New York City



The Experience

New York's ultimate grande dame, particularly since the Plaza went condo, the Waldorf=Astoria was built on an entire Park Avenue block in 1931, the hyphen derived from the original 1897 coupling of two Astor family hotels on a site 15 blocks south. A gilded Art Deco masterpiece with four restaurants, four bars, over 1,400 rooms and a terraced lobby that's a cross between a marbled museum and Grand Central Station, it may have seen better days, but it still attracts wide-eyed tourists and old-money elites in equal measure, drawn to a vintage glamour that's evident from the valets in top hats at the door to the luxe suites on its high floors.

The Rooms

With 1,416 of them there's no shortage to choose from but you might want to go better than a standard Deluxe - small at 225 square feet, the somewhat drab pink and beige tones barely livened by flat-screen TVs recently installed in every room. Opt instead for Astoria Level rooms on the 26th floor that come in king, mini-suite or suite size, with free access to the +1 Spa and Executive Level Lounge. Rooms in the Tower building on the 28th to 42nd floors are individually designed and more spacious, with plush decor, rich fabrics and Gilded Age accents throughout. Every President since Hoover has stayed in the over-sized Presidential Suite, and you could do worse than getting in there.

The Service

With so many rooms and a lobby lined with as many gawking tourists as guests, it's hard to keep it personal, but with more than 1,800 staff, there's still an Old World style and efficiency to the place. Valets and doormen are never less than slick and courteous, and a phalanx of up to 10 concierges in the Towers can arrange anything from a helicopter jaunt to a personal fitting with a stylist at Barneys.

The Highlights

From the moment you enter the boutique-lined marble lobby and hear former resident Cole Porter's Steinway piano tinkling on the Cocktail Terrace above you, you know you're somewhere special. You can take a martini on the terrace or in Harry's Bar below, but a better bet is the classy Bull & Bear steakhouse on the Lexington Avenue side, where an electronic ticker tape above the mahogany bar keeps bankers and brokers appraised of share prices. Flagship fine-dining restaurant Peacock Alley, recently reopened after an Art Deco redesign on the lobby floor, does pricey French fare, but if you're with kids, you'll prefer the more leisurely Oscar's Brasserie, also on the Lex side.

-- Douglas Rogers

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