If you're a part of the fashionable set, or want to be, we've selected the perfect hotels to suit your style, whether you prefer a trendy, contemporary look or stick to the classics. Below, find out where to go based on what you wear.
If your closet is full of funky, colorful, one-of-a-kind finds, you'll likely dig the Crosby Street Hotel's whimsical English style. This U.K. import opened in October 2009, and its decor is sophisticated yet comfortable -- a balance that has eluded too many of the monochrome, glass-walled design hotels that have sprouted in the vicinity. Crosby Street was celebrity stylish Rachel Zoe's hotel of choice when she came to the city for the Spring 2010 Fashion Week.
If Lilly Pulitzer is your fashion icon, head to The Plaza; the century-old Oak Room restaurant is a haven for Upper East Side socialites. Expect to see diners flitting between tables to chat, pink cardigans tied around shoulders, and golf ball-sized diamond rings. During her visit, our reporter also spotted Fern Mallis, who organizes Fashion Week, and one of the Fab Five from Queer Eye.
When we say little black dress, we mean, of course, one that is tres va-va-voom, and from the line of the hottest designer du jour. For up-to-the-minute fashionistas, we recommend the sexy Bryant Park Hotel, located in an iconic Art Deco building across the street from Bryant Park. The 128-room boutique has a sleek red-and-black color scheme, a trendy bar and restaurant, and a decidedly fashionable clientele. Its proximity to the Conde Nast building (home to Vogue and Glamour magazines) makes it a draw for fashion types year-round.
If your style is boho-chic cool, hit up the Bowery Hotel. Like your closet, the hotel lobby is a study in the art of textural contrasts: It's full of vintage leather, velvet furniture, woods, and rich prints. Boho-chic trendsetters Ashley Olson, Blake Lively, and Rachel Bilson have all been spotted here.
Your mod, edgy style stands out from the crowd, and when you go out, everyone knows who you are. Like you, the Cooper Square Hotel needs no introduction: The controversial 21-story glass edifice towers over the surrounding humble East Village tenements, and there's no sign out front (that we could see, anyway). Modern B&B Italia and Eames furniture, plenty of books, and floor-to-ceiling windows combine to create a contemporary, relaxed space.
If you're channeling a glam 1960's look, you'll feel at home at the Empire Hotel. Outfitted with zebra- and leopard-print seating, heavy brown curtains and modern chandeliers, the lobby looks like a classed-up pad for liberated jazzbos. But during Fashion Week, you should expect to see models here, not musicians. Now that Fashion Week has moved from Bryant Park to Lincoln Center, the Empire seems destined to become the next Fashion Week hot spot.