New hotels in Harlem, New York

Harlem starts where Central Park ends, at 110th Street, and runs north to around 155th Street, from the Hudson to the Harlem River. For most of the last century it had almost no hotels. That has changed on and just off 125th Street, its main commercial street and transit hub, where both of our tracked openings stand.

Renaissance New York Harlem Hotel opened in November 2023 behind the restored facade of the 1917 Victoria Theater, next door to the Apollo, and is described by Marriott as Harlem's first full-service hotel in about a century. The George Manhattan, Tapestry Collection by Hilton followed in October 2025 at West 126th Street and Morningside Avenue, as Hilton's first hotel in the neighborhood. Both list rooms from $160, the same starting rate as the 510-room Hyatt Place in Chelsea. For the rest of the city, see our New York guide.

125th Street

Between Broadway and Lexington Avenue, 125th Street carries four subway stations, a Metro-North station and the bus to LaGuardia Airport, along with chain stores, sneaker shops and street vendors. Its cultural landmarks sit in a short stretch between Malcolm X Boulevard (Lenox Avenue) and Frederick Douglass Boulevard.

The Apollo Theater, at 253 West 125th Street, was built in 1914 as Hurtig and Seamon's New Burlesque Theater and reopened as the Apollo on January 26, 1934. Its Amateur Night began that same year, and early winners included Ella Fitzgerald; it still runs on Wednesday evenings. Bronze plaques under the marquee form the Apollo's Walk of Fame, and guided tours of 60 to 75 minutes take visitors backstage. In 2024 the Apollo opened the first expansion in its history, new stages inside the redeveloped Victoria Theater next door, the same building as the Renaissance hotel.

A long block east, at 144 West 125th Street, the Studio Museum in Harlem reopened on November 15, 2025 in a new seven-story building designed by Adjaye Associates with Cooper Robertson. The masonry facade, with windows of different sizes, rises above a broad public stoop used for talks and performances. The museum, devoted to artists of African descent and to its long-running artist-in-residence program, now has more than double its former space for exhibitions and residencies. It opens Wednesday to Sunday from 11am to 6pm, until 9pm on Fridays; suggested admission is $9 to $16, and Sundays are free.

Music, churches and the table

Sylvia's, at 328 Malcolm X Boulevard, has served soul food since Sylvia Woods opened it in 1962. A block south on the same avenue, at number 310, Marcus Samuelsson opened Red Rooster in 2010; Ginny's Supper Club is downstairs, and the restaurant runs a paid live music series with Harlem performers.

Jazz history is spread across several addresses. Minton's Playhouse, founded in 1938 by saxophonist Henry Minton in the Cecil Hotel building at 206-210 West 118th Street, is where Thelonious Monk, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker and Kenny Clarke worked out bebop in jam sessions in the early 1940s; the building became a city landmark in June 2023. The National Jazz Museum in Harlem moved in 2016 to 58 West 129th Street, about ten minutes' walk from the Apollo.

Abyssinian Baptist Church, at 132 West 138th Street, traces its congregation to 1808, when Black parishioners left the First Baptist Church over segregated seating; the current Gothic Revival building dates from 1922-23. Adam Clayton Powell Jr., pastor from 1937, became the first Black congressman from New York City. Visitors who want to attend a Sunday service should check the church's current rules for guests first.

Three blocks south of Abyssinian, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture occupies 515 Malcolm X Boulevard, between 135th and 136th Streets. A research division of the New York Public Library, it grew from the collection of Arturo Schomburg, acquired in 1926, and holds letters and unpublished manuscripts by Langston Hughes among much else.

Brownstone Harlem

Strivers' Row is the name everyone uses for the St. Nicholas Historic District: West 138th and 139th Streets between Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard and Frederick Douglass Boulevard. David H. King Jr., who had built the base of the Statue of Liberty, developed the rows in 1891-93 and gave each to a different architect. James Brown Lord designed the Georgian Revival houses on the south side of 138th Street; Bruce Price and Clarence S. Luce the Colonial Revival houses on the north side of 138th and the south side of 139th; Stanford White of McKim, Mead & White the Italian Renaissance Revival row on the north side of 139th. The gated alleys behind the houses still carry signs telling riders to walk their horses. W.C. Handy, Eubie Blake, Fletcher Henderson and Bill Robinson all lived here, and the district has been a city landmark since 1967.

Further south, Marcus Garvey Park, called Mount Morris Park until 1973, covers the rocky ground between 120th and 124th Streets east of Lenox Avenue. At its top stands a cast-iron fire watchtower of 1855-57, the only one left of eleven built across the city. The Richard Rodgers Amphitheater on its west side, at 122nd Street, is used for outdoor performances, and the brownstones of the Mount Morris Park Historic District line the surrounding streets.

East Harlem, east of Fifth Avenue, is mostly residential and has no hotel we track.

Morningside Park and West Harlem

On the western edge of Harlem, Morningside Park climbs a rock cliff between 110th and 123rd Streets, with stairways up to Morningside Heights and Columbia University's main campus at Broadway and 116th Street. The George stands three blocks north of the park's upper end.

North of 125th Street, between Broadway and Twelfth Avenue, Columbia has been building its Manhattanville campus to a master plan by Renzo Piano. The Lenfest Center for the Arts houses the Wallach Art Gallery, which is open to the public, next to the Jerome L. Greene Science Center; the Henry R. Kravis Building by Diller Scofidio + Renfro, completed in 2022, houses part of the Business School. At the foot of the slope, West Harlem Piers park has run along the Hudson from 125th to 132nd Street since 2008.

Where to stay in Harlem

On 125th Street, next to the Apollo

On the site of the landmarked Victoria Theater at 233 West 125th Street, a 1917 movie palace that had stood empty for years, Marriott built new construction behind and above the theater's preserved facade, keeping its marquee, its ticket booth and Thomas Lamb's lobby staircase, which were restored rather than demolished. Aufgang Architects designed the building and AJC Design the interiors, with interiors and programming that pay tribute to Harlem Renaissance musicians and writers.

It has 211 rooms and is Marriott's fifth Renaissance hotel in Manhattan. Victoria Restaurant & Bar handles the main dining, Victoria Lounge in the lobby serves soul-fusion plates and cocktails, and there is a rooftop bar, plus more than 9,000 square feet of event space across five rooms. Rates start from $160. The A, B, C and D at 125th Street and St. Nicholas Avenue and the 2 and 3 at 125th Street and Lenox Avenue are each a short walk along 125th.

By Morningside Park

Hilton's Tapestry hotel is new, ground-up construction at 412 West 126th Street, on the corner of Morningside Avenue, with 139 rooms. Its name refers to two Georges: George "Shorty George" Snowden, the dancer who helped create the Lindy Hop at the Savoy Ballroom, and King George II, who chartered Columbia, then King's College, in 1754. Interiors use earth tones, matte black, deep green and brass with Art Deco details in the public rooms, and the guest rooms have floor-to-ceiling windows facing the street or the pool deck and courtyard. General manager Sam Martinez grew up in Harlem and has made local hiring part of the project.

It opened with a terrace lounge, a lobby bar, a fitness center and about 2,000 square feet of meeting space. Two restaurants and a heated outdoor pool were due to follow in spring and summer 2026; confirm they are open before booking a stay around them. Rates start from $160. The Apollo is roughly half a mile east along 125th Street, and Columbia's main campus is a climb through Morningside Park to the south.

Elsewhere in Harlem

Central Harlem north of 130th Street, Hamilton Heights and East Harlem have no tracked opening yet.

Which hotel in Harlem for your trip

For a trip built around the Apollo, the Studio Museum, Sylvia's and Red Rooster, the Renaissance is the closer base: everything on that list is within a ten-minute walk, and the walk back from a late show at the Apollo is a few doors.

The George suits visits tied to Columbia, either campus, and travelers who prefer the quieter blocks around Morningside Park. Its full program of restaurants and pool arrives later than the rooms did, which matters more for a long stay than for a weekend.

Both hotels start from the same rate, so the choice is about the street rather than the price. Visitors who want Central Park at the door can compare our page on the Central Park area, and those staying for Broadway our Times Square page.

Getting around from Harlem

The A and D trains run express from 125th Street to 59th Street-Columbus Circle without stopping, which puts the southern end of Central Park and Midtown one stop away. The 2 and 3 from 125th Street and Lenox Avenue reach Times Square-42nd Street directly, and the 4, 5 and 6 at Lexington Avenue serve the East Side. The 1 stops at 125th Street and Broadway, on a viaduct above the street. Metro-North trains from Harlem-125th Street, at Park Avenue, run to Grand Central Terminal, and the M60 bus along 125th Street goes to LaGuardia Airport.

Frequently asked questions

Which hotels have opened in Harlem recently?

Two that we track: Renaissance New York Harlem Hotel, opened in November 2023 at 233 West 125th Street, and The George Manhattan, Tapestry Collection by Hilton, opened in October 2025 at 412 West 126th Street.

Which Harlem hotel is closest to the Apollo Theater?

The Renaissance New York Harlem Hotel, next door at 233 West 125th Street, in the redeveloped Victoria Theater that also holds the Apollo's newer stages.

Is The George Manhattan close to Columbia University?

Yes. It stands at the north end of Morningside Park, below Columbia's Morningside Heights campus, and a short walk from the Manhattanville campus north of 125th Street.

How long does it take to reach Midtown from Harlem?

One stop on the A or D express, from 125th Street to 59th Street-Columbus Circle. The 2 and 3 run from 125th Street to Times Square without a change.

Does The George Manhattan have a restaurant and a pool?

Not at opening in October 2025. It had a terrace lounge and lobby bar, with two restaurants and a heated outdoor pool planned for spring and summer 2026.

Is the Studio Museum in Harlem open again?

Yes, since November 15, 2025, in its new building at 144 West 125th Street. It opens Wednesday to Sunday, and Sundays are free.