The 11 New York hotels we're checking into in 2018

Travel | 7 Sep 2018

The 11 New York hotels we’re checking into this year

New York is a city not exactly short of a good hotel. From a boutique property furnished almost exclusively with handcrafted materials, to a smart set up in Times Square by Yabu Pushelberg. Or perhaps even hospitality legend Ian Schrager’s 21st-century iteration of the boutique hotel concept he pioneered 25 years ago, where to bed down in NYC is not as straightforward as it seems. Our list brings together the ultimate properties worth checking out before your next trip to the Big Apple.§

Swimming pool at 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge, New York, USA

1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge

Featuring views of Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn Bridge Park, the East River and Manhattan’s shimmering skyline, the 1 Hotel group’s New York pile is designed by local firm INC Architecture & Design. Interiors make extensive use of regional and reclaimed materials, including original heart pine beams from the former Domino Sugar Factory, walnut from the Brooklyn Botanical Garden and pine flooring from the Old Crow Distillery in Kentucky. The 194 rooms are dressed in native natal mahogany trees, with a lush 25ft-tall living wall of creeping figs and ferns installed in the lobby lounge.

60 Furman Street, T 1.347 696 2500, 1hotels.com/brooklyn-bridge. Rates from $350

Guestroom at 11 Howard Hotel, New York, USA

11 Howard Hotel

In recent years, the relatively serene Howard Street has blossomed into a design mecca at the heart of SoHo. Occupying a former post office, 11 Howard’s slick blend of a Scandinavian design sensibility and a distinctly New York personality is clear from the moment guests step through the door. An Alexander Calder mobile is the centrepiece of the bleached oak lobby, and a design gallery/boutique by Studio Oliver Gustav takes place of the usual hotel gift shop. The hotel’s 221 rooms have an individual charm thanks to the irregular floor plan, and feature Danish-made furnishings and accompanying marble bathrooms.

11 Howard Street, T 1.212 235 1111, 11howard.com. Rates from $208

Boro Hotel

Located within easy distance of MoMA PS1, the Noguchi Museum and M. Wells Steakhouse, Boro Hotel brings much-needed reprieve to the borough of Queens, an area that has mostly been dominated by dreary hotel chains. From its inviting lobby, which features a library of Strand Bookstore titles and periodicals, to the café bar that doles out complimentary breakfasts to guests, Boro owes its stylish interiors to the design firm Grzywinski + Pons. Finished off with a restaurant, outdoor terrace and rooftop bar, Boro sits on top of a new wave of hip offerings putting Queens on the discerning traveller’s map.

38-28 27th Street, Long Island City; T 1.718 433 1375, borohotel.com. Rates from $171

Communal space at Freehand hotel, New York, USA

Freehand New York

The playfully irreverent hotel brand, Freehand, has fittingly brought its free-spirited aesthetic to the heart of the Big Apple. While an embodiment of the neighbourhood’s past and present, occupying the historic George Washington Hotel, Freehand New York, designed by Roman and Williams, leaves its own mark with its stylish bar and culinary offerings. Local tastemaker Gabriel Stulman is not only behind its restaurant, Simon & The Whale, a charmingly nostalgic, seafood-focused spot, but also a living room-esque café concept and refined bar that doles out small bites and classic cocktails, both located on the mezzanine floor.

23 Lexington Avenue, T 1.212 475 1920, freehandhotels.com/new-york. Rates from $205

Guestroom at The Whitby Hotel, New York, USA

The Whitby

Featuring 86 bedrooms and suites scattered across 16 floors of a purpose built building designed by Stonehill Taylor, The Whitby is based in Manhattan’s upper midtown; an area that recalls New York in its full postcard glory. If the drama of nearby Broadway is not enough (or, realistically, too much) the show-stopping Whitby Bar offers an exciting alternative. Amongst expansive warehouse-style windows and patterned banquettes, the elegant room hosts guests and locals alike for breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner, while cocktails are served from an impressive 30-foot pewter bar that would make even the most seasoned Manhattan bar hopper nod in approval.

18 West 56th Street, T 1.212 586, firmdalehotels.com/hotels/new-york/the-whitby-hotel. Rates from $695

MADE Hotel

The 108-room MADE hotel is set back from a street lined with one-off retail shops. The brainchild of developer Sam Gelin, the goal was to ‘veer away from standard cookie-cutter hotels’. LA-based Studio Mai furnished the spaces with almost exclusively handcrafted materials, including lashings of timber that provide an understated setting for exposed custom raw-bronze shelving, polished stainless steel mirrors and rich hand-woven fabrics. A lobby bar and neighbourhood coffee shop Paper are found on the ground floor, but for the ultimate New York vibe, head to rooftop bar Good Behaviour for crafty cocktails served alongside the accompanying Manhattan skyline.

44 West 29th Street, T 1.212 213 4429, madehotels.com. Rates from $350

Guestroom at Moxy Times Square hotel, New York, USA

Moxy Times Square

With over 22,000 sq ft of event space and 612 rooms on offer, Moxy Times Square is proof that style doesn’t need to come at a luxury price. Architects Stonehill Taylor were charged with remaking the former 1907 New Mills Hotel into rooms ranging from 150 to 350 square feet, with Yabu Pushelberg furnishing the interiors and Rockwell Group taking care of the restaurant, bar and lounge areas. Onsite facilities include the Legasea seafood brasserie and all-day breakfast eaterie Egghead, however rooftop bar and lounge Magic Hour is primed for revelry, offering decadent cocktails amongst naughty animal topiaries, a mini golf course and seats in a rotating carousel.

485 7th Avenue, T 1.212 967 6699, marriott.com. Rates from $139

Guestroom at The New York Edition hotel, New York, USA

The New York Edition

Edition Hotels’ New York iteration is housed in the iconic Met Life Clock Tower, a landmark skyscraper built by Napoleon LeBrun & Sons in 1909. Now in its new life, the tower houses 273 rooms, including three 1,500 sq ft penthouses on the 29th, 30th and 31st floors. Hospitality legend Ian Schrager and architect David Rockwell oversaw the design together, paying homage to classic American aesthetic in the guest rooms and communal areas. It wouldn’t be an Edition without eye-popping facilities, which include the 39th Floor gym, a Jason Atherton-helmed restaurant and the all-important lobby bar.

5 Madison Avenue, T 1.212 413 4200, editionhotels.com/newyork. Rates from $725

The swimming pool at Park Hyatt hotel, New York, USA

Park Hyatt New York

Occupying the first 25 floors of the 90-storey One57 skyscraper (designed by Paris-based architect Christian de Portzamparc), the 210-room hotel is brimming with special touches, including 475 sq ft entry-level rooms, a top-floor wellness centre, a collection of museum-quality artwork – by the likes of Rob Fischer, Ellsworth Kelly and Richard Serra – and an exclusive soundtrack for the pool, courtesy of Carnegie Hall, played through underwater speakers. Understated interiors come courtesy of Yabu Pushelberg, while additionally, the hotel provides New York brand Le Labo’s Tuberuse 40-scented toiletries as a hometown exclusive.

157 West 57th Street, T 1.646 774 1234, hyatt.com. Rates from $915

Guestroom at Public hotel, New York, USA

Public

Occupying the bottom half of his 215 Chrystie Street tower, designed by Herzog & de Meuron, the 370-room Public hotel is Ian Schrager’s 21st-century iteration of the boutique hotel concept he pioneered 25 years ago. This time, he has smartly geared towards democratising luxury, by eschewing the usual tropes such as bellhops and room service, to focus on the details that really matter – not least the affordable rates, which start at around $150 a night. A sweep of facilities include a reasonably priced restaurant and grocery/coffee shop concept, as well as three bars, a public garden and boutique.

215 Chrystie Street, T 1.212 735 6000, publichotels.com. Rates from $150

Exterior of the NoMad Hotel, New York, USA

The NoMad Hotel

Designed by celebrated French interior designer Jacques Garcia (the man behind Paris’ Hotel Costes), the NoMad - housed in a Beaux-Arts building restored by Stonehill Taylor - is Garcia’s first New York hotel and is a re-imagined Parisian flat of the designer’s youth, sporting traditional French mahogany writing desks, reclaimed maple wood floors and Deyrolle butterfly boxes on the walls. The grand two-level library comes complete with a mezzanine ‘catwalk’ and eclectic literary collection, while the restaurant is run by chef-duo Daniel Humm and Will Guidara and takes inspiration from their three-Michelin star restaurant, Eleven Madison Park.

Photography: Benoit Linero. 1170 Broadway & 28th, T 1.212 796 1500, thenomadhotel.com. Rates from $318

The 11 New York hotels we’re checking into this year

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