Pros

  • Elegantly decorated throughout in the Art Moderne (late Art Deco) style
  • Many rooms feature balconies with views of Park Avenue that are sweeping (if you crane your neck out a bit)
  • Location convenient for in-the-know visitors looking for trendy shopping and trendy eating
  • A jazz band plays at the grand piano in the lobby during the daily wine and cheese hour
  • Attractive roof garden
  • Free Continental breakfast
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Cons

  • No rooms with double beds
  • No gym (guests are given passes to local gyms)
  • Business center is a laptop on a table in the lobby
  • No in-house kitchen (room service is supplied by adjacent restaurant)
  • Location is not the most convenient for travelers looking to hit the more mainstream tourist sights
  • No coffeemakers in rooms (available on request)
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Bottom Line

Named after owner Henry Kallan's favorite animal (and because of its tall, slender design), the 75-room Hotel Giraffe is an Art Moderne that will appeal to fans of NoMad architecture, the trendy neighborhood restaurants, and fans of "Sex and the City: The Movie" (in which the hotel was prominently featured). Rooms have understated contemporary decor, and the hotel offers homey extras such as a daily wine and cheese hour and free continental breakfast. There's no gym, but free passes are offered for one nearby. First-time visitors to New York who are determined to hit the sightseeing checklist will probably want to stay somewhere more uptown, however.

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Oyster Hotel Review

Hotel Giraffe by Library Hotel Collection

Scene

Taking the cue of its Art Deco inspirations, the Hotel Giraffe is decorated in sleek lines and rich (but not supersaturated) colors, and livens things up, 1920s style, in the evenings with a jazz band at the grand piano in the lobby.

This hotel was the only branch of the
Library Hotel Collection that could be designed from scratch rather than from an existing hotel space, so owner Henry Kallan filled every space
with sleek Art Moderne decor and photographs from the 1920s (fittingly, a jazz band plays the lobby during the daily wine and cheese hour). The
designers went light on the giraffe theme, but there are subtle references to the name in the spotted room number plates and the
occasional figurine or statue. The hotel has a open-air roof garden
and a lobby of cream-cappuccino-and-slate-colored marble and honey-toned wood. As the Hotel Giraffe is right on traffic-heavy
Park Avenue in the increasingly posh NoMad district, with plenty of
restaurants and shops nearby, the sidewalks outside are a steady buzz of office workers, mid- to higher-end
shoppers, and ladies who lunch.

See More Scene

Location

In the increasingly posh NoMad district, the Hotel Giraffe is well-situated for people with business nearby, and for tourists who want to shop and eat in the neighborhood's trendsetting stores and restaurants.

The hotel is well-situated for business
travelers who have appointments to meet in one of the nearby Gothic
Revival office buildings (say the New York Life Insurance Building). It's also good for tourists who turn up their noses at the hoi polloi in Times
Square
and want to frequent NoMad's hip restaurants and shop for minimalist furniture or conspicuously inconspicuous clothing. Those more interested in traditional touristy activities -- waiting in line at Bubba Gump's or buying taxicab snow globes or caricatures of themselves climbing the
Empire State Building -- may prefer a Midtown location. The 6 train, which can take travelers to the Upper East Side or Wall Street in in 15 minutes, is two blocks to the north, while a short walk through Madison Square Park will bring them to the N and R subway lines right outside Eataly.

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Rooms

Rooms are attractively furnished in the Art Deco style, but the real draw are the balconies, which afford views up and down the ceaseless stream of humanity that is Park Avenue (if you stick your head out a little, that is).

Rooms are the largest in the Library Hotel chain, though Americans not familiar with the New York City economy of space probably won't even notice the relative surfeit of elbow room. Appointed in the same light Art Moderne decor as the lobby, they're attractive and understated, but the real draw are the balconies, for the rooms that have them (any not labeled Classic). The Juliet balconies afford sweeping views up and down Park Avenue -- for guests who area willing to stick their necks out a little. There are no rooms with double beds, so the hotel recommends that families take the Classic King Suites if possible -- they're not only the quietest rooms in the building, they also have a pull-out sofa beds.

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Features

The Hotel Giraffe does without many amenities 21st-century travelers take for granted, but offers a period-appropriate jazz band in the lobby during the daily wine and cheese hour.

Guests used to all-the-trimmings hotels may feel adrift without an in-house gym or kitchen, but the hotel offers free passes to New York Sports Club, and contracts out to the Bread & Tulips restaurant next door for room service. (The restaurant isn't open on Sundays, but Sarabeth's up the street steps in then.) The rooftop garden is a pleasant place to while away time on sunny days, and movie aficionados may appreciate following in the footsteps of Carrie and the gang in the "Sex and the City: The Movie," which prominently featured the hotel. (One of its top suites was the setting for Mr. Big's apartment.)

See More Features

Things You Should Know About Hotel Giraffe by Library Hotel Collection

Also Known As

  • Giraffe Hotel New York City
  • Hotel Giraffe

Room Types

  • Deluxe Guestroom with King Bed
  • Deluxe Guestroom with Queen Bed
  • Deluxe Guestroom with Two Double Beds
  • Superior Guestroom with King Bed
  • Superior One Bedroom Suite
  • Terrace One Bedroom Suite
  • Two Bedroom Suite

Address

365 Park Ave South, At 26th Street, New York City, New York 10016-8801, United States

Phone

(212) 685-7700

Website

Oyster Hotel Review

Hotel Giraffe by Library Hotel Collection

Scene

Taking the cue of its Art Deco inspirations, the Hotel Giraffe is decorated in sleek lines and rich (but not supersaturated) colors, and livens things up, 1920s style, in the evenings with a jazz band at the grand piano in the lobby.

This hotel was the only branch of the
Library Hotel Collection that could be designed from scratch rather than from an existing hotel space, so owner Henry Kallan filled every space
with sleek Art Moderne decor and photographs from the 1920s (fittingly, a jazz band plays the lobby during the daily wine and cheese hour). The
designers went light on the giraffe theme, but there are subtle references to the name in the spotted room number plates and the
occasional figurine or statue. The hotel has a open-air roof garden
and a lobby of cream-cappuccino-and-slate-colored marble and honey-toned wood. As the Hotel Giraffe is right on traffic-heavy
Park Avenue in the increasingly posh NoMad district, with plenty of
restaurants and shops nearby, the sidewalks outside are a steady buzz of office workers, mid- to higher-end
shoppers, and ladies who lunch.

See More Scene

Location

In the increasingly posh NoMad district, the Hotel Giraffe is well-situated for people with business nearby, and for tourists who want to shop and eat in the neighborhood's trendsetting stores and restaurants.

The hotel is well-situated for business
travelers who have appointments to meet in one of the nearby Gothic
Revival office buildings (say the New York Life Insurance Building). It's also good for tourists who turn up their noses at the hoi polloi in Times
Square
and want to frequent NoMad's hip restaurants and shop for minimalist furniture or conspicuously inconspicuous clothing. Those more interested in traditional touristy activities -- waiting in line at Bubba Gump's or buying taxicab snow globes or caricatures of themselves climbing the
Empire State Building -- may prefer a Midtown location. The 6 train, which can take travelers to the Upper East Side or Wall Street in in 15 minutes, is two blocks to the north, while a short walk through Madison Square Park will bring them to the N and R subway lines right outside Eataly.

See More Location

Rooms

Rooms are attractively furnished in the Art Deco style, but the real draw are the balconies, which afford views up and down the ceaseless stream of humanity that is Park Avenue (if you stick your head out a little, that is).

Rooms are the largest in the Library Hotel chain, though Americans not familiar with the New York City economy of space probably won't even notice the relative surfeit of elbow room. Appointed in the same light Art Moderne decor as the lobby, they're attractive and understated, but the real draw are the balconies, for the rooms that have them (any not labeled Classic). The Juliet balconies afford sweeping views up and down Park Avenue -- for guests who area willing to stick their necks out a little. There are no rooms with double beds, so the hotel recommends that families take the Classic King Suites if possible -- they're not only the quietest rooms in the building, they also have a pull-out sofa beds.

See More Rooms

Features

The Hotel Giraffe does without many amenities 21st-century travelers take for granted, but offers a period-appropriate jazz band in the lobby during the daily wine and cheese hour.

Guests used to all-the-trimmings hotels may feel adrift without an in-house gym or kitchen, but the hotel offers free passes to New York Sports Club, and contracts out to the Bread & Tulips restaurant next door for room service. (The restaurant isn't open on Sundays, but Sarabeth's up the street steps in then.) The rooftop garden is a pleasant place to while away time on sunny days, and movie aficionados may appreciate following in the footsteps of Carrie and the gang in the "Sex and the City: The Movie," which prominently featured the hotel. (One of its top suites was the setting for Mr. Big's apartment.)

See More Features

Best Rates

Amenities

  • Air Conditioner

  • Airport Transportation

  • Babysitting Services

  • Balcony / Terrace / Patio

  • Basic Television

  • Business Center

  • Cable

  • Concierge

  • Cribs

  • Dry Cleaning

  • Fitness Center

  • Free Breakfast

  • Internet

  • Kids Allowed

  • Laundry

  • Meeting / Conference Rooms

  • Mini Bar (with liquor)

  • Rental Car Service Desk Onsite

  • Room Service

  • Separate Bedroom / Living Room Space

  • Swim-Up Bar

  • Tennis Court

Disclaimer: This content was accurate at the time the hotel was reviewed. Please check our partner sites when booking to verify that details are still correct.