The Waldorf-Astoria: the great gray dowager of Park Avenue personifies New York City at its best. (Resort Of The Month).

To linger in the sumptuous salons of the Waldorf-Astoria is to step back in time. Your trip down memory lane is a flashback to the glamor days of the 1930s, when this Art Deco masterpiece was the tallest hotel in the world and the epicenter of elite society.

A legendary limestone landmark occupying a whole block of prime real estate in midtown Manhattan, it's still a prestige address that embodies luxury and power in the richest city on earth. Happily for historic preservationists and today's demanding travelers, recent facelifts totaling more than $300 million have restored the grande dame to her former glory.

Since opening in 1931 as the world's first skyscraper hotel, the Waldorf-Astoria has played host to movie stars, royalty, business tycoons, and every U.S. president since Herbert Hoover, a permanent resident of the hotel's exclusive Waldorf Towers. In the words of one guidebook author, "There's a certain electric thrill about being here, even among the well-heeled guests."

With a pair of 42-story towers rising from an 18-story base, the Waldorf-Astoria commands a prominent perch on majestic Park Avenue. The entrance to the Waldorf Towers is just around the comer on East 50th Street, and there's another main portal on Lexington Avenue. Just a short walk away are midtown landmarks like Grand Central Terminal, Rockefeller Center, and St. Patrick's Cathedral, plus the smart shops of Fifth and Madison avenues.

The roots of this New York institution go back to 1893, when millionaire William Waldorf Astor opened the 13-story Waldorf Hotel on the former site of his mansion at Fifth Avenue and 33rd Street. A private bathroom in every guest chamber and electricity throughout were two on a long list of Waldorf firsts. …