Sofitel New York

Fourteen floors above West 44th Street, Sofitel New York occupies a Beaux-Arts-influenced tower between Fifth and Sixth Avenues, a block from the New York Public Library and a five-minute walk to Bryant Park and Grand Central.

Rooms lean French-contemporary rather than typical Midtown corporate decor, and the ground-floor Gaby brasserie runs a genuine Parisian menu rather than a hotel-standard buffet.

The Diamond District sits directly outside the door, and Times Square is a ten-minute walk north — a fit for business travellers and shoppers wanting quiet streets off Broadway's crowds.