Hotel 17

Shabby chic is the best way to describe this hotel, located a few blocks from Union Square. Past the minuscule but well-appointed lobby, the rooms are a study in contrast, as antique dressers are paired with paisley bedspreads and mismatched vintage wallpaper. In most cases, bathrooms are shared among two to four rooms, but they’re kept immaculately clean. Over the years, the building has been featured in numerous fashion mag layouts and films—including Woody Allen’s Manhattan Murder Mystery—and has put up Madonna and, more recently, transsexual downtown diva Amanda Lepore. Who knows who you might bump into on your way to the loo? Rooms: 125.