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Class and elegance emanate from every pore of the Sherry-Netherland. Designed in 1927 by the same team responsible for The Pierre, The Waldorf=Astoria and other Jazz Age grande dames, the hotel’s architectural highlights include a Gothic exterior, neo-Romanesque and Renaissance interior, and 18-foot tall lobby. The 50 rooms and suites are just as exquisite, with hand-carved wooden furniture, high ceilings, oversized marble bathrooms, decorative fireplaces and custom-made cabinets that tastefully conceal ultra-modern electronic equipment. Most rooms overlook the arched entry to Central Park or fashionable Fifth Avenue shops. Within the hotel’s hallowed walls, guests can enjoy meals from Harry Cipriani (either at the lobby restaurant or in rooms); antiques shopping at A La Vielle Russie; a barbershop, beauty salon and fitness center; and services like an on-site notary public. The steep room rates are tempered by a slew of complimentary extras like in-room water and soda and a Belgian chocolate welcome gift. — E. J. Samson

Classic hotel design, an extremely friendly European staff and room service from Cipriani.

Cons
Views of the nearby Plaza Hotel may create a not necessarily merited inferiority complex.

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Best of New York Awards

• Best One-Night-Stand Hotel (2007)