60 Thompson Hotel

New York, USA

60 Thompson is one of the highest buildings in the area and is also no slouch when it comes to design. The architect, Steven Jacobs, was a pioneer in turning SoHo’s industrial spaces into residential lofts.

Interiors are by Thomas O'Brien, whose past work includes apartments for high-profile clients such as Giorgio Armani and Donna Karan. The primary inspiration for the lobby space - a long rectangular hall on the first floor was, oddly, an old photo of Burt Lancaster lounging on an impossibly long couch at his home in Malibu. Hence the deep-buttoned velvet banquette that stretches the entire length of the hotel!

Here the guest is most definitely King. The guest rooms are very comfortable, the high-tech end is well catered to and you have an ideal location on a rare quiet stretch right in the heart of SoHo.

Great views from the hotel's rooftop, where the terrace bar has become a SoHo summer destination in its own right.

Photos of 60 Thompson

Prices from:

£1,029 pp

The ideal place to keep warm this winter

Ace Hotel

New York, USA

This new ACE hotel is located in the geographic centre of Manhattan in the latest area to be reinvented; NoMad (North of Madison Square Park) is a zone filled with architectural jewels. Formerly the Breslin Hotel, the original mosaic floor and marble columns have been restored and the new lobby is home to a Stumptown coffee bar, a Rudy’s barbershop and a historically-inspired gastro pub that recalls the saloons of late 19th century Manhattan, when this area was known as the Times Square of its day.
Designers Roman & Williams combine period refined (elegant French doors, claw foot tubs and parquet flooring) with the whimsical (soap on a rope and chalk walls you can scrawl on). But the emphasis ultimately is on experience. Rooms have the vibe of a cool friend’s apartment with Smeg fridges fully stocked with real food, beer kegs and a mini-bar full of classic New York deli items. Many also have a sleek turntable with vinyl collection and for those who want to explore their own creative side, a Gibson guitar and some blank sheet music.

Truly individual, ACE hotels "just loving doing things our way" which is both basic and sophisticated with retro roots in the heyday of Portland artistic bohemia!

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Prices from:

£749 pp

Truly individual Hip hotel

Chambers Hotel

New York, USA

The art consciousness that one would expect from SoHo or Tribeca has been mixed with the more formal, well dressed profile of a 5th Avenue address. Chambers is in one of the most desirable Midtown areas – on the northern frontier just below Central Park.

Architect David Rockwell was brought in to realise an interior to go with the art. The property features a substantial permanent collection of contemporary art. A fascinating mix of photography, painting, works on paper and sculpture, the likes of which you would normally not find in one place.

With raw concrete ceilings, industrial lamps bolted to the walls and polished concrete floors in the bathroom, the interiors are not what you would expect from a hotel around the corner from Tiffany’s. But that’s exactly why it works.

Chambers, located in the heart of midtown, offers a seamless fusion of uptown luxury and downtown cool.

Photos of Chambers

Prices from:

£869 pp

The perfect location in the heart of midtown

City Club Hotel

New York, USA

Proprietor Jeff Klein`s mission, when he acquired what used to be the clubhouse of the City Club of New York was to restore a club-like feeling to this stately building.

The City Club is all about the guest rooms, not the public spaces. These are rooms where you can comfortably and cosily cocoon away from the hubbub of the metropolis. Be sure to book one of the duplex suites with a living room on one floor and a bedroom on the next, below an ornate, late-Victorian ceiling - the two levels are connected by a winding staircase and with extraordinary classic windows reaching the full two stories, these could be the most glamorous hotel rooms in New York.

When you go downstairs to dine in DB Bistro Moderne, you'll experience some of the best cuisine available in Manhattan right now.

City Club is a small hotel with big ambitions.

Photos of City Club

Prices from:

£829 pp

Perfect winter break

Dream

New York, USA

From Ethiopia to the cover of Asian Forbes, the story of Vikram Chatwal is surely the quintessential American dream. But he had a more surreal definition in mind when he commenced the overhaul of the former Majestic. That’s how a suspended crystal galleon, a monumental copper statue of Catherine the Great in Mongolian clothes, and the largest tropical fish tank in the northern hemisphere ended up being together in one place. The contribution of author and physician Deepak Chopra whose New York headquarters is within the hotel is effective and authentic ayurvedic treatments and complimentary yoga and meditation. At the other end of the dosha scale, Dream’s Ava bar has one of the best views of Times Square anywhere in New York.

Dream was conceived by Vikram Chatwal to facilitate dreams, and the hotel’s slogan, “You provide the dream, we provide the service” says it all.

A bold bit of fantasy and imagination with a rock and roll attitude in the heart of Manhattan’s Midtown.

Photos of Dream

Prices from:

£715 pp

Reduced rates throughout the year

Four Seasons, Hong Kong

Hong Kong, Hong Kong

It doesn’t have one pool, it has two, one infinity edge, one lap pool, both with underwater music and both on the roof with one of the best views of Hong Kong. Instead of the usual cocktail by the pool, at the Four Seasons there is a Pool Terrace alongside, providing light meals with the same spectacular views. The gym is equally impressive, with an extraordinary view of Hong Kong’s famous harbour from every machine

And then there is the shopping. The Four Seasons is connected to the International Finance Centre, the most upmarket and exclusive mall in Hong Kong, where the likes of Dolce & Gabbana, Bvlgari and Loro Piana to name but a few all have their stores.

To make your mark as a hotel in a town like this you don’t need to impress, you need to dazzle. And that’s exactly what the Four Seasons does.

Photos of Four Seasons, Hong Kong

Prices from:

£1,035 pp

Go for a Summer City Break

The Gansevoort Hotel

New York, USA

With all the different bars and lounges on the roof, the new age Japanese restaurant Ono on the ground floor, the bamboo pavilion Chinese-inspired bar, and the day spa that turns into a subterranean lounge after hours, there’s no shortage of entertainment on offer. The elevator to the rooftop must log more miles each night than a yellow cab during rush hour. With a big swimming pool and a view of the setting sun over the Hudson River, it’s not hard to understand why.

The Gansevoort is not just a ‘scene’ but a collection of scenes. You don’t ever need to venture out of the building to enjoy the hedonistic energy of Manhattan. By contrast, considering for instance the enormous paintings of Yakuza tattoos in the restaurant, the rooms themselves are a sedate.

Too much is never enough. If this is your mantra, then Gansevoort is your hotel.

Photos of Gansevoort

Prices from:

£789 pp

This Hip hotel is in a great location

Gramercy Park Hotel

New York, USA

When the Hotel first opened its doors in 1925 it quickly became the place for artists, adventurers and bon vivants to rub elbows. Babe Ruth liked to drink at the bar, Humphrey Bogart was married here and Mark Twain liked to play pool in the park. Ian Schrager’s idea was to renew the bohemian edge and to achieve this he enlisted the artist Julian Schnabel. The Gramercy was not so much designed as collected; voluptuous velvet curtains suspended from bronze rods, hand tufted rugs, colours inspired by the renaissance, juxtaposed with daring contemporary art. The overwhelming ambience is that of an artist’s lair. Exciting and original public spaces are a Schrager trademark and here guests can enjoy two bars, a private rooftop garden with both indoor and outdoor lounging and dining space, a new Danny Meyer restaurant and as a resident, albeit temporary, you will be given keyed access to the Park itself!

The only private park in New York, Gramercy Park was inspired by the glamour and charm of a London square.

Photos of Gramercy Park Hotel

Prices from:

£785 pp

For our Stay 3, Pay 2 in a Deluxe Room

Hotel on Rivington

New York, USA

Built from scratch by a creative team, The Marcel Wanders designed entrance is a hit, the completely off the wall Thor restaurant on the ground floor is consistently voted in New York’s top 100, and the rooms, with their all yellow or all black bathrooms are a sumptuously spacious alternative to smaller spaces elsewhere in Manhattan.

Thor is the Viking God of the area, a thunderbolt of a restaurant enhanced by Wanders’ wild wallpaper and his outhouse in the middle of the space. But the real plus of Hotel on Rivington came as a surprise to everyone, including the owners. There had never been a tower in this area, so no one knew that it would have such an amazing view. A view of New York’s famous skyline from a completely new perspective.

Situated right in the middle of the Lower East Side, Hotel on Rivington is a study in contrast; a shiny glass and steel tower in a neighbourhood of tenement buildings

Photos of Hotel on Rivington

Prices from:

£749 pp

with a complimentary room upgrade!

The Luxe Manor Hotel

Hong Kong, Hong Kong

To understand what The Luxe Manor is, it’s easier to list what it’s not: it is not a business hotel, this is not where you meet clients in the lobby because the lobby is more like an Art Gallery. The Luxe Manor is quirky and fun. The rooms are funky, fresh and unexpected, and stylish in a surreal way. They are equipped with faux fireplaces, and the beds are so large you can sleep sideways. But aside from the rooms, one of its draw cards is definitely its location - situated bang in the heart of Tsim Sha Tsui, the real retail heart of Hong Kong.

Located on the Kowloon side, Tsim Sha Tsui is packed with little shirt makers, tailors, watch shops and more - it is definitely not the shopping mall experience of the main island. It’s a fantastically fun place to shop. Tsim Sha Tsui is the real Hong Kong.

The Luxe Manor is quirky and fun.

Photos of Luxe Manor

Prices from:

£799 pp

A Quirky and fun hotel!

Santa Isabel Hotel

Cuba, Caribbean

Vieja Habana is popular with visitors, and for good reason. Havana is authentic, even if the odd building could do with a lick of paint. For fans of colonial Cuba, the place to stay is the Hotel Santa Isabel.

Located in the Plaza de Armas, there is a bar with live music on every corner of the surrounding streets, and not just one guy with a guitar, but bands that number on average eight. It makes you realise what people used to do before they invented television. And these are trained jazz musicians able to play many instruments. To wander from bar to bar and take in the music is a treat and privilege, a privilege unique to Old Havana. The overwhelming impression is that people in Cuba focus on having fun.

In this hotel it is easy to imagine life in the city when its plantations supplied the world with sugar, tobacco and mahogany.

Photos of Santa Isabel

Prices from:

£799 pp

Saratoga Hotel

Cuba, Caribbean

The Saratoga “certainly has, without a doubt, the best view”. From the rooftop restaurant and pool you have a 200 and something degree view of the city, with the impressive Capitolio and Teatro Nacional just across the street.

At its zenith in the Thirties an all-girl swing band called Anacaona made the hotel one of Havana’s hotspots: today, Saratoga brings a certain style from that era to its contemporary interior. The restaurant is red and Moroccan, the atrium bar looks like it could still host the band. It’s a surprisingly stylish hotel, none of which is obvious from the exterior. Apart from the pool on the roof, which is a very sophisticated and welcome touch, they also must have one of the best located restaurants in the city with Old Havana stretching out below.

Contemporary interiors with a certain style from the Thirties and a superb location in Old Havana.

Photos of Saratoga

Prices from:

£899 pp

Soho House Hotel

New York, USA

The rules are simple, if you’re not a guest you cannot eat in the restaurant, swim in the pool, lunch on the roof, have a drink in the bar, watch a film in the private screening room, throw a private party in the library, or chill out in the Cowshed – the club’s famous spa… unless you’re a member. But one thing it is not, is stuffy. As a club, it has managed to attract the kind of people that normally never belong to clubs. Film directors, writers, artists, creative types in all fields make up the member roster, and yet Soho is not painfully arty either.

The look, if it has to be defined as such, is a mix of laid back modern and iconic antique, with the odd bit of bling. The rooms are bohemian loft with soaring ceilings, exposed beams, chandeliers and big, baroque carved beds. The Playhouse and Playground rooms have giant egg-shaped baths big enough for two. But more important than how it looks is how it feels with just the right balance of cosy and trendy.

Soho House is not a hotel, it’s a private club – the hottest private club in New York – that happens to have a small hotel.

Photos of Soho House

Prices from:

£1,039 pp

Upgrade to a Playroom from £89pppn

The Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotel

New York, USA

The Carlyle is the Upper East Side, and vice versa. All the values of patrician New York are the qualities that define The Carlyle. Woody Allen can often be found jamming on his clarinet with the Eddy Davis New Orleans Jazz Band in the Café Carlyle (resident caberet jazz/venue) on a Monday night. A neighbourhood that has a world class museum on practically every other corner, not to mention the proximity of Central Park, The Upper East Side is interesting precisely because it's not like the rest of New York. The doormen with their traditional brass-buttoned coats and caps, school children in blazers and ties, discreet little restaurants tucked into the brownstones on gentrified side streets, and, of course, the shopping, all give this part of New York a signature as distinctive as the tenement housing of the Lower East Side.

One of New York's most genuine and charismatic experiences.

Photos of The Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotel

Prices from:

£869 pp

Stay in this Classic New York hotel

The Greenwich Hotel

New York, USA

Special Offer

The classic lobby and drawing room with eclectic furniture and original artwork open on to a courtyard garden. Upstairs the eighty eight rooms are all unique with hand loomed Tibetan silk rugs and Moroccan tiled rain showers. The result is a hotel that feels like a film director’s house. Downstairs, Shibui Spa is the hotel’s big extravagance. Reserved exclusively for hotel guests, with treatment rooms, a Japanese bathing room, a 1,000 sq ft fitness room, and a pool like no other in New York. The lantern-lit swimming pool is housed in an authentic 250-year old Japanese bamboo farmhouse, painstakingly reconstructed by Japanese craftsmen inside the hotel.

TriBeCa is an intoxicating blend of downtown street cred, loft living and a handful of sympathetic boutiques, restaurants and bars. The hotel’s own restaurant, Locanda Verde is in the style of a neighbourhood Italian tavern. With a wood burning oven, chairs and tables on the sidewalk and an open kitchen.

Robert De Niro, a long term resident of TriBeCa, the city’s most sought after neighbourhood, has created the area’s iconic hotel with the look and feel of a chic members club

Photos of The Greenwich Hotel

Prices from:

£999 pp

Beautiful downtown hotel

The Standard, New York

New York, USA

The 18-storey structure consisting of two concrete-framed glass slabs recalls mid-century modernist but the most interesting aspect is how this building interacts with the High Line, an abandoned 80-year-old elevated freight railroad running down Manhattan’s west side that has been converted into a park for locals and tourists to kick back.

The glass means the interiors have floor-to-ceiling views; of the Hudson to the West, MePa topped by the Empire State to the East and the High Line directly below. Every room maximises its view, none more so than the double height glass-encased space on the 18th floor that will open up in 2010 as an exclusive venue for guests and those on the list!

In an area now so well known for its food, its obvious that even the most eye-popping architecture and a view will only get you so far. The rest is up to the restaurant.

Located in MePa - currently New York’s hottest restaurant and bar scene – the new Standard is described by the New York Observer as "the most unusual and significant New York building in years".