One of the Best Hotels In New York City Lets You Customize Your Guest Room Layout

From dreamy decor to top-notch amenities, Domino’s Wish You Were Here series is your first-class ticket to the most design-driven getaways around the world. Whether you’re looking to steal away for a few days or just steal a few ideas for back home (we encourage both, for the record), check out where we’re checking in.

Real talk: You can visit New York City every month for the rest of your life and never see the same city twice. Even those of us who live there can barely keep up with the constant ripple of opening parties for shops, restaurants, and hotels. But that’s part of what makes the Big Apple so exciting, isn’t it? And being that it is our job to keep a finger on the pulse of design worth traveling for, we couldn’t let the city’s latest wave of stylish accommodations go unnoticed. From sweeping skyline views to mid-century digs to drool over, these are our picks for the best hotels in New York City. 

The Ned, NoMad

What we love: An artsy backdrop for fireside chats.

From the outside, sheer café curtains create a little mystery around the Ned’s Beaux-Arts building. Inside, curious travelers are encouraged to take in every detail, from the rich oak paneling and burl-wood inserts to the contrasting polished plaster on the walls and ceiling. Our favorite discovery? A cozy nook next to the original NoMad fireplace delightfully called the Snug, where the plush upholstery is a nod to the brand’s O.G. locale in London. $$$

Ace Hotel, Boerum Hill, Brooklyn

What we love: Plenty of space for the roving wanderer (or an extra checked bag).

Designed by hospitality wizards Roman and Williams, these guest rooms were conjured up as cabins of creative refuge near downtown Brooklyn. Furnishings—including custom seating and classically loomed cotton bedding—are all handcrafted from understated materials, and even the smallest of rooms have enough breathing space for drifting bohemians taking up temporary residence. $$

Nine Orchard, Lower East Side

What we love: Rich history—and even richer architecture.

Originally built in 1912 as a bank, this 14-floor property had been empty since 2006. With an ambitious team of collaborators, its 20th-century character has been longingly preserved, from the facade to the intricate metal- and millwork within. Now you can check in and enjoy a drink under soaring vaulted ceilings and large arched windows where tellers once cashed checks. $$$

Radio Hotel, Washington Heights

What we love: Feeling like a main character from In the Heights. 

For its first full-service boutique hotel, Washington Heights deserved something as creative, diverse, and vibrant as the culture it embraces. With a color-blocked, Lego-looking structure thoughtfully designed to mirror storefronts throughout the community, the creative forces (namely Stonehill Taylor and MVRDV) behind Radio Hotel delivered. Inside, the experience is just as rich, from the monochromatic tiles in blue, yellow, or red covering the bathroom to the explosive flavors at the Dominican-inspired restaurant. $$

The Graduate, Roosevelt Island

What we love: Seeing the city from a new perspective. 

There might not be many reasons to trek to Roosevelt Island other than visiting a friend or family member at Cornell Tech, but Graduate Hotels has a knack for complementing college campuses with cool accommodations, so it’s worth a stop. On the sliver sandwiched between Manhattan and Queens, the rooms are a study in color-blocked curtains and kaleidoscopic ceilings, but it’s the Panorama Room that you won’t want to miss. From 18 floors above, the bar’s 360-degree view of the city gets an A+. $$

TWA Hotel, Jamaica, Queens

What we love: It’s like catnip for connoisseurs of mid-century design.

From the sound of the authentic Solari flip board to the swooping curves and crimson palette of this 1962 stunner, the former TWA hub gives time travel a new meaning thanks to an interior overhaul from the Stonehill Taylor team. If you’re not people watching from the tulip-shaped tables in the sunken lobby, perhaps you’ll find yourself in the year 1958, sipping a martini at Connie, the retro airplane–turned–cocktail lounge. Wherever you land, the once abandoned Eero Saarinen design is so captivating, it’s the only airport hotel where you’ll actually look forward to the idea of an overnight delay. $$$

Hotel Chelsea, Chelsea

What we love: The decades’ worth of drama…in the design.

Since opening in 1885, this Gothic building has seen it all: ghosts, drug-fueled debauchery, and a revolving door of celebrity guests, from Mark Twain to Bob Dylan to Patti Smith. Infamy aside, we’re here for the mosaic marble floors, wrought-iron staircase railings, and rooms lined with artwork painted by past residents, artists who paid for their rent with their creations. And in the sleeping quarters, tiger-striped chairs, stained-glass windows, and purple velour couches serve all the excitement you could ask for. $$$

Aman New York, Midtown

What we love: The choose-your-own-adventure layouts.

They say personalization is the epitome of luxury, and Aman’s reimagining of the iconic Crown Building takes that concept well beyond a monogrammed bathrobe. Every single suite has a flexible floor plan, a feat of five-star engineering made possible by pivoting louver doors throughout meant to be open or contain areas to your liking. And every rice paper panel is backlit, too, so you can even customize your mood lighting. $$$$

Fouquet’s, Tribeca

What we love: Feeling like we’re in a charming French boudoir. 

A transplant from France, the first U.S. property from the family-run Hotel Barrière group invites you to live la vie en rose, from its rouge-colored bar to its blushing suites. Striped borders, decadent drapes, and exquisite parquet floors in the rooms, plus a brasserie-inspired restaurant in collaboration with Michelin-star chef Pierre Gagnaire, infuse this Tribeca hideout with so much Parisian charm you may just forget you’re in New York…or the States for that matter. $$$$

Where to Shop

Hill House Home: Nap Dress Nation has a new store to shop, and its prime location—the now popular Rockefeller Plaza—inspired the interiors. It’s all thanks to designer Cece Barfield, who matched the woodwork to the circular designs outside Radio City Music Hall, which you can spot through the store windows.

John Derian: Recognized for the handmade decoupage by artist John Derian and his team of artisans, this downtown shop is filled with joy-sparking textiles, trinkets, and tableware (such as glittery mushrooms and leaflike platters) that add whimsy to any space.

Primary Essentials: As the name suggests, you can shop all your needs, from pantry items to office supplies, in this Brooklyn shop, but each product in the edited mix of home goods is meant to elevate daily life and honor independent makers.

Coming Soon: Curated with a generous dose of quirk and color, this dopamine-inducing shop can be found at the intersection of New York’s Lower East Side and Chinatown. You’ll also find items big and small including chrome furniture for the chillest Netflix sessions and sparkly sponges guaranteed to make doing dishes feel fun. 

Form Atelier: This Tribeca shop was cofounded through a partnership between the director of style for Ralph Lauren Home and a fashion industry vet, so you already know you’re taking something home from the handpicked selection of vintage goods.

Where to Eat

Corner Bar: From a low-key breakfast to lively nightcaps, the restaurant found inside Nine Orchard will keep you satiated with a menu of classics (from niçoise salad to canard à l’orange) borrowed from bistros around the world.

Gage & Tollner: This historic oyster- and chophouse (originally open from 1879 to 2004) in downtown Brooklyn has been reimagined for the 21st century after a 17-year hiatus—go for the rib eye, stay to soak in the opulent brass chandeliers and wainscot-paneled walls.

Le Rock: Tucked away in Rockefeller Center, the newest endeavor from the team behind Frenchette earned New York Times restaurant critic Pete Wells’s blessing as one of the best new eateries in 2022. We know it was mostly for the food, but the Art Deco atmosphere is just as noteworthy.