World's Best Archive 2016 Our Readers' Favorite Hotels in New York City in 2016 By Stephanie Wu Stephanie Wu Stephanie Wu is a writer and editor specializing in travel, food, and other lifestyle topics. She has been on staff at Travel + Leisure, Condé Nast Traveler, and Town & Country, among other publications. Travel + Leisure Editorial Guidelines Published on July 6, 2016 Close Photo: Courtesy of The Surrey New York City may well be the best city in the world for hotels. Whether you want to stay in the tony Upper East Side or stylish TriBeCa, prefer a grande dame or a sleek boutique, would like to live like a celebrity or save your money for the city’s best restaurants, there’s a property that fits the bill. Yet among all that choice, a handful of hotels truly stand out—in particular, for their service and style. Every year for our World’s Best Awards survey, T+L asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe—to share their opinions on the top hotels, resorts, cities, islands, cruise lines, spas, airlines, and more. Readers rated hotels on their rooms/facilities, location, service, food and drink, and overall value. The greatest hotels serve as mini-sanctuaries from their city surroundings. You can revel in the Broadway crowds around Times Square, then escape into the Chatwal Hotel—No. 10 on the list—a complete change of pace. Robert De Niro’s cozy Greenwich Hotel, in TriBeCa, has an open-air courtyard reserved exclusively for guests. (Little wonder it’s a celebrity favorite.) The renovated Knickerbocker, which has a moody, retro vibe—the staff uniforms have a 1920s feel—but is also completely modern. Breakfast at the hotel restaurant is served in trays with built-in USB chargers, so guests can power up their phones while gearing up for the day. Classic New York properties like the St. Regis made the list, as did newer places like the Refinery Hotel, which opened in 2014. Number one is the sleek and luxurious Surrey hotel, on the Upper East Side, with a black-and-white design scheme punched up with eye-catching modern art. “A gem of a hotel if you want to live in the lap of luxury when in New York.” Sounds good to us. 01 of 10 No. 10: The Chatwal, a Luxury Collection Hotel Courtesy of the Chatwal Score: 91.84 02 of 10 No. 9: The Lowell Courtesy of The Lowell Score: 92.06 03 of 10 No. 8: The James New York Courtesy of The James New York Score: 92.16 04 of 10 No. 7: St. Regis New York Courtesy of St. Regis New York Score: 92.26 05 of 10 No. 6: WestHouse Courtesy of WestHouse Score: 92.35 06 of 10 No. 5: Refinery Hotel Courtesy of Refinery Hotel Score: 92.46 07 of 10 No. 4: Trump International Hotel & Tower New York Courtesy of Trump International Hotel Score: 92.78 08 of 10 No. 3: The Knickerbocker Courtesy of The Knickerbocker Score: 94.75 09 of 10 No. 2: Greenwich Hotel Courtesy of The Greenwich Hotel Score: 94.76 10 of 10 No. 1: The Surrey Courtesy of The Surrey Score: 95.37 It’s hard to imagine a better-situated hotel in New York City than The Surrey—if you’d rather feel like an Upper East Side resident than a Times Square tourist, at least. The Relais & Châteaux property is located in one of New York’s most pedigreed neighborhoods, a block from Central Park and around the corner from the high-end shops of Madison Avenue. Guest rooms have Frette sheets, as well as a bar with bottles of top-shelf liquor—you can even request a bartender to shake up a bedside drink. Readers raved about the “quiet elegance” as well as the rooftop garden, a glorious perch in summer.