The Standard Hotel

We recently stayed in The Standard on a long weekend in New York. The hotel itself is fairly new, having opened in 2009 i believe. Rooms are fairly expensive but i don't think we could have stayed anywhere better. The location was really important to us as i had never been to New York before and wanted to spend a lot of time exploring, the location of The Standard was absolutely ideal. It is situated in the Meatpacking District right where all the great bars and restaurants are, so we never had to venture far at night unless we wanted to - and if we did there was always somewhere open for a nightcap on returning to the neighbourhood. It's also just a short walk to Broadway, the Village, the subway and a slightly longer walk to the Financial District but a very nice walk. Basically you can get anywhere you need to pretty quickly. The rooms themselves are fairly small (as expected) but have everything you need plus an amazing view to boot (we were on the 13th floor). There is a restaurant and bar downstairs - both great, we had brunch in the restaurant which was perfectly nice. There is also a cocktail bar on the top floor which has an amazing view of the Hudson & Downtown Manhatten, but be prepared for amazingly expensive cocktails as well ($50 for 2!). Overall i would thoroughly recommend this hotel as the perfect base to explore New York and a great place to come home to after a hard days shopping (it's also right across the street from some fantastic shops).