, bold colours, and a curated collection of art, design and sculpture are hallmarks of its design. There are 69 rooms ranging in size and each with a different colour scheme and plush furnishings and deep soaking tubs. The Terrace Suites melt hearts, featuring showstopping landscaped balconies with small lawned area, flower beds and potted trees.
Address: 86 Warren Street, New York, NY 10007
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6. The Victoria
Set on the site of the 1917 Victoria Theatre in a shiny 27-floor skyscraper, The Victoria, is Harlem’s first-ever five-star hotel that opened in summer 2023. It’s located in the heart of downtown, close to all the soulful jazz bars and restaurants the storied neighbourhood is known for. Spacious rooms ooze the glitz and glamour of African American style and culture – and those on higher floors have dreamy Central Park views. The fifth floor is home to the Victoria Lounge, a contemporary all-day cocktail bar serving twists on classics. Its chef-driven restaurant menu serves up favourite Cajun dishes like fried chicken and shrimp and grits.
Address: 233 West 125th Street, New York, NY 10027
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7. Freehand New York
There’s a lot of history at this 395-room hotel near the Flatiron building in Gramercy with stylish, grown-up hostel vibes. The elegant French Renaissance revival building was the former George Washington Hotel, storied writers, musicians and creatives called home in the 1930s. Nowadays, it’s a modern hotel boasting many plant-filled communal spaces and rooms – including lots of family options with bunks – decorated in art by local art students. and is a good one for families. Glittering skyscraper views are on tap from the year-round 18th-floor cocktail bar and an events schedule.
Address: 23 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10010
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8. The Carlyle
Of all the Upper East Side’s elegant hotels, The Carlyle, a Rosewood Hotel, is the most legendary; a magnet for celebrities and royalty who have sashayed along the polished black marble lobby floor since it opened in 1930. In 2020, this New York institution underwent a $120 million refurbishment in 2020, which saw the 155 elegant rooms and suites refreshed and a new restaurant, Dowling’s at The Carlyle. It’s a great spot for people watching alongside the hotel’s storied Bemelmans Bar, famous for its colourful murals by illustrator Ludwig Bemelmans and great martinis, to enjoy while soaking up the sound of the in-house pianist.
Address: 35 East 76th Street, New York, NY 10021
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9. The High Line Hotel
Another historic prize of Manhattan is this four-star hideaway in West Chelsea, an area known for its independent art galleries. Set in a gothic red brick building dating to 1895 as a Collegiate Gothic Seminary, the 60 rooms have a cosy European guesthouse vibe. Think: chintzy rugs, period fireplaces, antique furniture and reproduction 19th-century wallpaper. Half the fun of a stay here is booking into one that look out over New York’s leafy elevated High Line Park, that runs west through the arty neighbourhood of Chelsea. After a day spent sightseeing, there’s a peaceful Parisian style private courtyard garden hung with string lights and seasonal cocktail garden, Fairweather, for kicking back in.
Address: 180 10th Avenue, New York, NY 10011
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10. The Ace Hotel
Super-cool retro design, a good value price tag and exciting location are hallmarks of this Ace hotel, a longtime fixture of NY’s newest neighbourhood, NoMad that stands for North of Madison Avenue. It’s one of the most popular areas for travellers and a stay here places you close to the spangly new Hudson Yards development, a neighbourhood in itself, Madison Square Garden for concerts and Union Square, the setting for a year-round farmers’ market. In contrast to its historic Beaux Arts corner setting, rooms have a 70s air, with vintage leather sofas, turntables and edgy artwork. Loft suites have separate living areas and views down 29th and Broadway.
Address: 20 West 29th Street, New York, NY 10001
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11. Hotel Chelsea
Hotel Chelsea is one of the most famous in all of New York, that needs no introduction. It was built in 1873 as a utopian social experiment that evolved into a storied hangout for artists and writers and later a hotel. It reopened in late 2023 after a thoughtful decade-plus-long revamp, to high acclaim. An old Hotel Chelsea feel lingers nicely, while many original details remain like the wrought-iron staircase and art by previous residents. Plush rooms – some with balconies overlooking 23rd Street – have marble bathrooms, velvet curtains and feel bohemian, yet opulent. Its three exciting food offerings – two new, and one original – have become foodie hotspots in their own right. There’s also a serene new spa on the roof.
Address: 222 West 23rd Street, New York
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12. 1 Hotel Central Park
You’ll know you’ve found the 1 Hotel Central Park when you spot the ivy-clad building on the corner of 58th and Sixth Avenue. Inside, like all other hotels in the eco-conscious brand, it’s a foliage-filled oasis. Potted and hanging plants decorate the small lobby filled with nooks of small tables, sheepskin-covered low-slung seats. Rooms are compact but extremely comfortable. King-size rooms have little window seats for peering down on the Manhattan buzz on the street below. Its crowd-pleasing restaurant, Jams, is a popular spot for cocktails and light farm-to-table dishes, like grilled chicken with tarragon butter.
Address: 1414 6th Avenue, New York, NY 10019, USA
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13. Hotel Edison
In the thick of theatreland and steps from the neon lights of Times Square, this art deco grand dame has plenty to please families, first timers and budget conscious travellers. Spacious rooms and suites – some with small outdoor terraces – sleep up to six, while a basic breakfast in one of several nearby eateries is thrown in too. It’s named after legendary inventor, Thomas Edison, who switched the lights on when it opened in 1931. The spirit of the Jazz Age hangs heavy here, from the gilded lobby to the darkly painted rooms. Don’t miss a drink in the ground-floor Rum House, a piano bar that retains a 1930s New York atmosphere.
Address: 228 West 47th Street, New York, NY 10036
14. The Fifth Avenue Hotel
Private butlers? Cocktails at turndown? Theatrical décor? A distinctive stay awaits at The Fifth Avenue Hotel, just a hop from Madison Square Park. It opened in October 2023 to rapturous applause and is hands down one of the most spectacular abodes in all of Manhattan. Inside the 19th-century gilded age mansion, once a family home, are lavish $2,000-plus per night night king suites with complimentary maxi bars and opulent marble bathrooms leading off baby-pink corridors; less expensive but no-less elaborately decorated rooms, from cosy queens to studios, fill a new adjacent ‘tower’. Meanwhile, its wondrous Italian restaurant, Café Carmellini, has become a city hotspot and magnet for foodies.
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