THIS WEEK’S SIDE STREET: STAY SIDEWAYS

With the holidays just around the corner and loved ones making the journey to New York, we highly recommend putting them up at some of the unique, quirky, gorgeous, and all around terrific hotels of the side streets. While your friends and family are enjoying these accommodations, be sure to visit ManhattanSideways.com for more hidden gems to visit nearby.

Jade Hotel – 13th Street

The 1920′s speakeasy theme became obvious to us immediately as we entered the Jade and walked through the lobby, but we loved seeing that it was carried through to the guest rooms with their faux antique rotary telephones by the side of the bed. Read more.

Chelsea Inn – 17th Street

I continue to be delighted when I encounter these small pensions on the side streets of Manhattan. This one has just thirty-four rooms in a 19th-century guest house that has charm and whimsy. Read more.

The Ye Olde Carlton Arms Hotel – 25th Street

The lobby was once a speakeasy during Prohibition, later a “hang out for drag queens, prostitutes, and drug addicts,” and then, a single-room occupancy hotel for the poor in the 60s. In 1983, owner Ed Ryan chose to redirect its future, and brought masses of art into the building – soon enough each room was muraled, sculpted, designed, and transformed by different artists. Read more.

Flatiron Hotel – 26th Street

The Flatiron Hotel provides a modern take on classic luxury. The lobby could be described as new Victorian, with its red plush chairs and extravagant chandeliers. They also seem to have a sense of humor here, as their giant fish tank is flanked by mounted ipads showing moving images of…fish! Read more.

The Gershwin Hotel – 27th Street

Functioning in a few different iterations dating to its inception in 1903, the Gershwin now offers comfortable accommodations in midtown for an array of travelers. It is less ultramodern than nearby competitors, having retained its historic charm and, instead, taking a more unpretentious approach to decorating…Read more.