New York's Biggest Rooftop Bar Caps Year of New Hotels

renaissance new york midtown hotel

When the new flagship property for Renaissance Hotels, the Renaissance New York Midtown Hotel, opens in New York City's Garment District this spring, it will be set to draw quite the crowd with a massive fifth floor terrace that, at 8,000 square feet, is on track to be the largest rooftop bar in Manhattan when it opens. 

The rooftop space will have a retractable roof, private cabanas, comfortable seating and two fully-stocked bars. Elsewhere in the 348 room hotel, there will be a number of terrace suites with outdoor space, plus hi-tech touches like digital displays projected along the corridor by which guests enter that respond to human motion with subtle, organic movements and graphic patterns, as well as an alcove that acts as a "virtual concierge," offering local recommendations. 

martha washington hotel

The opening of the Renaissance comes after a year of major hotel developments for New York City. In the first quarter of 2016, lifestyle brand sbe is scheduled to open The Redbury Hotel in the former Martha Washington hotel at 29 East 29th St. The Redbury is also a member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts.

Designed by Los Angeles-based Avenue Interior Design and photographer Matthew Rolston, the hotel will draw from the area's "Tin Pan Alley" history. Marta, the existing hotel restaurant, will remain open on the ground floor. 

the gregory

In Midtown, The Gregory is a 132-room boutique hotel that opened this past July. Like The Redbury, it opened on the site of an historic hotel, this one The Gregorian, which first opened in 1903 as a place to handle the overflow from the original Waldorf-Astoria (now the site of the Empire State Building). 

New York-based design firm Bill Rooney Studio has paired the hotel's original architecture, high ceilings and mosaic tile detailing with a modern touch, including modern artwork and graphic silhouettes illustrating vintage fashion on display throughout the hotel. Brooklyn-based skincare line Apotheke provides the bathroom amenities. 

nomo soho

In April, the former Mondrian SoHo reopened as the NOMO SOHO, which is part of Preferred Hotels & Resorts' "Lifestyle" collection. Guestrooms here offer floor to ceiling windows, plus a style that's said to be a modern interpretation of nostalgic SoHo. 

In March, the 250-year-old Baccarat crystal brand launched its first hotel: The Baccarat Hotel & Residences New York, directly across the street from the MoMA and steps away from Fifth Avenue shopping. The hotel has 114 guestrooms and suites, plus a modern French restaurant, dubbed Chevalier, overseen by Michelin-starred Executive Chef Shea Gallante.

the knickerbocker

Lastly, there is The Knickerbocker, another relaunch of an historic property in Times Square. A member of The Leading Hotels of the World, its first incarnation opened in 1906 as the brainchild of John Jacob Astor with a bar dubbed "The 42nd Street Country Club" that attracted a who's who of New York high society before Prohibition ended its time in the sun. The hotel reopened in February. 

Looking further ahead, The Oetker Collection is set to debut a luxury property of its own in New York City in spring 2018. At 550 Madison Avenue between 55th and 56th streets in the former Sony Tower, the 170 guestroom hotel will be close to Central Park and top boutiques and shops. 

New York City Michelin-Starred Restaurants for 2016

Finally, no New York City trip would be complete without some fine dining. While the city's lineup of three-star restaurants in Michelin's 2016 guide remains unchanged from 2015, in the two-star category, The Modern by Chef Abram Bissell has made its debut. 

The guide also added ten new restaurants to its one-star category, including Tempura Matsui, Sushi Yasuda, Cagen, Hirohisa, Somtum Der, Uncle Boons, Rebelle, Semilla and Finch.