24 best New York hotels that are actually worth the hype 2026

Best for: luxury

Since it opened in 1930, The Carlyle has become something more than the sum of its extremely alluring parts, a living legend that embodies, if not the spirit of New York City, at least one of her spirits: her brightest, most sparkling, most elegant self; witty, worldly and nostalgic. An entire movie has been made about this property Always at The Carlyle in which present-day tribal elders such as George Clooney, Sofia Coppola, Wes Anderson, and Naomi Campbell discuss their fondness for the joint. Broadly speaking, the rooms get better the higher the floor. Plus, you get to spend more time in the elevators – not an activity to enjoy in everyday life, but this is not everyday life. The ones at The Carlyle are the stuff of legend, as much admired as the astounding Dorothy Draper lobby or Bemelmans Bar. Imagine if you had been there when Princess Diana, Michael Jackson, and Steve Jobs all piled in (true story). You would have been in awe. Not of them, of course, but of the real superstar—the unflappable, icy-calm, white-gloved Carlyle elevator operator.

Address: 35 E 76th Street, New York, NY 10021, United States

Closest subway station: 86 St

Price: From about £900 per night.

Best for: a boutique stay

Drenched in shades of ochre and warm reds, with varied textures of ceramic, cement, and tile throughout, The Manner in Manhattan’s SoHo is a “nostalgic utopia”, – as its architect Hannes Peer puts it, combining Gio Ponti-esque Milanese midcentury modernism with glamorous New York flair. But what does that actually mean? It’s sexy. In the same way, a really good jazz song is. And its guests play their roles accordingly. From 20-somethings attending Fashion Week parties to chic married couples reading by the fire, everyone here is either good-looking, interesting, or both. Or maybe it’s the hotel itself that instils its inhabitants with this mysterious cinematic aura. Whichever is the case, the sex appeal of this place isn’t one that’s intimidatingly aloof, or exclusive, or weirdly dark-lit. To quote the film Crazy, Stupid, Love, it’s the perfect combination of sexy and cute – a home base where you can rest your head after dancing late into the night or tuck in early with a burger and a book. Hannah Towey

Address: 58 Thompson St, New York, NY 10012, United States

Closest subway station: Spring St

Price: From about £620 per night.

Best for: couples

Originally built in New York City in 1926, The Surrey is a historic Art Deco gem that was once a residential hotel frequented by celebrities like JFK and Bette Davis. It has since been completely renovated and now operates under the management of the global luxury hotel group Corinthia. But despite its new conglomerate boss, the hotel has retained its famous residential ambience. Guests are immediately welcomed by stylish doormen into what looks like the lobby of an elegant Manhattan townhouse (complete with a Museum Mile-worthy art collection). These Easter egg odes to The Surrey’s fabled past are in part thanks to interior designer Martin Brudnizki, mastermind behind The Beekman and the Fifth Avenue Hotel, among other properties. Instead of the colourful maximalism Brudnizki is best known for, The Surrey favours subtle geometric details and muted pastels, with a light touch of the designer’s signature patterns and textures sprinkled throughout. It all feels expensively zen and secretly high-taste, as is the Upper East Side way. Hannah Towey

Address: 20 E 76th St, New York, NY 10021, United States

Closest subway station: 68 St-Hunter College

Price: From about £920 per night.

Best for: a boutique stay

French hospitality company Group Barrière set Paris on fire with Hôtel Barrière Le Fouquet’s Paris, Jacques Garcia’s fantastical landmark in the city’s Golden Triangle, followed up a few years ago by the chic Hôtel Barrière Le Carl Gustaf on St Barts. Now the group has transformed a cobblestoned corner of Tribeca with its US debut. Inside, the wallpaper depicts expressionist park scenes and Francophile illustrations of New York City, such as Lady Liberty and cartoon pigeons carrying croissants in their beaks. The street-level outpost of its famed Champs-Élysées bistro, Fouquet’s, has become a destination in itself, offering brasserie-issue escargots and onion soup by Michelin-starred chef Pierre Gagnaire at its signature red-and- black bar. The buzz and cooking are lighter at Ëlysée's, which has a lush greenhouse look and a Mediterranean focus, while things get sultrier at the guests-only Titsou cocktail bar. In the 97 rooms, interior designer Martin Brudnizki has tweaked his trademark refined maximalism, using a palette of French lavender and mint green, antiqued gold-leaf mirrors, and deep velvet couches. For the ultimate upgrade, the two-storey Fouquet’s Penthouse includes multiple terraces, some overlooking the Hudson. Shannon McMahon

Address: 456 Greenwich St, New York, NY 10013, United States

Closest subway station: Canal St

Price: From about £850 per night.

Best for: couples

Part of the new generation of hotels recasting the appeal of New York’s NoMad district, this private mansion turned jewel box stay high-kicks things up a notch. The original 19th-century building was part of the estate of the socialite Charlotte Goodridge, and has been refurbished by designer Martin Brudnizki into a sensorial treat to match its gilded past. For all the seeming ubiquity of Brudnizki-created spaces of late, this one feels like it couldn’t have been by anyone else. The vaulted lobby is dressed up in ornate panels; corridors are bedecked with vivid wallpaper featuring oversized flora and fauna; rooms are filled with painted screens and pagoda-style lamps that are an ode to the travels of hotel owner Alex Ohebshalom; and a go-for-broke assemblage of art, from old-world oils to modern photography, adorns every corner. It’s the bold palette Brudnizki is known for, a dreamlike pastiche that would have been chaos in the hands of anyone less practised. Just as adept is the hospitality that extends from the ready-to-please butler service on each floor to extra touches, such as the candle that’s slipped into your room after you’ve complimented the scent in the lobby, or the Martini cart that appears at the door for an eleventh-hour craving. It’s a place to return to: for cocktails named after your favourite destinations at the Portrait Bar, oysters à la pomme and lobster cannelloni at Café Carmellini – but most of all for the chance to wake up in a giant cabinet of curiosities. Arati Menon

Address: 1 W 28th St, New York, NY 10001, United States

Closest subway station: 28 St

Price: From about £700 per night.

Best for: first time visitors

Even the most unaffected New Yorkers can’t help but feel a tinge of nostalgia when passing through the gilded revolving doors of the St Regis to be promptly greeted by a gentleman with white gloves and a smile. The sense of the city’s golden era lingers in that lobby, where shining chandeliers warm the pale walls to create a necessary calming counter to the crush of cabs and suits in Midtown Manhattan. It’s precisely the atmosphere John Jacob Astor IV sought to capture when he opened this 18-storey, Beaux-Arts landmark at the turn of last century. Today, there’s more Michael Kors than mink in the King Cole Bar, though the order hasn’t changed: ignore the lengthy cocktail list and go for a note-perfect dry Martini or a Bloody Mary, the house speciality, and fall into conversation with the bankers in from Boston sitting at the bar. For those who do stay on for a Martini or three more, it’s nice to know that your suite is just an elevator ride away. It may be done up in lipstick-ruby wallpaper or blue velvet curtains and striped white walls, with classic pieces such as silk-stitched loveseats and oil paintings to resemble that glamorous pied à terre everyone fantasises about. A New York institution that channels the city’s glamorous past like no other, steps from the Fifth Avenue buzz. Erin Florio

Address: Two E 55th St, New York, NY 10022, United States

Closest subway station: 5 Av/53 St

Price: From about £900 per night.

Best for: couples

This New York hotel is a Cipriani property, so it’s luxury to the max, but in that effortlessly chic Italian sort of way. Picture it: presidential suites featuring cashmere-covered walls by Loro Piana Interiors – that’s the sort of luxurious detail you’ll find in every nook and cranny of the guest rooms at Casa Cipriani. The sheets on the bed are from the 150-year-old luxury linen house Rivolta Carmignani based in Macherio, just outside of Milan. Prior to check-in guests can choose between Italian cotton or Italian linen. It’s hard not to fall completely under the spell of the hotel from the minute you step into your room or suite. Maybe it’s the Art Deco light fixtures or artwork on the wall. Maybe it’s the jazz playing softly in the background, or the way the setting sun hit the lacquer furniture and the shiny brass knobs. But perhaps the most remarkable thing about the guest rooms at Casa Cipriani are the private terraces. The spacious private terraces. Be sure to request a river-facing room because there’s really nothing like this view anywhere in town. Next to the hotel, you’ve got the Staten Island Ferry pulling in and out of Whitehall Terminal; that’s Governor’s Island straight ahead and beyond that, Brooklyn. To your right, you’ve got the Statue of Liberty. But there’s also so much going on inside Casa Cipriani that no one would blame you if you spent your entire stay on the premises: the Club restaurant, the Jazz Café, the Pickering Room, the Promenade Bar, and the Living Room. On top of all that, the hotel service is attentive but not at all intrusive. They truly make you feel like you’re the most important person in the room, and who doesn’t want to feel like that for a few nights? Lauren DeCarlo

Address: 10 South St, New York, NY 10004, United States

Closest subway station: Whitehall St-South Ferry

Price: From about £825 per night.

Best for: first time visitors

On top of putting you right in the heart of Manhattan, a stay at the legendary Waldorf makes you a part of the hotel’s—and the city’s—long, prestigious history. The Waldorf Astoria New York, continuously managed and operated by Hilton since the 1970s, was closed for refurbishment in 2017 and at last reopened in 2025 after the glow-up of all glow-ups—it’s almost a living and breathing museum that evokes the legacy of the Waldorf Astoria. The 47-story structure now houses only 375 keys for hotel guests (it once housed an astounding 1,400), which means bigger-than-before rooms decorated in a neutral, contemporary-luxury palette of creams and beiges, with splashes of marble finishes and dark wood. The property is a feast for the eyes—and a literal one; there are three places to eat and drink at the hotel, all open to the public. It’s centrally located and within easy walking distance to Grand Central Terminal, Rockefeller Center, Times Square, Central Park, Bryant Park, the MoMA, and the shops on Madison Avenue. Matt Ortile

Address: 301 Park Ave, New York, NY 10022, United States

Closest subway station: Lexington Av/53 St

Price: From about £840 per night.

Best for: first time visitors

If James Bond had an apartment in New York, it would probably look a lot like one of the guest rooms and suites here. It's all crisp, cool minimalism with contemporary furniture, stone floors, and dark wood. And even entry-level rooms clock in at 530 square feet, making them some of the biggest in the city. Take in city views and breakfast on the patio on one of several Terrace Suites. An entire day can be spent at the hotel's 25th-floor Spa Nalai. After a treatment, you can try the eucalyptus steam room, whirlpool, and saltwater lap pool, which has to be the most beautiful in Manhattan (and also features underwater speakers with a curated playlist by Carnegie Hall). After a day of respite, get ready for a night on the town with a hair treatment and blowout at world-renowned Rossano Ferretti Hairspa. This is a chance to stay in one of the tallest buildings in Manhattan at the cross-section of the city; Central Park is just a block away. John Wogan

Address: 153 W 57th St, New York, NY 10019, United States

Closest subway station: 57 St-7 Av

Price: From about £700 per night.

Best for: couples

This eco-chic hotel in Dumbo is a tree-hugger’s fantasy. There's reclaimed wood everywhere, a living plant wall adorns the lobby, and rough-hewn marble sinks create an earthy vibe. But it’s not just looks – the hotel has organic sheets, filtered taps and recycled glass bottles in all the rooms to improve sustainability. Corner suites come with hammocks – perfect for staring out at those sweeping views of the Brooklyn Bridge. The restaurant, The Osprey, serves a mean brunch of bread pudding French toast with lemon curd and whipped ricotta or a stellar veggie burger made with nut cheese for the more health-concious. Come summer, the rooftop bar is the place to be, with staggering views of Manhattan.

Address: 60 Furman St, Brooklyn, NY 11201, United States

Closest subway station: High St

Price: From about £480 per night.

Best for: families

When the Ritz-Carlton flung open the doors of its new Manhattan flagship at West 28th Street and Broadway two years ago, the classic brand was making a bit of a daring declaration as to its direction. Moody and modish, the property is a far cry from the (splendidly) prim and proper Central Park location some 30 blocks north. There’s glass everywhere, for one thing, with the 50-story sleek slice of skyscraper designed in part to make the most of that killer location’s downtown views and light. The sun-soaked interiors are dramatic and textured – concierge desks in the grayscale lobby are made of almost zebra-print granite. A leafy, book-lined bar just off it leads to the excellent Spanish-Japanese fusion restaurant The Bazaar from José Andrés upstairs with its plush upholstery, coffee-and-plum palette, and scenery-chewing jamón Ibéerico centrepiece (Andrés’s group also designed the complimentary menu in the very worth-it club level). Rooftop bar Nubeluz is a jewel-toned wonderland of wallpaper; highlights include the pleated emerald fabric of the elevator vestibule and the feathered Schumacher number that hugs each booth. Wrapped from floor to ceiling in blond wood, my suite on the 36th floor, with its deep, deep sofa of chocolatey crushed velvet, offers grand views of Manhattan; I could even see all the way down to the World Trade Center. All of this style would matter little, however, were the service anything less than superlative. It absolutely is. Despite bookings being full to the brim most nights, there’s no indication that the staff have eyes for anybody but you from check-in to checkout. Charlie Hobbs

Address: 25 W 28th St, New York, NY 10001, United States

Closest subway station: 28 St

Price: From about £630 per night.

Best for: first time visitors

As a longtime Upper West Sider, I’ve strolled through Central Park dozens of times; that didn’t make the sweeping views from the Premier Central Park View Suite any less awe-inspiring. The accommodations were just as spectacular, with a massive U-shaped couch, a fluffy king-size bed, and heavy blackout shades that close at the touch of a button. Because of its top-tier service, sumptuous amenities, and fantastic central location, the Mandarin Oriental is both an excellent special-occasion staycation for New Yorkers and a prime landing spot for out-of-towners seeking easy access to Broadway, Central and Bryant Parks, and Fifth Avenue. Guests have easy access to two Michelin-starred restaurants, Per Se and Masa, a flex even by New York standards. Madison Flager

Address: 80 Columbus Cir, New York, NY 10023, United States

Closest subway station: 59 St-Columbus Circle

Price: From about £1,400 per night.

Best for: families

Three blocks north of the Empire State Building on Fifth Avenue, this polished hotel has spacious rooms starting at 420 square feet – generous for New York. All units have walnut furnishings, wondrously comfortable Duxiana beds, and deep soaking tubs. What's helped make the hotel a favourite with long-stay guests are the suites – particularly the 14 one-bedroom suites, all of which have a washer and dryer, extensive closet space, a kitchen (with a full fridge), an extra half-bathroom, and Empire State Building views. The hotel holds the largest private collection of original paintings by New York City artist Alex Katz. Start your journey of exploring his work in the lobby. Tired and don't want to go too far for a good meal? You're in luck; Ai Fiori is downstairs as part of the hotel, serving everything from top-tier pasta dishes to classic Italian Negronis made with vintage Campari. Sandra Ramani

Address: 400 5th Ave, New York, NY 10018, United States

Closest subway station: 5 Av/53 St

Price: From about £500 per night.

Best for: couples

The Louis XV-founded crystal company that is Baccarat is about as synonymous with royalty as any brand gets, so it should come as no surprise that the New York City flagship hotel takes this to the next level. Quiet luxury is not everyone’s cup of tea, so if you’re looking for that opulent, chandeliers-and-roses dose of old school glamour, you’ve come to the right place. 24 hours here feels like living in an art nouveau painting – other than a few minimalist touches, which make it unique and joyfully over-the-top. Giant, pruned-to-perfection bouquets of red roses sit below belle époque chandeliers, and crystal is everywhere in sight, from tall glass display cases to the tabletops. In the rooms, expect crimson leather and mirrored minibars stacked with all the Baccarat crystal you’ll need for an arrival toast. The four-poster bed and fresh-to-death sheets are comfy as ever, but best of all is the bathroom, with Japanese-inspired wallpaper, a rainfall shower and a deep-set faded marble tub that I don’t even notice until stepping into the shower that night, it’s so tucked away. The Grand Salon serves up opulent comfort food – think wagyu steak frites, east coast oysters and buttermilk fried chicken sandwiches. Naturally, we opt for caviar on the best homemade buckwheat blinis, and before we know it we’ve been brought the Baccarat Signature Three Tier: like afternoon tea for supper, if it involved truffle grilled cheese, mini lobster rolls and fresh tuna tartare. The hotel is also home to the first Spa de La Mer in the US, along with a cabana-lined pool that adds an extra sense of relaxation to those morning laps. Tamara Southward

Address: 28 W 53rd St, New York, NY 10019, United States

Closest subway station: 5 Av/53 St

Price: From about £1,100 per night.

Best for: a boutique stay

To step into the Warren Street Hotel is to immerse yourself in the whimsical and wacky world of Kit Kemp. As the interior designer’s third New York City property with the Firmdale hospitality group (and 11th overall), each space is packed with her trademark eccentricity and magpie-like knack for sourcing eclectic artworks and inspiration from around the world – from the British craft and ceramics on display in the light-filled “Orangery” downstairs to the abstract sculptures greeting guests in the buttercup yellow lobby. Even the carpets are done up in a limited edition batik pattern, courtesy of Kit Kemp for Wilton Carpets. Meanwhile, no two rooms are the same – all have been designed by Kemp to exude their own personality, whether it be through the patterned headboards above king-size beds, one-of-a-kind artworks spanning all sorts of creative movements and styles, custom-made wallpaper and egg-shaped lighting, or even an occasional mishmash of antique furniture. Downstairs at the restaurant, where Tribeca locals jostle with guests for a prime-time table, dishes like a rich foie gras terrine and spaghetti alle vongole are served beneath custom-made wallpaper so beautiful it almost rivals the murals at the Carlyle’s legendary Bemelmans bar uptown. Kemp is a master when it comes to transforming a space into a riot of colour and wit, and this latest endeavour may just be her most playful yet. Lale Arikoglu

Address: 86 Warren St, New York, NY 10007, United States

Closest subway station: Chambers St

Price: From about £1,135 per night.

Best for: families

For one of my first visits to New York as a teenager, a family friend offered to host me for the weekend. I didn’t know him that well, but I heard the words “Manhattan apartment” and conjured visions of leather armchairs and silk rugs, parlour palms and walnut desks, and artwork sourced from far-flung travels. My grand expectations didn’t meet reality – but they do here at The Greenwich Hotel. This exquisitely designed property in Tribeca opened its doors in 2008 but feels like it’s been part of the city’s fabric for much longer. Perhaps it’s the hotel’s lived-in aesthetic textures: Not one of its 87 rooms, suites, and penthouses looks like another, all furnished by your chicest, most well-travelled uncle. In the guest rooms, there are Savoir beds, hand-made and cloud-like; in the bathrooms, Carrara marble and Moroccan tile; in the lobby, terra-cotta floors modelled after those in a 14th-century Italian palazzo; in the spa (featuring, in my humble opinion, the best indoor pool in Manhattan), timber that once held up a 250-year-old farmhouse in Japan – all of it undeniably luxe yet somehow unpretentious. Or maybe it’s The Greenwich’s rep: One of the owners is the actor Robert De Niro, who grew up nearby; paintings by his father, the abstract expressionist Robert De Niro Sr., add colourful drama to the hotel’s walls (childhood photos of both Bobbys, found in some guest rooms, are delightful Easter eggs). Or it might be the service: polished and friendly, familiar in a welcome way. With its thoughtful design and hospitality ethos, The Greenwich Hotel can’t help but echo the old Italian-American saying: When you’re here, you’re family. Matt Ortile

Address: 377 Greenwich St, New York, NY 10013, United States

Closest subway station: Canal St

Price: From about £1,205 per night.

Best for: a boutique stay

Ask any in-the-know New Yorker for their favourite neighbourhood, and chances are the Lower East Side will be it. The place teems with urban cool. Tattoo parlours on every corner. Low-key restaurants where the plates rival those in SoHo, but the crowd is a blend of skaters, designers, and musicians. When Nine Orchard opened in 2022 on a historic corner in the neighbourhood, it brought with it a degree of sophistication seldom celebrated here. There are the historical bones, for one, located inside an old, grand bank, with an airy lobby bar humming under old vaulted ceilings that rival those up at Grand Central. A superstar food pairing in the way of Ignacio Mattos, one of the city’s hottest chefs, means classic dishes like steak au poivre and frites are exceptional at the attached Corner Bar (the tables are lovely with their minimal settings but the pick of seats is one of the 40 stools at the wraparound bar). With a full belly, you’ll happily plunk down into one of the property’s 116 guest rooms with simple wood bed tables and hand-carved chairs that feel like a groovy space to tune into the custom radio stations created for the hotel by DJ Stretch Armstrong, a New York-based DJ and producer who focuses on New York inspired music on all four of the in-hotel stations. Whatever station you choose, this landmark hotel offers locals and visitors alike a sense of being grounded in a place and pays homage to the neighbourhood and its city as one of the very best in the world. Lara Kramer

Address: 9 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002, United States

Closest subway station: East Broadway

Price: From about £650 per night.

Best for: couples

Ace Hotel Brooklyn is set within South Brooklyn to be exact, parking itself in a no-man’s-land between the borough’s downtown area and leafy Boerum Hill neighbourhood. Is it New York’s shiniest or cleanest area? No – but it’s smack in the bustle of Brooklyn, with access to some of the city’s most connected subway lines and buses. And that’s exactly in line with the Ace spirit. The room design leans into the industrial building’s architecture, with exposed concrete and warehouse windows. For guests on the north side, those windows offer a Rear Window-style view into the neighbouring high rise – and I can only imagine vice-versa, so consider asking for a west-facing room if the view, or privacy, is a priority. At just about 300 square-feet, the queen and king rooms are well appointed for New York, with desks, petite sofas, Smeg mini-fridges, and spacious bathrooms with Firsthand amenities. Larger rooms and suites feature similar interiors, but with turntables and records curated by Rough Trade. Meredith Carey

Address: 252 Schermerhorn St, Brooklyn, NY 11217, United States

Closest subway station: Hoyt - Schermerhorn Sts

Price: From about £305 per night.

Best for: families

Pendry Manhattan West aims to bring a West Coast vibe to Midtown Manhattan, with 30 sprawling suites (all with floor-to-ceiling windows) and 164 guest rooms, modern furnishings, abundant greenery, and warm recessed lighting in both the rooms and common areas. The resulting crowd is mostly cool creatives looking for a place to hole up, whom you’ll spot posted up on laptops in the lounges during the day, and beelining to the ground-floor Bar Pendry for an innovative cocktail with friends in the evenings. Arrive with plenty of busy days planned out in the Manhattan West development, knowing you’ll have a calm space to recharge at night – complete with soft slippers and bedside macarons via turndown. Shannon McMahon

Address: 438 W 33rd St, New York, NY 10001, United States

Closest subway station: 34 St-Hudson Yards

Price: From about £840 per night.

Best for: couples

A short walk from the Empire State Building and flanked by landmark buildings, the location of The Ned positions it perfectly in relation to downtown Manhattan and Midtown’s business district. The NoMad neighbourhood itself, which has seen tremendous transformation while also retaining its wholesale commerce underpinnings, is also worth discovering. Located in the Johnston building, a limestone-fronted 1908 Beaux-Arts landmark, it draws its character from the architecture of the building it's housed in. Once inside, spaces reveal themselves one after another like nesting Matryoshka dolls, and are served with a heap of Art Deco glam, including jewel-toned upholstery, marble floors, and mahogany wood – and plenty of moody corners to slink into. Arati Menon

Address: 1170 Broadway, New York, NY 10001, United States

Closest subway station: 33 St

Price: From about £560 per night.