Aman New York

We’re checking in to Aman New York on the back of a snowstorm. Judging by the fleet of Escalades outside, we’re perhaps the only guests to arrive at the hotel by subway — we’re here on a staycation after all, and its 20-block car-service radius doesn’t stretch down to the West Village.

Life on the outside of Aman on this wet, wintry New York day is completely ordinary. Except today is our wedding anniversary. A day like today makes arriving here all the more impressive. As is characteristic of Aman, you are immediately captivated by its grandeur, and its dark, moody interiors, peppered with fireplaces in every corner to distract you from the dankness of outside. On a day like today, this is the only place you could wish to be.  
 
New York City is not known for its hotels. There’s only a small handful of contenders and in my decade of living here, only The Greenwich's penthouse has truly impressed me with its scale. Until now. We are in a Deluxe Suite — the lowest category, but don’t let that discourage you. This is spacious unlike any other entry-level room in the city. It’s very easy to forget where you are inside its four walls and it’s this reason you come to Aman New York.  
 
At just under 70 square meters, the room is ludicrously capacious and for some reason its king-size bed feels vastly superior to our king-size bed at home. The decor is simple; a Japanese hint throughout. Aman’s foray into wellness in recent years is visible across the room. A great deal of the suite’s real estate has been dedicated to the bathroom, and the nightly elements of surprise — the first an irresistibly scented soap placed on the bedside table that gently wafts me awake the following morning, and the second a box of incense and burner — are clear markers that this is a stay made for the senses.  
 
In my opinion, this is a winter escape. The dimmer switch is on its lowest setting throughout the hotel, resulting in a state of eyes-wide-open while in residence. And indeed, you need your eyes to navigate the rabbit warren of its 2,300-square-metre spa and wellness space. My treatment is due to take place in one of the two private Spa Houses, each featuring a large outdoor terrace with a cold plunge, hot tub and hammam. Despite the romantic date, my massage-averse husband sits this one out, so the venue is slightly wasted on just me and I opt for a simple 90-minute deep-tissue massage.  
 
The Asian influence isn’t limited to the decor. Having spent much of my childhood and subsequent professional life living in South-East Asia, it is my belief that service in those parts of the world is unmatched, and so I am delighted when my masseuse from Hong Kong greets me at the spa reception. In fact, this is perhaps Aman’s secret sauce. Many of its staff, including our butler during our stay, hail from South-East Asia. When we previously stayed at Amangiri, our Filipino butler had been transplanted from another Aman property; it’s impressive to witness and experience the group's investment in its staff. I will always generalize that service in New York is actually sub-par (despite what you might be led to believe by the American tipping culture), so I am delighted that so many of Aman New York’s team bring international influences.  
 
The 14th-floor lobby area is surrounded by two restaurants: Nama for Japanese, and Italian eatery Arva. We eat at the former. While New York’s hotel scene left a gap for this exceptional newcomer, the same can’t be said of the city's restaurant scene, which changes more often than some hotels might change their bedsheets. What's lacking in New York hotelier vision is compensated for in spades by the restaurateurs and chefs. If there’s a reason to leave the hotel, make it the city’s restaurants — and, since it's situated right off Fifth Avenue, you have some of Manhattan’s finest institutions to choose from. If you do make it back with space left to spare for your sweet tooth, the matcha tiramisu is worth a room-service call — or perhaps you can convince them to let you enjoy it with a tipple at the jazz speakeasy.  
 
We prepare to depart on warnings of the next approaching winter storm, and I immediately start Googling what it might take to install a fireplace in my bedroom at home. In this moment, while the snow blizzards outside, I’m happy to still be cocooned in the shadows of Aman. In this moment, all I can think about is how my life is about to, once again, become very, very ordinary.