I arrived at City Club Hotel, a small luxury hotel in New York City, in a frenzy. I had just finished attending an exhausting conference, and I rode over that night in a taxi whose driver was flying through Manhattan’s backstreets like a bat out of hell. I never get nauseous on car rides, but the way he careened through the narrow roads at high speeds left me feeling queasy and unnerved.

Once I walked into City Club Hotel, I immediately relaxed. The modern lobby was small and dimly lit, but in a comforting way—it was fragrant, quiet, and peaceful (when I left in the morning, it was bright and airy, so it’s only dim at night). My tension subsided; I almost felt like I had walked into the entrance of a high-end spa. The two concierge women were helpful and friendly.

I was grateful to ascend to my cozy room and decompress. I rode up in a dim elevator with a modern decorative vase/stool, and emerged on a dark and contemporary hallway decorated mostly in black. Once I entered the cozy and well-lit guest room, it was easy to forget that the hectic streets of New York lied below. Modern and More >