The Whitby Hotel, New York, USA

Courtesy of Firmdale Hotels

Firmdale Hotels’ second New York property, the Whitby sits in the heart of the action, amid the shops and galleries of Upper Midtown. The owner and design director Kit Kemp shows off her flamboyant style in 86 individually decorated guest-rooms, all with floor-to-ceiling windows. A spectacular two-bedroom suite occupies the entire top floor and boasts both uptown and downtown vistas from its furnished terrace. Downstairs, there are facilities galore, among them a 130-seat cinema, orangery and courtyard, and the Whitby Bar serves the most potent martinis in Manhattan.

From about £530 a room a night (firmdalehotels.com).