The St. Regis New York hotel, New York, USA: review

The St. Regis New York is a luxury New York hotel offering sophisticated décor, antique furnishings, New York inspired art work, bespoke service, chic bedrooms and the renowned King Cole Bar & Salon, near Central Park and Fifth Avenue.

Founded more than a century ago by John Jacob Astor IV, The St. Regis New York recreates the glamour of a bygone era at Manhattan’s finest address. With recently redesigned guestrooms, public spaces and the King Cole Bar & Salon, the hotel’s rich history is now infused with a modern sensibility. All the traditions are still there: jazz performances, signature Bloody Mary cocktails, afternoon teas and a revered Butler Service.

Location
In the heart of midtown Manhattan within walking distance of Central Park, Fifth Avenue shopping, world-class restaurants and award-winning theatre. Access to the hotel’s day/night Bentley Fleet offers guests stylish transportation to gala events, business meetings and appointments during their stay.

Style/character
The aesthetic plays to the strengths of Manhattan: New York-inspired art work, large-scale windows with sweeping views of 5th Avenue and Central Park, and an imperious marble lobby. Waterford Crystal chandeliers, antique furnishings and a handsome library all add to the Gilded Age sophistication. There are three designer suites - Bentley, Dior and Tiffany - unique to the property. If you’re not into comfortable luxe, stay downtown.

Service/facilities

Service is bespoke and anticipatory without being intrusive. You get butlers, an in-house salon, a fully equipped newly renovated Athletic Club, and access to all New York has to offer through highly trained concierges. Even non-guest locals call up to ask where to order flowers or hire a personal shopper.

The Plaza is a luxury New York hotel offering a rich history, opulent furnishings, spectacular décor, luxurious bedrooms, a wide range of restaurants, a champagne bar, afternoon tea, a spa and a central location, at the south-east corner of Central Park and Fifth Avenue, near Museum Mile and Madison Avenue.

This glorious 20-storey 1907 French Château-style building was originally a residence for wealthy New Yorkers. Decked out in the gold, marble and crystal opulence of a palace, it soon transitioned into New York’s premier hotel, featured in the Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald was a regular), a dozen movies (most famously Hitchcock’s North by Northwest), and site of Truman Capote’s Black and White Ball in 1966. Its status has diminished somewhat in the last decade, but it’s still impressive.

Location

Imperiously situated on Grand Army Plaza at the south east corner of Central Park and Fifth Avenue, this is prime Manhattan real estate. You not only have the park as your playground but you’re a walk away from all the Midtown action as well as Museum Mile and Madison Avenue boutiques. The Apple Store, FAO Schwarz and the Wollman Ice Rink are literally outside the front door.

Style/character

There’s no more historic hotel in New York, and although the chopping up of some 150 rooms into private condos in 2008, and the more recent closing of the famous Oak Room has taken away some of the charm, Gilded Age opulence still abounds. The crystal chandeliers and plush French furnishings of the Grand Ballroom and Terrace Room are spectacular, and the Beaux Arts lobby and bejeweled regulars in the Palm Court atrium hark back to the Roaring 20s.

Service/facilities

The chandelier-lit Grand Ballroom, site of Capote’s 1966 bash and the Michel Douglas-Catherine Zeta Jones wedding is still the place to hold a splashy gala. The concierges are all Les Clefs d’Or members and we like the 24-hour white glove butler service on each floor. Don’t miss the in-house spa, Caudalie Vinotherapie, specialising in red wine treatments.

The Peninsula Paris is a luxury Paris hotel offering understated luxury, spacious rooms, rococo salon and extensive dining opportunities, near the Arc de Triomphe and Champs-Elysées.

A Hong Kong vision of Parisian luxury, the belle époque Peninsula occupies an entire block near the Arc de Triomphe, round the corner from the Champs-Elysées, lavishly redone with vast corridors, a reception dripping with glass leaves, panelled bar and meticulously restored rococo salon. A Chinese restaurant contrasts with rooftop French restaurant and terrace. The 200 rooms, combining comfort and technology, are spacious but a little impersonal, with everything controlled by touchpad.

Location

Originally opened as the Majestic hotel in 1908, briefly the seat of Unesco and later an international congress centre, the Peninsula Paris occupies an entire block near the Arc de Triomphe, and is still doing its best to persuade you it is really Versailles. The Champs-Elysées is around the corner and the avenue Montaigne couture stores are a breeze in the Peninsula's own 1934 vintage Rolls Royce or customised Mini Clubman.

Style/character

This is high-shine hotellery with polished marble floors, a glass leaf chandelier that floats in the reception area, high-end boutiques and vast hallways, it's very lavish and just a tad chilly - and if it's small for an Asian hotel it's a giant by Parisian standards, boastfully promising "to set new standards for design, luxury and comfort", which the group compares to the quality of a luxury yacht. The sculpted stone facade and neo-classical panelling, mosaics, murals and gilding of ground-floor reception rooms have been meticulously restored by skilled craftsmen, new spaces opened up, roof terraces created, and three levels of basement excavated for staff quarters, spa, indoor pool and car park. White uniformed bellboys in sailor hats add a faintly colonial air.

Service

With more than 500 staff there's plenty of it, but it still needs a little fine tuning. Breakfast staff brought viennoiseries rather than the baguette we had asked for; a maid was already cleaning our room, despite the fact we were checking out, when we got back.

Le Bristol is a Paris hotel offering Michelin-starred dining at Epicure, traditional interiors, spa, and revamped rooms, near the Elysée Palace and overlooking rue du Faubourg St-Honoré.

A long-established and distinguished hotel in one of the city’s most fashionable streets, with an absolutely top-notch restaurant, a spa, indoor roof-top pool and excellent service.

Location

A stone’s throw from the Elysée Palace, its grand limestone facade overlooks the super-chic rue du Faubourg St-Honoré and close to outlets for some of the world’s best fashion houses and art dealers, this hotel has long attracted a well-heeled following of celebrities, politicians and diplomats.

Style/character

Opened in 1925, Le Bristol is one of six hotels in Paris awarded official “Palace” status (a notch up from five stars). Interiors are light in pink and white marble with striking flower arrangements. An open plan reception leads to Le Jardin Francais, a lounge area overlooking a large courtyard garden. In 18th-century style, with antiques and a working 1940s lift. The emphasis is on tradition (old-style door keys rather than cards) and personal service - rather than contemporary chic. A large, first-floor spa has adjacent “kid’s club” where children can be supervised while parents have treatments. A couple of tame, if haughty cats roam the public areas.

Service

Reception and concierge staff are assured, approachable and helpful with no trace of Parisian froideur.

Four Seasons Hotel George V is a luxury Paris hotel offering palatial interiors, a two Michelin-starred restaurant Le Cinq, fresh flower arrangements, a spa, swimming pool, and suites with colossal dressing rooms, on Avenue George V, near the Champs-Elysées, Arc de Triomphe, and Grand Palais.

Palatial comfort, space, gastronomy and the most remarkable flower displays in town sum up the sumptuous George V, crowning it over Avenue George V in the Champs-Elysées golden triangle, with countless discreet staff lurking behind scene to lay on every need.

Location

In the golden triangle of Paris on the broad avenue between the Champs-Elysées and Alma-Marceau (with George V and Alma-Marceau metro stations at either end), this area is a magnet for high-end fashion shopping, although the Arc de Triomphe, Grand Palais and the Chaillot museums (Palais de Tokyo, Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, Guimet, Musée de l'Homme, Cité d'Architecture) are all nearby.

Style/character

Originally opened in 1928 in honour of George V alongside its neighbour the Prince de Galles, the Four Seasons is all about traditional comfort à la française, although I can't help feeling a little sad that the original Art Deco furniture and fittings were auctioned off before it was reborn as a Four Seasons in 1999, reappearing in a Louis XV and Louis XVI style that for many visitors epitomises Paris. My favourite aspect is the incredible flower displays by the hotel's florist and artistic director Jeff Leatham that have been different each time I've come here. The vast, flower-strewn lobby, broad corridors, and large lifts cleverly belie that there are as many as 244 rooms and suites.

Service/facilities

Legions of staff are friendly yet politely discreet, with a reception and concierges' desks framing the lobby, and uniformed doormen to carry baggage or lend umbrellas, and there's even the possibility of a basket and dinner for your dog. The spacious spa has a swimming pool, fitness room and seven treatment cabins. There's a business centre, numerous meeting and conference rooms

The Royal Horseguards, in London, is an Embankment hotel offering elegant rooms, river views and afternoon tea, close to the South Bank and Covent Garden.

Location

Unbeatable. Sandwiched between Whitehall and the Thames, it’s moments from Embankment tube station and within easy reach of dozens of attractions, including the South Bank, Trafalgar Square and Covent Garden.

Style/character

The hotel occupies eight floors of Whitehall Court, an imposing Grade I-listed building with a fascinating history. Built in 1884 in the style of a French chateau, it housed the original Scotland Yard, hosted secret service meetings during the two world wars, and – more recently – emergency talks between the Treasury and bankers tasked with tackling the credit crunch. Other former residents include George Bernard Shaw and H.G. Wells, while the northern end – which adjoins the hotel – has been the National Liberal Club’s HQ since Gladstone’s time (it’s members only, but you can pop your head round the door and admire the marble staircase). Rightly so, a virtue is made of the building’s heritage. Guests can arrange a tour of the building’s opulent private quarters, including the Gladstone Library, which once contained 30,000 books (recreations of the spines remain), while the restaurant’s name – One Twenty One Two – is a nod to Scotland Yard’s former ‘Whitehall 1212’ phone number. In keeping with the architecture, décor is handsome and traditional, with plenty of dark wood and red upholstery. An equine theme pervades, from the painting of charging cavalry behind the concierge’s desk to the bronze ornaments scattered throughout. There’s also a small gym on the top floor.

Service

Efficient and charming at reception, particularly the smartly-attired young gentleman who greeted me on arrival, but things became a little flustered when busy. I had to wait 10 minutes for a table at breakfast, while my requested morning newspaper never materialised.