[MANHATTAN, NEW YORK]– There are over 715 hotels in New York City, some grand, some giant, some dumps, some humble. Some cost a fortune. Some cost a lot and are dumps. I’ve stayed in a LOT of them, in every category, but these are my favorite hotels in New York, the best boutique hotels in New York City. And the best design hotels in New York.

Bear with me, this is a long post with lots of photos from lots of trips, but I wanted to show you as much as I can to give you a real feel for each of my favorites. And point out things I love about each.

Sorry, this is a giant post. These are my favorite boutique hotels in New York, in preferential order. Lots of photos, a description of their locations and reasons why you want to stay there.

Give me your favorites in the Comments box below.

It’s not all of the best boutique hotels in New York, just the ones I’ve stayed in and liked, several many times. I’ll continue to update this post and add to the list. These photos range from visits over the last fifteen years, being New York, things are always evolving, with new owners, updates and changes of guard, so I’ve noted the changes on each.

The Best Boutique Hotels in NYC–Booking the Right Hotel

There are two mistakes that people get wrong when they book a hotel in New York:

First Mistake — People pick by price first, without thinking of the location. Then they end up somewhere crappy like a loud midtown street with nothing around it or worse, they have to run the gauntlet through the chaos of Times Square. That’s where all the big hotel chains are and no New Yorker ever chooses to go there. Then people walk away thinking NYC is just a loud messy place.

New York is all about neighborhoods, each with their own character. The key is to figure out what you’re there for, where you’re going to be hanging and THEN pick out your hotel. Every neighborhood has great options. If you want to shop and hang in luxury, only hang in Central Park, Rockefeller Center, or go to the museums, then check out the expensive luxury hotels bracketing Central Park.

But to me, other than a few big tourists sites, the best part of Manhattan happens below 23rd Street. “Downtown.” That’s where are the buildings are lower, the streets lined with trees and each block has the best, cutest restaurants and boutique shops. And all the cool people live south of 23rd. 😜 You can still stay downtown and just jump on the subway and hit the top sites Uptown during the day, then come home and relax in your downtown hood each night.

Big hotel chains are in New York to maximize their revenue from you.

Independent boutique hotels are there to woo you away.

Second Mistake— People think chain hotels are a better value than independent boutique hotels. What they don’t realize is that in New York, there are hundreds of independently-run boutique hotels. You can get a nicer, better and more unique boutique hotel for the same, or often less, rate than a Marriott, Hilton or Hyatt in Midtown and Uptown.

With tons more character, smaller, quieter and usually in a cooler neighborhood, you’ll go home feeling a lot different about New York.

The Marlton–A Cozy European Hotel in the Heart of Greenwich Village

And my current favorite, I’ve stayed there the last four trip to New York. The Marlton is another hit by my favorite hotelier in the city, Sean MacPherson. He also created The Bowery (profiled below), The Maritime, The Jane, The Ludlow and a number of other understatedly-perfect places that have defined Lower Downtown for decades. Not flashy. Not pretentious. Just nice.

I love his business philosophy: “Break even, plus ten percent.” That’s a great attitude and why The Marlton is one of the best values in the city.  You can read all about The Marlton in this NYTimes story. 

The rooms are small, as most are in New York, but his are fitted like from a tailor. Every corner, every light switch, every trim piece, every nice sheet has been thought through. Even the fire escape stairs are nice. When you stay at any of his hotels, you feel like you’re someone special. That’s something no chain hotel can replicate.

Like most of New York, the rooms are on the very small side — it’ll be tight for two unless you upgrade to a bigger room — but they purposefully designed the large downstairs lobby to be your plush living room. There are private nooks and crannies to hang out. You almost want to have business cards printed with Visiting Hours: “I’m taking visitors at The Marlton from 11 to 2.”

In the morning, there’s a free European-style breakfast in the lobby, a barista pulling shots and free croissants and healthy snacky snacks to kick off your day why you lounge around the cosy chairs in a nook in the lobby reading the paper.

Besides its cozy size and location, the thing I like the most about The Marlton is that it has a great POW factor for the money. The same nice fit and finish as a luxury hotel, at a fraction of the price. That makes me happy.

If you read fashion, actors or media people in the know, I’m always blown away by how many share that The Marlton is their favorite place to stay. Sharing it almost like a secret tip.

The rooms are super-quiet — I’ve never heard another person next door or above — and my favorite thing is how quiet the HVAC is, you hardly know it’s on.

Just writing this post makes me giddy to go back to The Marlton soon. Here’s their website.

Restaurant Margaux in The Marlton–Your Secret Little Hang in The Village

The best secret of The Marlton is the little gem restaurant Margaux. You don’t read much about it in the press, but regulars in the neighborhood and repeat guests know that the restaurant is the best kept secret. I’m always surprised how many media interviews I read that happened here. “We met on a cold blustery day in the warmth and quiet restaurant of The Marlton hotel.”

(Above pics from the hotel website)

It’s a great place to meet friends or, if you solo travel a lot like me, it’s a great place to slip in and get an amazing meal without fighting a big crowd after your flight gets late and you just don’t want to deal.

Great little booths in the bar or a bright and airy backroom, you can choose your mood.

The Marlton is located on surprisingly quiet 8th Street, just north of Washington Square Park and NYU. There are subway stops with walking distance, especially the get-everywhere W4th street stop. Or you can walk to West Village, SoHo, NoHo, the East Village and Lower East Side. It’s easy to go for a sunset walk along the Hudson and feel like a world away.

The Bowery Hotel–Feel Like a Rockstar on the Lower East Side

The Bowery has long been my favorite go-to hotel and ties for for my First Place Favorite. It’s a legendary haunt, complete with paparazzi out front to spot famous guests coming and going, but they immediately put down their cameras when I get out of the Uber. 😆

You can see why actors, musicians, celebrities all stay here, sometimes for months. The rooms are quiet and roomy and tricked out with everything you want and the larger suites have amazing terraces. It doesn’t feel like you’re staying in a hotel, it feels like staying in your own apartment in NYC.

And they treat you like a celeb, even when you’re just a Dan from Denver.

You can see why actors, musicians and celebrities all stay here, sometimes for months. The rooms are quiet and roomy and feel like staying in your own apartment in NYC. I never heard another soul.

When you see a celebrity photo shoot shot here, you instantly recognize this room. Just like the Sunset Tower Hotel in Los Angeles, which I did a post on.

I’ve stayed a half-dozen times at The Bowery Hotel, here are some shots of all the different rooms all the different room shapes and sizes. They have always been wonderful about recognizing repeat visits.

(This photo is from The Bowery website.)

Eat at Gemma — This Great Italian Restaurant Makes Staying at The Bowery Even Better

From breakfast, to working lunch, to nice dinner, to nightcaps, stopping in Gemma off the hotel lobby is an absolute bonus. It’s one of my favorite go-to restaurants in New York. Always dependable. It used to be insane to get into when it first opened, now it’s super easy to slip in and out throughout the day.

The Beekman–A Gorgeous Building in the Financial District That You’ll Never Want to Leave

The Beekman is something else. It’s amazing that this 1800s building was worn down and abandoned for years before they did a fantastic restoration.

Nice hotels in the Financial District have always struggled to attract people all the way down at the tip of Manhattan, but Thompson Hotels were smart that they created their own ecosystem — a gorgeous hotel with big rooms (unusual for Manhattan) and fitted out with several of the best restaurants and bars in the city. There’s so much to do in the building you really don’t wanna leave.

I would stay at The Beekman as a destination weekend or your second or later visit to NYC vs. when you’ll be traipsing all over the city. It’s way down at the bottom of the Financial District, so you’re a long way from everything.

But the FD is the coolest, all narrow twisty streets, gorgeous architecture and surrounded by water on all sides. And the bars and restaurants of The Beekman are so cool you really don’t have to leave.

The Rooms at The Beekman

Set in the old law offices, now conjoined rooms, the design is sweet and it feels like this has been here for years. With 287 rooms, The Beekman is large for a boutique hotel, but feels like your own.

The decor is a mix of traditional and tasteful kitsch, it works so well.

Book Your Meal at Le Gratin, Daniel Boulud’s Ode to Lyonnais, Right Downstairs

When the hotel originally opened, this was Augustine and created by the magician Keith McNally — who also created Pastis and the always-perfect Balthazar. There was a lease dispute during COVID shutdown, so he had to walk away from this marvelous creation.

But if anyone can pick it up and make it great it’s Daniel Boulud, one of the best French chefs in the country. I haven’t been back since, but I hear it has nearly the same decor, but a lot more subdued. Le Gratin is designed around a Bouchon Lyonnais-style restaurant where Daniel grew up. Simple Lyonnais food, elevated.  

Stop for Cocktails at The Bar Room at The Beekman

Another famous New York chef, Tom Colicchio, was brought in to run the whole food & beverage scene of The Beekman. There are lots of nooks and crannies to squirrel away to have a cocktail at The Bar Room or the Temple Bar.

It’s lovely to have such amazing choices without having to leave the hotel.

The Greenwich Hotel–Understated Elegance in the Heart of Tribeca

Rumor has it that Robert DeNiro, who lived in the once sleepy TriBeCa neighborhood wanted to have a nice hotel for all his famous friends and producers to stay downtown close to his home. So he built his own. Recruiting the best talents in the city to create a special place in TriBeCa — it originally meant the Triangle Below Canal Street, but now it’s just commonly known as Tribeca.

If you are of a certain age and remember the famous American Express commercial from the early 2000s directed by Martin Scorsese that helped kick off the Tribeca Film Festival and helped jumpstart the revitalization of New York and after the doldrums of the 80s and 90s. That was shot when Tribeca was just starting to kick off. Now, it’s one of the most expensive zip codes in Manhattan.

The Greenwich is the place to be in Tribeca.

(Photo above from the hotel’s website)

The Greenwich feels like staying in a private club.

Locanda Verde in the Greenwich — One of New York’s Best Italian Restaurants Right Off the Lobby

Locanda Verde has been one of the best restaurants in New York for decades. Run by my favorite chef, Andrew Carmellini, it feels both fancy and and casual at the same time, just like all of Tribeca. Understated luxury.

Andrew runs 20 of the most well-respected restaurants in town and some of my favorites), The Dutch, Lafayette and many more. I try to stop in for breakfast, lunch or dinner every time I’m in town. And it’s right at the bottom of the hotel, so you feel like it’s yours.

It’s glorious. And you’ll never know who you might see in there.

The Crosby Street Hotel–English Posh in the Heart of SoHo

The Crosby Street Hotel really made a splash when it opened in 2009. It was the first posh outpost of the famous British hotel design Kit Kemp and her Firmdale Hotels. It brought a fresh British air to the brawny New York hotel scene, even a feminine touch, with fabulous fabrics and designs. It has been a long-time hit with the fashion industry.

Since then, it has become even more posh, having re-skinned nearly everything, like the rest of recent female-led British hotels, with an over-the-top riot of exotic fabrics in every way, shape and pattern and more flower arrangements than a wedding in Mayfair.

When you really want to splash out in New York, The Crosby Street Hotel is where you want to do it.

I stayed here right after it opened, when they had introductory rates. But nowadays days, “One Thousand is the new Four Hundred” and a thou a night is the entry level for rooms, so be prepared for sticker shock.

The location in the heart of SoHo can’t be beat, right near all the best shops and restaurants and soclose to Balthazar it feels like your living room. They have a cool brunchy restaurant and outdoor bar terrace if you want to stop in for lunch or brunch.

PUBLIC NYC–Ian Schrager’s Perfect Design Hotel for the Rest of Us on the Lower East Side

I’ve been a long time fan of Ian Schrager’s constantly-reinventing of the hotel experience — he’s the Lorne Michaels of hoteliers. Again and again, he’s always one step ahead of everybody else.

I was a huge fan of his first iteration of PUBLIC when he opened the first PUBLIC in Chicago (which he has since departed with and it’s now called The Ambassador).

Starting over with new ideas, Ian Schrager opened a new interpretation of PUBLIC in New York and restarted the brand, with a whole new idea: “Luxury for All”. Affordable luxury.

As he states it, he wanted to create “a new genre of hotel offering great value.” To achieve that affordable luxury goal, the rooms at PUBLIC had to be small, but perfectly-designed, as efficient as a sailboat cabin, but a fine fit and finish. Giant common areas over two lower floors, with oodles of space for people to hang out in, separate but together, not stuck in your room. He wanted to encourage the co-mingling.

The rooms are intentionally small, so they can be affordable, but the intent of PUBLIC is that the roomy downstairs has lots of different areas to hang out, outside of your room, but still private. You can hang out, work, meet, eat, drink.

I loved it.

The Rooms at PUBLIC–Sleek Design, Maximum Function

Every square inch is utilized and well thought-out, like a ship cabin. Nothing is wasted, everything has a purpose and a smooth design. With no sacrifice on fit and finishes. Or nice sheets.

Every square inch of each room has been maximized, with a sleek design as efficient as a fine sailboat cabin. It feels amazingly roomy.

The Ned–Old World Glamor in the Booming NoMad Neighborhood

I became a big fan of The Sydell Group when they first opened this hotel as the NoMad hotel and I stayed there three times right after they opened. After the success of The Ned in London and the bitter breakup of the Eleven Madison group partners that ran the restaurant and hotel in NY, they took over the hotel again and rebranded it The Ned NoMad. Still with me?

When they opened The Ned in London (the original Ned) I flew over just to stay there.The Ned London is one of the coolest hotel experiences I’ve ever had. Here’s a huge post I made about The Ned in London.

When you’re inside The Ned, it feels more like Paris or London than in the heart of New York.

Lots of Dining and Drinking Options, Just Like at The Ned London

They brought a lot of the successful elements from London to here, including the delightful Cecconi’s. With bars and restaurants and dining areas beautifully carved into every corner and roof. Even a private club, with access to the roof bar. They have another restaurant partnership coming to redo to the old NoMad restaurant space.

The Sexy Rooms at The Ned NoMad

The signature element of the original NoMad was the freestanding clawfoot bathtubs right in the middle of the room. The Ned has retained the same look and feel in most rooms, but brightened the look. But still retains the same feel of a European hotel.

Some of the rooms have freestanding clawfoot tubs, right in the middle of the room. Sexy as hell.

The New York Edition–A Hip Design Hotel Overlooking Madison Square Park

The EDITION hotels, another Ian Schrager invention, this time in partnership with Marriott Hotels. Their mission create a new design-forward upscale hotel brand which are now all over the world including New York, West Hollywood, Miami Beach, London, Madrid, Barcelona, all over Asia and the Middle East.

Design is always at the forefront, yet let the character of the building remain an integral part. Each EDITION has its own personality. The New York EDITION was one of the first they developed together. The idea has always been to create a hotel where locals want to go to as much as the hotel guests, intermingling in the cool restaurants and bars unique to each location.

They did a great job. And the location can’t be beat.

The commons areas of the NY EDITION — the lobby, bar and restaurant — are really well done. They make the place.

What I loved about it: The location can’t be beat. The design is killer, especially the bar and restaurant and the cool rooms.

What I didn’t like: So much thought went into the room design, but completely blown up by the super-noisy HVAC unit in the room. For this caliber hotel, that shouldn’t be. It sounds like a window unit at the Days Inn in Kearney, Nebraska. I barely slept in two nights. I hope they fixed it.

The room views from the NY EDITION are some of the best in the city, in any direction. From dawn to dusk to midnight.

Hotel Chelsea–This Is Where I’ll Be Staying Next

I haven’t been to the new Hotel Chelsea yet, it has been fully booked every time I tried. But this is where I want to stay on my next trip to New York. Also created by Sean MacPherson and his partners after a massive multi-year remodel, they really did an amazing job restoring this legendary hotel that was for years home to artists and musicians.

Friends who have stayed there have raved about it. I can’t wait to go. Especially for the martini service in the restaurant. The drink of dreams.

Bryant Park Hotel–Amazing Views Over Bryant Park

This was one of the first big, giant boutique hotels to open in the first phase of resurgent New York, opening in the glorious art deco Union Carbide building right on famed Bryant Park, a building I used to drool over before it was a hotel.

The Bryant Park hotel paired with the resurgence of New York in the early 2000s, when private groups took over city landmarks like Bryant Park, Central Park, Madison Square Park, etc restored them and brought them back to life. Long under-funded and in decay, locals banded together to revitalize the city’s great things. Local businesses funding cool new public spaces.

When the Bryant Park Hotel opened, it was THE place to be, especially the giant boozy bar in the basement that was tough to get into. So much so, I remember it in the opening credits of the new, hip SNL sax-y intro reel, with SNL member like young, unknown Jimmy Fallon ordering cocktails. That was when SNL, Tribeca Film Festival and NY Fashion Week helped turn NY into what it is today.

I’ve stayed here several times. The first, when it was super hot. And then again, it was our go-to place for years. Then, on my last visit it was kinda in the doldrums. I was disappointed by the rooms, but loved the terrace and view. I think there were some ownership changes and they tried for a Scandi-chic look, but the decor felt more like IKEA.

It looks like it has had a recent refresh that brings it up to its past reputation. Check out the new look here.

If you need to be in Midtown, this location can’t be beat. With glorious views over Bryant Park.

The main reasons you want to stay at The Bryant Park Hotel the perfect central location, the stunning building and a gob-smacking terrace overlooking the park, if you can get one.

The Walker–A Great Location in Greenwich Village

I stayed here twice, but can’t seem to find photos from those stays. If you want an affordable hotel in a great location, The Walker Greenwich Village is it. They have another location in Tribeca, so make sure you pick the right one.

It’s a skinny tower, so the rooms are on the small side, so you might want to upgrade on this one, some have great little balconies. But they have a great little lobby, a small bar and restaurant and the location can’t be beat. Walking distance to everywhere, super close to the West Village.

Arlo NoMad–Warning: Do Not Stay Here Unless You Have To, Or You Are Very Very Small

The Arlo NoMad opened during the pandemic and I stayed there just after everything started to open up again, yet everyone still wore masks. It was one of the few places I could find a room.

Without question, this is the smallest room I’ve ever stayed in. Miserably small, to the point where if you bent over to get something in your suitcase, your butt hit the wall. And laying on the bed, my feet touched the opposing wall.

And it had the loudest HVAC I’ve ever heard. I had to put a pillow over my head. I was up all night.

There are several Arlos that have opened up, which I don’t understand. But just be forewarned.

There is a bar on the top floor that had amazing views of the Empire State Building and Koreatown.

— Post Created January 2025 —

More Opinions on The Best Boutique Hotels in NYC

Here is Travel & Leisure’s list. Mr & Mrs Smith’s list, which has a lot of affordable options. The always dependable TabletHotel’s vetted list (scroll down to see The Most Interesting Hotels in NYC). Here’ The Telegraph’s list of NYC boutique hotels. And TimeOut’s list.