Boutique hotel gurus Mr & Mrs Smith reveal their 10 favourite hotels to bed down in the city that never sleeps, with rooms starting from €117 a night.

The Standard NY, Meatpacking District

Experience this big and bold city via a big and bold hotel, with a stay at super-hotelier André Balazs' latest creation: a glassy high-rise lording it over the Hudson (main picture, above). More than just a pretty (impressive) face, the Standard NY boasts minimalist interiors and gob-smacking views. You can salute the Statue of Liberty from Standard Room 11.20, or toast the skyline from any room ending in .25. Rooms feature deep-set bath tubs open to the living area, or glass-walled showers.

Acclaimed chef Dan Silverman turns out culinary treats such as charred Spanish octopus and halibut hollandaise at the Standard Grill. The hotel has stylish bikes for guests to use, and on floor 16 the gym rewards workouts with dazzling views.

Details: Rates from $335 (€224), excluding breakfast ($15/€10) and tax.

60 Thompson, SoHo

Food and drink are sacred at this 100-room SoHo hangout. Kittichai restaurant, designed by David Rockwell, has a menu that blends Thai and Japanese influences. Then there's the seductive Thom Bar with its cocktail list, and the Moroccan-tinged rooftop bar, A60, with its Manhattan views. Be sure to notice all the little touches: dashing doormen, a front entrance aglow with backlit glass jars of orchids, and bedrooms awash with mushroom hues. The Deluxe Kings with hardwood floors are charming. The higher you go, the better the view: eighth and ninth up have unobstructed city vistas.

Details: Rates from $199 (€133), excluding Continental breakfast ($19.95/€13.36) and tax.

The Bowery, Bowery

America's original skid row now rivals SoHo. Light, bright rooms in this hotel capture the classic style of New York apartments and the Art Deco-inspired Lobby bar is a homey, wood-panelled haven. North-facing rooms offer views of the Empire State Building and Number 705 has a bathroom that opens onto a private terrace. Each room comes with oversized windows, glossy hardwood floors lined with intricate Oushak rugs and marble tubs in the bathroom. You might not expect a hit of Tuscan rusticity amid Americana, but Gemma restaurant delivers exactly that.

Details: Rates from $525 (€352), excluding breakfast (chosen from an à la carte menu) and tax.

The Greenwich Hotel, TriBeCa

Built to complement the classic New York façades of trendy TriBeCa, Robert de Niro's designer den has 88 beautiful bedrooms fitted with marble and Moroccan tile, a bamboo spa building and a star-studded trattoria, Ago. The N. Moore and Greenwich Suites offer more living space than most NYC urbanites could dream of. Superior rooms are more economical, but still spacious. Locanda Verde's Parisian-style bar, where guests and glitterati sup Martinis, is a suitably A-list affair and packs in punters on weekend evenings.

Details: Rates from $625 (€418), including Continental breakfast, excluding tax.

Hotel Grace, Times Square

The second of our two André Balazs entries, this is a very different affair from the Standard NY's glamour. In contrast, this cheap-chic hotel has a whisper of chalet. Despite the low-key Swiss glitz, you won't forget that you're inches from Times Square. The front desk doubles as a display case of retro sweets, style magazines, 'I Love NY' T-shirts and packets of smokes. Then there's the mezzanine-level pool, with its underwater sound system and swim-up bar. Relax after the day's adventures in the sauna and steam room. Beds are sizable and snooze-inducing. The penthouse studio suites have views of Times Square and lots of natural light.

Details: Rates from $175 (€117), including Continental breakfast, excluding tax.

The Mercer, SoHo

Open until 4am, Wednesday to Saturday, the hip SubMercer bar/club is one of SoHo's biggest draws. Guests are guaranteed entry -- just as well, because you'd struggle to cross the velvet rope otherwise. The Mercer Kitchen is perfect for pre-party dining, with renowned chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten rustling up Asian-influenced French cuisine.

The hotel itself is also pretty special: a six-storey, red-brick Romanesque revival building. Of the 75 rooms, we adore the Loft Suite, a penthouse-style room with exposed-brick arched windows, wood-burning fireplaces and gargantuan mirrors. Like most rooms, it comes with an enormous marble bathroom and a tub fit for two. It also has French doors that open onto a Juliet balcony, so you can eye up the city dusk to dawn.

Details: Rates from $495 (€331), excluding breakfast ($20-$30/ €13-€20) and tax.

Hotel on Rivington, Lower East Side

Everyone expects skyscrapers in New York, but this hotel's heights will still impress you. Located in district du jour, the Lower East Side, Hotel on Rivington's glassy, glamorous tower is modern, lively and spacious. Expect red-carpeted walls, white cave-like mouldings and 110 rooms, in which windows take centre stage. Upon arrival, test out the Tempur-Pedic beds -- just don't blame us if you lose a few daytime hours.

Along with NY, we heart Room 184, a Unique King with glass walls and a huge steam shower. The bathrooms boast spectacular views and some come with two-person Japanese bath tubs for steamy soaking. At the hotel's Thor restaurant and bar, you'll discover European food and an ice-cool scene, with the dining room housed in a Marcel Wanders-designed glass atrium.

Details: Rates from $325 (€218), including Continental breakfast, excluding tax.

Ace Hotel, Midtown

Let the city be your muse at this artist and musician-magnet, where you can strum on a Gibson as you survey the Empire State Building. Hipster chic pervades the 262 rooms, with creative paraphernalia including turntables, blank sheet music and chalkboard walls to fill with your compositions, rhymes and doodles.

The budget-conscious should opt for a Deluxe Double (try 415), which comes with two beds. If it's a boho New York apartment stay you're after, book one of the nine Lofts on the corners of the building. When hunger calls, there's Breslin. Taking its style cues from 19th-century saloons, it's rich in mahogany and period detailing, with a meaty menu to satisfy the most committed carnivore. Forget pre-holiday haircuts; the hotel has its own barbershop, Rudy's, where stylists will beautify your barnet or dish out a good ol'-fashioned wet shave (pile into the lobby's photo booth for before and after shots). Toast your new look in the bar, styled like a classic Park Avenue sitting room. DJs often drop in, so if your in-room music-making is less than sweet, hang out here instead, Manhattan in hand.

Details: Rates from $309 (€207), excluding breakfast ($18/€12) and tax.

Cooper Square, Bowery

Stay at this 21-storey glass tower for a bird's-eye view of the Bowery and its brick tenements. The hotel sparkles with Italian-style contemporary cool, from the shattered slate floors to Govind Armstrong's Table 8 restaurant and the two sexy bars, perfect for sipping sundowners. The 145 rooms are categorised from one to five, with more frills added the higher up you go. All rooms are stocked with upscale mini-bar treats, such as Tina Thor jewellery and health packs from fitness guru David Kirsch. Category three rooms are light and airy, thanks to almost floor-to-ceiling windows. We like the Cooper Suites too, for their sense of space and cheeky vintage Playboys. There are also 4,000 secondhand volumes covering everything from fashion to erotica. These are available to buy, and all proceeds go to a charity for the homeless.

Details: Rates from $275 (€411), excluding breakfast (chosen from an à la carte menu) and tax.

The Royalton Hotel, Midtown

Any property with Philippe Starck's name to it deserves a look-in, and this hotel (Starck's first interiors project) is enshrined in design history. Manhattan's Royalton has been updated with a dark, seductive lobby and a buzzy cocktail bar.

We particularly like Studio Loft room 1018, with its wood-burning fireplace at the foot of the bed, while the Alcove Suite has a huge tub within a sparkly nook.

Steak and fish-eaters will love the restaurant, Brasserie 4. This warm space is nautically inspired in both décor and dishes, and there's a pre-theatre menu for early diners. Indulge in post-show analysis (and Cosmopolitans) at Bar 44, a dark and alluring affair with rich chocolate tones, chunky brass and iron fixtures and waiters with the grace of Broadway dancers.

Details: Rates from $299 (€447), excluding breakfast (chosen from an à la carte menu) and tax.

For more details on these hotels, visit mrandmrssmith.com or call 0044 207 987 4312. Irish Independent readers can join Mr & Mrs Smith’s travel club for half price (€8.50, normal price €17) and avail of a year’s worth of perks such as late check-out, gourmet picnics or Champagne on arrival. Visit mrandmrssmith.com/irish-independent or quote Irish Independent.

- Mr & Mrs Smith

Irish Independent