The Sheraton New York’s 50-Year Club and Throws a Party

Celebratory butter cream with chocolate filling.

Not many guests check into hotels long term unless you count inventor Nikola Tesla, who lived for a decade at The New Yorker, or Cole Porter, who stayed for years at the Waldorf (the hotel lent him a grand piano). Read more

Essex House Gets Rebranded (So Long, Jumeirah; Hello, JW Marriott)

It’s a good thing the iconic red neon ESSEX HOUSE sign blazing atop the roof doesn’t mention the hotel’s brand. Following its sale last week to Chicago-based Strategic Hotels & Resorts, the Essex House has a new manager — again. Read more

New Spa Treatments Designed to Make Your Muscles Purr

Foot treatment from Clarins.

Spa therapists are a lot like craft bartenders – turn them loose with exotic new ingredients and techniques, and they’re happy. Read more

Celebrating the Sheraton New York Hotel’s 50th Birthday with Vintage Black-and-White Photos

Here’s a snapshot of New York, ca 1962: John F. Kennedy is POTUS.  The Cuban Missile Crisis revs up the Cold War. The first James Bond movie makes a splashy debut. The average annual income is $5,556.

And the Americana Hotel opens in a gleaming 51-story concrete tower designed by Morris Lapidus. Read more

A Chat With Vanessa Guilford About Designing Pod51 and Pod39, the Hip Budget Hotels

A red room at the new Pod 39.

In early 2011 I spent a night at the Pod Hotel on East 51st Street in one of the tiniest rooms on the planet. But what my little cell lacked in size it made up in style and smarts. Read more

Four Hotels Where You Can View the Statue of Liberty Without Taking a Boat

There’s nothing shy about the Statue of Liberty, standing proud and tall on her very own island. It’s just that in a city of skyscrapers she’s not exactly the tallest act in town. But starting on October 28 you’ll be able to see more of her — and more of the view from her island — than in years when Lady Liberty’s crown reopens after a year of renovations. Or to quote pageant coach Victor Melling in Miss Congeniality, “‘You ‘are’ the crown!” Read more

How Clever Hotels Keep Their Spare Pillows and Blankets Clean

Clean at the Conrad.

First came washable duvet covers that replaced heavy, dry-clean-only bedspreads and lowered the “oogie factor,” as one hotel executive so aptly described, well, you know. Read more

7 Great Decorating Ideas to Steal from the 2012 Kips Bay Show House

Designer James Rixner’s sitting area adjoins a kitchen.

If you love plucking decorating ideas from hotel rooms  – and the cleverest properties serve up plenty – you probably love show houses. Read more

Check Out New York’s First Pop-Up Hotel – Lords New York Takes Up Residence at Hotel on Rivington

Rendered in Nespresso capsules.

Pop-up shops open – and close – almost daily around New York City. But pop-up hotels? Read more

All About Overnight New York: We Chat with Wandering Educations, the Smart Website for Teachers, about New York, Hotels and Our Website and Blog

You read correctly. This blog item is about us. Wandering Educators, the savvy online community where teachers share travel experiences and expertise, interviewed us this week. Read more