Best hotels in New York

New York's grand hotels cluster where old money and new money have always overlapped: the Upper East Side, Midtown around Fifth Avenue, and now Lower Manhattan's glass towers. What separates the top of this list is not just address but the density of craft in the room itself, the kind of service that anticipates rather than reacts, and a sense that the building has its own history rather than borrowing one. Everything here operates at a similar pitch of comfort; the ranking is about which ones do it with more character and fewer compromises.

Chosen and ordered by our editor, checked against live inventory · guest scores from each hotel's own reviews · rates for 2026-10-09, one night, two guests

1of 10

The Mark★★★★★

9.6/10 guest score 114 reviews from $2,233/night 5-star

Free cancellation available

The Mark sits at the top because it gets the balance right between old Upper East Side reserve and a modern, almost theatrical sense of design, courtesy of Jacques Grange's interiors, which mix marble chequerboard floors with unexpected colour and pattern in a way few hotels this formal attempt. Rooms are generously proportioned by Manhattan standards, the bar off the lobby draws a genuine local crowd rather than just guests, and the location a block from Central Park means the neighbourhood does a lot of the work. Service here is quietly confident rather than fussy, which suits a clientele that has stayed in enough hotels to notice the difference. It works equally well for a week of gallery-hopping or a single anniversary night, and it rewards people who care about the details of a room rather than just the size of it.

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2of 10

Four Seasons Hotel New York Downtown★★★★★

9.2/10 guest score 315 reviews from $1,418/night 5-star

Free cancellation available

This is the newest of the grand names on the list, and it earns its place through sheer scale of execution: a lap pool and spa in downtown Manhattan is not a small thing to pull off, and the rooms lean toward calm, uncluttered design rather than heavy traditionalism. It trades some of the old-world atmosphere of its uptown rivals for cleaner lines, taller ceilings, and a Financial District setting that puts guests closer to the Seaport, Wall Street, and the harbour than to Fifth Avenue shopping. The service model here is Four Seasons through and through, which means consistency rather than surprise. It suits business travellers and anyone who prefers contemporary polish to period charm, and who doesn't mind trading Central Park proximity for river views and a quieter after-dark neighbourhood.

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3of 10

The Peninsula New York★★★★★

9.0/10 guest score 521 reviews from $1,914/night 5-star

Free cancellation

The Peninsula holds its place on the strength of its rooftop, where the terrace and indoor pool give it something genuinely few Manhattan hotels can offer, a top-floor view stretched across midtown rather than a basement gym with a treadmill facing a wall. Rooms lean into technology and marble in equal measure, with the built-in bathroom televisions a small but memorable touch, and Clement downstairs handles the kind of unfussy fine dining that doesn't demand a special occasion. It sits right on Fifth Avenue, which means shopping and the park are both a short walk away, though the address trades some of the residential hush found further uptown for foot traffic and noise. It's a good choice for anyone who wants the rooftop experience as much as the room itself, and for visitors prioritising a central, walkable base.

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4of 10

The St. Regis New York★★★★★

8.8/10 guest score 257 reviews from $2,067/night 5-star

Free cancellation available

The St. Regis carries the weight of its own history, the King Cole Bar and its Maxfield Parrish mural chief among the reasons people still book a room here rather than somewhere newer. Twenty-four-hour butler service remains the hotel's real signature, a genuine holdover from an older era of hospitality rather than a marketing line, and the rooms keep to a formal, traditional register with heavy fabrics and dark wood rather than anything experimental. Two restaurants give guests reason to stay in rather than seek out the neighbourhood, though the trade-off against the hotels above is a slightly less contemporary feel throughout the building. It suits guests who want ceremony and a sense of occasion built into the stay itself, particularly those drawn to the Fifth Avenue corridor and its version of Manhattan formality.

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Compare withFour Seasons Hotel New YorkThe CarlylePark Hyatt New YorkWaldorf Astoria New YorkThe PlazaMandarin Oriental

5of 10

The Carlyle★★★★★

9.2/10 guest score 154 reviews from $1,308/night 5-star

+ $182 taxes & fees · Free cancellation

The Carlyle closes out the top five on reputation and atmosphere as much as anything measurable, its history with musicians, diplomats, and decades of regulars giving the building a texture that newer luxury hotels simply haven't had time to accumulate. The spa and two restaurants keep guests occupied without needing to leave, and the Upper East Side setting, quieter and more residential than Fifth Avenue proper, suits people who want proximity to the museums and the park without the crowds further south. Rooms retain a slightly old-fashioned formality, chintz and antiques over the sleeker minimalism found lower on Fifth Avenue, which some guests will read as charm and others as dated. It's the right choice for those who want a sense of institution and continuity over the sharper, more contemporary edges of its rivals here.

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Compare withFour Seasons Hotel New YorkPark Hyatt New YorkWaldorf Astoria New YorkThe PlazaThe St. Regis New YorkMandarin Oriental

6of 10

The Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park★★★★★

9.0/10 guest score 285 reviews from $1,812/night 5-star

+ $251 taxes & fees · Free cancellation

This one sits just off Central Park South, and the rooms that face the park earn every bit of the address; the ones that don't are still handsomely done but you're paying for a view you may not get, so ask before you book. Service runs to the Ritz-Carlton house style: formal, attentive, a touch impersonal, which some travellers want and others find stiff. The location does the heavy lifting here, with Fifth Avenue and Rockefeller Center a walk away and a subway entrance close enough to matter. It suits business travellers and first-time New York visitors who want the park and the brand reassurance more than a distinct sense of place. .

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Compare withFour Seasons Hotel New YorkThe CarlylePark Hyatt New YorkWaldorf Astoria New YorkThe PlazaThe St. Regis New York

7of 10

Baccarat Hotel and Residences New York★★★★★

9.4/10 guest score 450 reviews from $1,641/night 5-star

+ $228 taxes & fees · Free cancellation

The Baccarat trades on its crystal house pedigree, and it shows: chandeliers, cut glass detailing, and a lobby bar that leans hard into that heritage without embarrassment. Rooms carry a Parisian inflection, rich fabrics and dark wood against crystal fixtures, and the effect is more jewel box than typical Midtown hotel. It sits close to MoMA, which suits a certain kind of guest, art-minded, happy to spend an evening at the bar rather than out on the town. The building itself is modern, built for the brand rather than adapted to it, so don't come expecting historic bones. Best for those who want the specific glamour of Baccarat crystal rather than a generic five-star finish, and who don't mind paying for a very particular aesthetic.

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8of 10

The Plaza★★★★★

8.4/10 guest score 781 reviews from $1,566/night 5-star

+ $282 taxes & fees

The Plaza is a landmark first and a hotel second, and that ordering is both its appeal and its limitation. The 24-karat gold-plated bathroom fixtures and Palm Court afternoon tea are the draw for guests who want the full Gilded Age performance, corner suites with high ceilings, ornate mouldings, the sense of walking into a period film. It's touristy in a way that's hard to avoid given the Fifth Avenue and Central Park address, and the crowds through the lobby can be considerable. Rooms vary a good deal in size and outlook, so it pays to know what you're booking rather than trusting the name alone. Choose it for the occasion and the history, not for quiet or for contemporary design.

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Compare withFour Seasons Hotel New YorkThe CarlylePark Hyatt New YorkWaldorf Astoria New YorkThe St. Regis New YorkMandarin Oriental

9of 10

Crosby Street Hotel★★★★★

9.5/10 guest score 154 reviews 5-star

Crosby Street sits deep in SoHo, and the Firmdale house style, that English eclecticism of bold prints, deep colour, and a genuinely charming inner courtyard, gives it a personality most hotels on this list don't bother with. Rooms have high ceilings and full-length windows that let in real daylight, a rarity downtown, and the screening room and library add a clubbish, residential feel rather than a corporate one. The 24-hour gym and terrace restaurant round it out without turning it into a resort. It suits design-conscious travellers who want to be in SoHo proper, among the galleries and boutiques, rather than commuting in from Midtown. It's less about scale or grandeur than about atmosphere, and that's exactly the trade it makes.

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10of 10

Lowell Hotel★★★★★

9.6/10 guest score 138 reviews from $1,779/night 5-star

Free cancellation available

The Lowell is an old New York hotel in the true sense, built in 1927, and it still runs on that quieter, more clubbable model rather than the contemporary luxury script. Wood-burning fireplaces and landscaped terraces are genuinely rare finds in Manhattan, and the marble bathrooms and nightly turndown speak to a hotel that has kept its habits rather than chasing trends. It's a smaller, more intimate property than most on this list, and that intimacy is the whole point, not everyone wants a grand lobby to cross each time they come in. The Upper East Side setting suits guests who want proximity to Central Park and Madison Avenue without the churn of Midtown. Book it for the sense of an older, calmer New York rather than for spectacle.

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