Expectations are high for the Four Seasons's penthouse. Architect IM Pei came out of retirement to complete what will, at an eye-watering $30,000 a night, become the world's most expensive suite when it opens in March. The price does have extras beyond a slightly stale chocolate at turn-down. Take your pick from the nine rooms, including a library, gym and your own Zen garden. There's a private lift that delivers you from the ground-floor lobby into all this 52nd-floor excess, plus a permanent table at L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon, the choice of a Mercedes-Benz or a Rolls-Royce to ferry you around, and a PA at your beck and call. And did we mention the views? As well as floor-to-ceiling windows, four roof terraces give 360-degree views from this, the tallest hotel in New York. A Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller-style marriage of glamour to architectural integrity.
