The Pod HotelEditor's Pick

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The three-star Pod Hotel is an appealing hotel concept: Imagine a very well-designed (if spartan) hotel in a lively and action-packed corner of a big city. Now add to the equation a nightly rate that's surprisingly pocketbook-friendly.

Rooms at the Pod, nearly 350 in all, are attractively spunky, with accents of blond wood and metallic, almost institutional-looking bedside lamps and sinks. The "townhouse suites," which are a particularly good value for families and small groups, even have beanbags for a frisson of retro chic. All pods are equipped with individual climate control, LCD TVs, mp3 docks and free Wi-Fi. Tiny bathrooms sport lovely black and white tiles.

There has to be a catch, and, in fact, there is. Rooms are very small, even by New York City’s miniscule standards. If you need copious amounts of space for your morning exercise routines, then perhaps your Pod Hotel room won't be the best place to get sweaty.

Of course, there are plenty of hotels in New York with tiny rooms. It's just that the vast majority of these hotels haven't gone out of their way to market their scale as part and parcel of their charm. The Pod Hotel does so, and beautifully, producing a level of chic that countless cookie-cutter chain hotels with their $400 nightly rates seem to be unable to touch. Even shared bathrooms are made better by in-room displays that indicate which are available.

The rooms, the lobby and the garden café (the final of these only open during the warmer months) slyly prove that the boutique hotel approach can be extended successfully to budget-friendly spaces. The Midtown East location may be a bit staid in the evening, but it’s vitally central.

» Alex Robertson Textor

Note: This hotel was visited by a EuroCheapo editor and is recommended based on cleanliness, location, price and overall quality. EuroCheapo did not charge this hotel to be listed.