Thursday, Oct. 09, 2008

Four Seasons Hotel

Raising the opulence bar — even for a Four Seasons property — this soaring, sleek, I. M. Pei-designed tower epitomizes the cool high life in this coolest of American cities. The spare stone façade leads to a cavernous marble lobby, where the voices of arriving guests echo among angular stone columns and vaulted skylit ceilings. Fifty-two stories high, the hotel has 368 rooms with views overlooking the midtown skyline (if you're facing north) and Central Park (to the south); the higher you go, the better and more expensive the vantage point. The average 600-square-foot size is massive by NYC standards, and all rooms are kitted out with clean-lined wood furniture; velvety fabrics in shades of champagne and cream; and spacious marble baths, many with soaking tubs that fill in 60 seconds. The amenities include a spa offering rose-petal foot soaks and the sublime L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon restaurant.

Insider Tip: Book a counter seat at L'Atelier — order small plates off the left-hand side of the menu.

Room to Book: Corner rooms on the 28th and 29th floors have great views at lower-floor rates. If price is truly no object, the Ty Warner Penthouse Suite is a 4,300-square-foot palace with 25-foot cathedral ceilings, a private elevator, a grand piano, and an indoor Zen garden (approximately $30,000 per night).

Mandarin Oriental

As sumptuous and plush as the Four Seasons (a few blocks away) is slick and modern, the popular MO occupies the 35th through the 54th floors of the Time Warner Center at the southwest corner of Central Park. The hotel is accessed via a special elevator in an entryway decorated with a giant, fiery-looking Dale Chihuly sculpture. Of the 248 rooms, many of them are on the small side, and some have views that are compromised by neighboring high-rises. Still, all are furnished with opulent Asian-inspired details, including silk bedspreads and pillows in rich colors of scarlet and gold, Japanese brush paintings, and in some suites, cushy Oriental rugs. The 14,500-square-foot spa (which includes a glassed-in 75-foot-long pool and Espa treatments like ayurvedic scalp stimulation and Thai yoga massage) is quite possibly the city's best.

Insider Tip: Although the in-house restaurant, Asiate, serves lovely French-Asian fusion cuisine, a meal at Thomas Keller's Per Se (just an elevator ride away in the Time Warner Center) is worth maxing out your credit cards for.

Room to Book: Premier Central Park View Rooms, on floors 43 and above, have unimpeded park vistas (which makes them feel much bigger than their 425 square feet).

The Peninsula

Of the same vintage as the neighboring St. Regis (both hotels were built between 1904 and 1905), the Peninsula has retained its decorative Beaux-Arts façade — but inside, old-world grandeur meets streamlined modernity. A crystal chandelier dangles in the lobby, illuminating dark-cherry and Carpathian-elm burl woodwork with Art Nouveau carvings; Oriental carpets are spread over white marble floors. The 239 rooms feature sleek chaises, Roman shades, lacquered armoires, mahogany headboards, and goose-feather duvets — as well as high-tech touches like bathroom flat-screen TV's (might as well keep up with the financial news while you're soaking in the tub). Afternoon tea service in the Gotham Lounge is a characteristically civilized affair, while the rooftop bar, formerly known as the Pen-Top, is one of the city's hottest spots for a drink.

Insider Tip: The Peninsula Spa offers a range of Asian, European and Ayurvedic therapies. Check out the Spa-splurge package for two hours of treatment and a poolside lunch.

Room to Book: The spacious Deluxe Luxe suites, which overlook the bustle of Fifth Avenue.

Ritz-Carlton, Battery Park

Set at the southern tip of Manhattan, this Ritz may be the only hotel in the city where you'll wake to the morning cries of seagulls. The 39-story tower's location is either a huge selling point or an inconvenience, depending on your point of view: although it's set far from most of the city's main attractions, it's also set far from crowds, and the natural light that floods through the windows — reflected off the waters of the Hudson — is of a quality you won't find elsewhere here. These simpler pleasures — light, quiet, views of the Statue of Liberty and passing ships — are the real reasons to stay here; the customary Ritz-Carlton crystal-and-marble formality isn't much in evidence. The 298 lemon-yellow and sea-green rooms — all with 400-thread-count Frette linens and Bulgari bath products — start at a spacious 425 square feet; those with harbor views have window telescopes. Abstract works by New York artists hang on walls throughout the hotel, while gently curving hallways and Art Deco touches allude to the cruise liners that once called at the adjoining harbor.

Insider Tip: Don't feel like leaving the premises? The terrace at the 14th-floor Rise Bar is a summer hotspot, especially between 6 and 8 pm.

Room to Book: Liberty Suites, on the –17 line, which have stupendous south-facing views of New York Harbor.

The London NYC

Since opening in late 2006, the London may have received less press than its Gordon Ramsay-run in-house restaurant, but this elegant, all-suite hotel justly deserves its own following. The 562 suites, the smallest of which are an expansive 500 square feet, are models of streamlined elegance; the parquet oak floors, dark embossed-leather desks, and curving velvet banquettes were all chosen by designer David Collins, who has worked his magic at some of Europe's chicest hotels. All bathrooms are furnished by Waterworks with sunken marble tubs, showers with dueling "rain" showerheads, and sumptuous bath towels and robes. Book a table at Mr. Ramsay's only stateside restaurant a month early; if you can't get in, try for a slate-blue banquette at his less-formal spot, Maze — or just order room service from the restaurant.

Insider Tip: Anglophiles, rejoice: the hotel allows free calls to London seven hours a day.

Room to Book: Well-named Vista suites are high enough that they have views of nearby Central Park.