The Surrey, New York

Voted Number One Hotel in NYC in Travel + Leisure's 'World's Best' for 2016 and 'Top Hotel in New York City' in 2015 in the Condé Nast 'Reader's Choice Awards'

Location

The hotel, located in the centre of Upper East Side Manhattan, is a mere step away from Central Park. On your morning’s walk, you’ll discover pristine residential streets home to celebrated boutiques, galleries and world-class museums, including The Frick Collection; a former residence, it now displays sculptures and paintings from around the world. You’ll also find such cultural heavyweights as the Guggenheim and the Met within striking distance along with the luxury shops of Fifth Avenue.

Accommodation

Designed by Rottet Studio, interiors are a marriage of classic and modern with a purposed high contrast aesthetic. Crisp white linens and eggshell walls serve as a foil to the rich patterns of the textured carpets and hand-painted armoires. There’s even a veritable menu of pillows (from buckwheat to hypo-allergenic) to ensure that your sleep remains undisturbed. Upgrade to a suite for a generously sized luxury retreat featuring soaking tubs and private terraces with the walk in closets and grand marble fireplace of the Presidential Suite a particular treat.

Dining

With Café Boulud garnering a Michelin star and a three-star review in the New York Times, reservations are recommended for all three meals. Its quartet of themes – tradition, season, market and world cuisine – are consistently realised in dishes that are designed to push culinary boundaries. Decidedly French, menus might include duck consommé with foie gras tortellini or striped bass, served with potato purée and baby leeks.

Facilities

The hotel’s Bar Pleiades – inspired by the geometric lines of 1930s Art Deco – is a destination in itself, with the atmosphere of an exquisitely refined cocktail bar. Chief mixologist, Darryl Chan, uses only seasonal ingredients to create such offerings as his cranberry granite champagne cocktail, inspired by Café Boulud. On Monday and Friday, drinks are served to the syncopated rhythms of live jazz. Elsewhere, the hotel features a fitness centre and an impressive art collection; curated by the esteemed Natasha Schlesinger, it aims to engage, excite and entertain. For more of the latter, there’s the rooftop garden and the hotel’s spa, something of an oasis in busy Manhattan.