Hôtel Plaza Athénée, New York

One of the few independent hotels left in Manhattan, this 149-room bijou is cherished by Europeans (and savvy celebrities) for its intimacy and attentive staff. Set on a quiet, tree-lined street off Madison Avenue, the hotel entry has a hushed, secret-garden ambience; guests check in while seated at an antique French desk, then pass huge granite urns of cascading flowers on their way to the elevators. The rooms are decorated with fanciful elegance—rose-marble bathrooms, Asian-silk bedspreads, gold Paul Garnier wall clocks, color schemes of copper-and-blue or silver-and-green—although there's something undeniably civilized about all those architectural drawings on the walls. In the afternoons, guests can join well-heeled and done-up neighborhood locals for cocktails or afternoon tea in the dusky, leather-floored Bar Seine.

Tip: Have one of the hotel's two Clef d'Or concierges help you get the best out of the neighborhood—with a Central Park picnic basket or a personal shopper at nearby Barneys or Bergdorf Goodman.

Room to Book: No. 1509 or No. 1510, the only (nonsuite) rooms with balconies.