Travel 5 minutes 24 April 2024

The First MICHELIN Key Hotels: All the Keys in the United States

The MICHELIN Guide announces top honors for U.S. hotels in 2024.

Hotels NYC California Washington D.C. MICHELIN Keys

New York City by The MICHELIN Guide

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On April 24, 2024, the MICHELIN Guide revealed the brand new list of One, Two, and Three Key hotels in the United States. In this first ever announcement of MICHELIN Keys in the United States, hotels in Atlanta, California, Chicago, Colorado, Florida, New York, and Washington DC were eligible for the distinction.

This announcement of the most outstanding hotels in the country comes four years into a comprehensive refresh of our hotel selection. The MICHELIN Guide now includes over 5,000 hotels across the world, and not a single one is simply a room for the night. These are places that significantly add to your experience as a traveler, each vetted and judged excellent in five categories: architecture and interior design, quality and consistency of service, overall personality and character, value for the price, and a significant contribution to the guest experience in a particular setting.

Which brings us back to the Keys. The culmination of countless hours of evaluation by our team of experts, the Key hotels below represent the highlights of our broader selection. Like the MICHELIN Stars for restaurants, the MICHELIN Keys are our most outstanding hotels.

In total, the 2024 MICHELIN Guide hotel selection in the United States includes 11 Three Key hotels, 33 Two Key hotels, and 80 One Key hotels. Want to know more about the MICHELIN Key? Here’s everything you need to know. Or, head below to look at all the Keys.

Post Ranch Inn — Big Sur, California

How To Look Through the List

Jump straight to the list or take a deeper dive into select Key hotels.

On this page, you’ll find every single one of our new Key distinctions, sorted by number of Keys and location in the United States. Click on any hotel to go straight to the hotel page to learn more about the nuts and bolts of each property. Alternatively, you can read any number of in-depth pieces about the aspects of the special craft that make up a Key hotel over on our magazine. While our anonymous selection team spends every day scouring the earth to vet favorite hotels and unearth hidden gems, our editorial team delves into the hotel craft by speaking directly to hoteliers.

Take a peek at SingleThread, the five room inn with Three Keys and Three Stars.

Explore the one street in Chicago that leads to seven Key hotels.

Or find out more the Cliff House suite at our only Three Key hotel in Big Sur, California.

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Highlights of the United States 2024 Key Hotel List

The Aman New York — New York, New York

The Three Key Club in New York City

Expect: The highest luxury and impeccable design in Soho, Midtown, and the Financial District. Within the small club of Three Key hotels in the United States, four make their home in New York City. The Aman New York (Midtown) and Casa Cipriani (the Financial District) both make use of glamorous Beaux Arts buildings, the former a gold-crowned skyscraper in Midtown, the latter a glamorously restored ferry terminal at the very southern tip of Manhattan. Each is a refuge: an elegant, painstakingly designed escape from bustling city life.

Meanwhile, two Firmdale hotels round out the list of Three Key hotels in New York City. Each is a quintessential example of the style and execution of the group’s co-owner and interior designer, Kit Kemp. Click the links here to explore the whirl of colors and collage of art that define the Crosby Street (Soho) and the Whitby Hotel (Midtown).

Also read: Every Three Key Hotel in Paris

The Georgian — Santa Monica, California

Jewels on the Coast: Up and Down California

Its sheer breadth of size and variety means it’s no surprise to announce California as the state with the most Key hotels in America. Here, we’ll point you towards coastal gems like the sublime architectural achievements in Big Sur (Post Ranch Inn and Ventana), beachside luxuries in Santa Monica (in particular: the newly opened Georgian), and wine country favorites like SingleThread and the Madrona.

What we love: how each one of these hotels opens the door to the very best of their locations — and gives us a look at each setting through fresh eyes.

The Chicago Athletic Association — Chicago, Illinois

Across America: The Golden Age of Celebrity

Our French Keys bask in the tradition of ancient vineyards, stone chateaus, and historic palaces. In the United States, we see a different tradition. In Los Angeles, places like Chateau Marmont, the Paramour Estate, Sunset Tower, and the Charlie date back to guests and residents as illustrious as Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe. These are spaces that play ingeniously with their history, even as they forge ahead with cutting-edge amenities and experiences.

But it’s not just California. New York’s historic artist hotspot, the Hotel Chelsea, once hosted Bob Dylan and Andy Warhol. Today, it decorates every space with art donated by former residents. Look too to the Chicago Athletic Association, a former member’s club for 20th century business magnates and athletes — now among the city’s most impressive and vibrant hotels.

Also read: Hollywood Glamor at the First Key Hotels in Los Angeles

Faena Hotel — Miami, Florida

The Three Key Hotels

Crosby Street Hotel, Firmdale Hotels — New York

California (Beverly Hills): The Beverly Hills Hotel, Dorchester Collection
California (Big Sur): Post Ranch Inn
California (Healdsburg): SingleThread Inn
California (Los Angeles): Hotel Bel-Air, Dorchester Collection
California (Rutherford): Auberge du Soleil, Auberge Resorts Collection
California (St. Helena): Meadowood Napa Valley
California (Woodside): Canyon Ranch Woodside
New York (NYC): Aman New York
New York (NYC): Casa Cipriani New York
New York (NYC): Crosby Street Hotel, Firmdale Hotels
New York (NYC): The Whitby Hotel, Firmdale Hotels

NEW: New York by The MICHELIN Guide – expert insights on where to dine, stay and explore

The Two Key Hotels

Ventana Big Sur, an Alila Resort — Big Sur, California

California (Beverly Hills): L'Ermitage Beverly Hills
California (Beverly Hills): The Maybourne Beverly Hills
California (Beverly Hills): The Peninsula Beverly Hills
California (Carmel Valley): Bernardus Lodge & Spa
California (Big Sur): Ventana Big Sur
California (Guerneville): The Stavrand
California (Healdsburg): Montage Healdsburg
California (Healdsburg): The Madrona
California (Laguna Beach): Montage Laguna Beach
California (Montecito): Rosewood Miramar Beach
California (Napa): Milliken Creek Inn & Spa
California (San Francisco): Four Seasons Hotel San Francisco at Embarcadero
California (San Francisco): The Battery
California (Sausalito): Cavallo Point Lodge
California (West Hollywood): Chateau Marmont
California (West Hollywood): Pendry West Hollywood
California (Yountville): Bardessono
California (Yountville): North Block
Washington D.C.: Rosewood Washington, D.C.
Washington D.C.: The Jefferson
Florida (Miami): Mayfair House Hotel & Garden
Florida (Miami Beach): Faena Hotel Miami Beach
Florida (Miami Beach): Four Seasons Hotel at The Surf Club
Florida (Miami Beach): The Setai Miami Beach
Illinois (Chicago): Pendry Chicago
Illinois (Chicago): The Langham, Chicago
Illinois (Chicago): The Peninsula Chicago
New York (NYC): Hotel Barrière Fouquet's New York
New York (NYC): Nine Orchard
New York (NYC): Pendry Manhattan West
New York (NYC): The Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotel
New York (NYC): The Fifth Avenue Hotel
New York (NYC): The Mark Hotel

The One Key Hotels

Riggs — Washington DC

Hero Image: Hotel Jerome, Auberge Resorts Collection — Aspen, Colorado

Written by The MICHELIN Guide

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