Really a motel, set in an area of Manhattan that could be best described as “Siberia,” the Skyline does its best to offset its dreary, far west location with a cluster of amenities that can only be replicated at one other hotel in the city. First off, the Skyline has that rarest of all luxuries: an indoor swimming pool, and a nice one at that, on the roof. Guests can store cars or vans for a mere $10 per day in the hotel’s basement parking lot. And the rooms, enormous by New York standards (particularly the luxury rooms, which are only 10% more than normal), are bright and comfortable, and come with such nice extras as Nintendo games and fridges. In the front wing (slightly smaller rooms), rates start at $139 a night, but can soar to $400 (usually they hover in the mid-200s, and I wouldn’t pay more than that).