W New York - Union Square

Character and identity

Set inside the former Guardian Life Building on Union Square, this 256-room W has emerged from a $100 million Rockwell Group renovation that plays Beaux-Arts bones against a bold, art deco-inflected interior. The signature Living Room lobby soars under carved rosette moldings and marble columns, anchored by a double-height cocktail bar. Rooms layer New York winks (taxi-yellow faucets, subway-tile grids, chessboard side tables) over contemporary lines. Seahorse, John McDonald's nautical seafood brasserie, handles dining, while the 22nd-floor Guardian Rooftop, with retractable roof and Warhol's Factory references, caps the building. Service is design-hotel polished rather than formal.

Who's it for

Bottom line

What you're paying for here is the design intelligence of the renovation: a genuinely confident reinvention of a landmark building, with a rooftop and lobby that pull their weight as social spaces. Book if you want energy, cocktails and a central walking base; choose a higher floor for quiet, and target shoulder-season midweek rates when Union Square pricing softens.