New York City is filled with breathtaking interiors—some famous, others hidden in plain sight. This is not a comprehensive list, but a curated selection of some of the city’s most stunning and often overlooked interior landmarks.
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New York Public Library
The interior of the New York Public Library’s main branch—the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building—is a stunning Beaux-Arts masterpiece, distinguished by its sweeping marble staircases, vaulted ceilings, and richly ornamented details. Among its highlights is the iconic Rose Main Reading Room, where soaring arched windows flood the space with natural light, long oak tables stretch in orderly rows, and a ceiling painted with celestial murals evokes the heavens above. The McGraw Rotunda offers another visual treasure: murals by Edward Laning depicting the history of the written word. The interior of the New York Public Library feels both monumental and serene—a true temple of knowledge and learning.
Click for “how to visit” info
Rockefeller Center Main Lobby
The main lobby of 30 Rockefeller Plaza is a dazzling showcase of Art Deco design, featuring a monumental ceiling mural by Catalan artist Josep Maria Sert. Titled American Progress, the mural depicts the triumph of science, industry, and human intellect—ideals at the heart of Rockefeller Center’s vision. At its core stands a commanding, god-like figure representing Man, arms outstretched as if orchestrating the elemental forces around him. Surrounding him are allegorical figures symbolizing labor, science, education, and the arts, all working together to drive civilization forward.
Dynamic and theatrical, the composition brims with Sert’s signature style: muscular, idealized bodies and sweeping motion that suggest both struggle and triumph. Far from mere ornamentation, American Progress transforms the lobby into a modern-day temple to progress—where art, architecture, and ideology converge in a single, soaring gesture.
It’s free to visit, just walk in to the main lobby at 30 Rockefeller Plaza
The Plaza Hotel Lobby and the Palm Court
Entering the lobby of The Plaza Hotel at Fifth Avenue and 59th Street is like walking into the Gilded Age of New York. Once you pass through the iconic revolving door, you find yourself in the splendor of old New York. The lobby is always adorned with a spectacular flower arrangement that changes regularly. Just beyond the lobby is The Palm Court, a New York institution known for its classic Afternoon Tea. The room is defined by its soaring stained-glass dome, marble columns, and elegant seating beneath tall palm plants—a timeless setting that has welcomed guests for over a century.
Most times you can just walk in to take a look at the lobby. You can also treat yourself to the High Tea at the Plaza at the The Palm Court.
Hotel Sherry Netherland lobby
This interior space is one of New York’s best-kept secrets: even though the hotel does not feature a grand entrance, its lobby is one of the most spectacular interior spaces in the city. The frescoes in the lobby were inspired by and derived from the Sistine Hall of the Vatican Library, created by Raphael.
Walk in to the lobby to take a peak.
Hotel Pierre Lobby
The lobby of The Pierre is an intimate, elegant space designed in a blend of neoclassical and Art Deco styles. Unlike the vast lobbies of larger hotels, The Pierre feels private and understated.
Just beyond the lobby lies the Rotunda Room, famous for its whimsical mural. Painted in the style of a Renaissance loggia, the scene brims with mythological figures alongside notable contemporaries. Among them are Jacqueline Kennedy ascending a staircase and actor Erik Estrada humorously cast as Adam—an imaginative tableau where fantasy and society mingle in theatrical harmony.
Most times you can just walk in and take a look.
5th Avenue Trump Tower lobby
The lobby of Trump Tower, located at 725 Fifth Avenue, is a striking display of 1980s opulence, featuring polished brass, pink-hued marble, and mirrored surfaces. The six-story atrium, with its warm tones and bold geometry, captures the extravagant spirit of its era. The atrium is both a public plaza and a private showcase. Whether admired or criticized, the Trump Tower lobby is a bold architectural statement, designed to dazzle and impress.
Free access, lobby is a public space with a small food court on the lower level.
Empire State Building Lobby
The Empire State Building lobby reflects the elegance and ambition of the Art Deco era. Completed in 1931 and meticulously restored in the 2000s, the lobby was designed to impress. The walls are clad in marble and granite, while the floors are made of richly patterned terrazzo, creating streamlined geometric designs typical of the Art Deco style. The ceiling mural titled “The Sky Belongs to the Stars” depicts radiating sunbursts, gears, and abstract planetary forms, celebrating electricity and progress.
The focal point of the lobby is the aluminum relief of the Empire State Building itself, set against a background of golden beams that suggest both sunlight and power. Beneath it, a compass rose symbolises direction, movement, and ambition. The Art Deco lobby features the sleek lines, metallic finishes, and stylized ornament emblematic of the Machine Age and the American spirit.
The visits to the ESB observation decks finish at the lobby. Also, you could just walk in from the 5th Ave entrance.
Chrysler Building Lobby
The Chrysler Building lobby is one of the finest examples of Art Deco interior design, showcasing luxury and modernity. The walls are clad in warm-toned red Moroccan marble, yellow travertine, and dark sienna-colored marble, and the walls give off a burnished glow. The floor is a mix of dark and light stone in geometric patterns, characteristic of the Art Deco style.
The ceiling soars with a dramatic mural by Edward Trumbull titled “Transport and Human Endeavor”. It’s a futuristic composition that features airplanes, the Chrysler assembly line, buildings, and workers—all rendered in a gleaming metallic palette meant to reflect the technological optimism of the era.
The light fixtures are designed like crystalline sunbursts or mechanical gears, and each of the elevator doors is a masterpiece of inlaid metalwork, featuring stylized depictions of wheels, car parts, and sunbursts—an homage to the Chrysler automobile empire.The Chrysler lobby isn’t large, but it feels luxurious and ceremonial, more like an Art Deco jewel box than a corporate entryway.
The entrance to the lobby is free.
Fred French Building Lobby
The Fred F. French Building lobby is a unique space that blends Art Deco style with ancient Near Eastern motifs—a rarity among New York City skyscrapers.The lobby stands out for its vibrant Mesopotamian-inspired ornamentation, meant to evoke a sense of empire-building, fitting for a real estate mogul like Fred French.
The walls are lined with colorful tiles, geometric terra-cotta patterns, and intricate mosaics in rich blues, reds, and golds, evoking the ancient cities of Babylon and Assyria. While decorative borders and stylized ziggurat forms are typical of the New York Art Deco style, the repeating motifs like bulls, lions, and griffins are “Mesopotamian” or “Babylonian”. Elevator doors featuring etched bronze designs, which continue the Near Eastern theme, are true works of art. The hanging lamps are stunning.
The Fred French Building lobby is a passageway from Fifth Avenue to 45th Street, but its exotic decor makes it feel more like a theatrical stage set than a corporate corridor.
It’s an office building but the lobby is accessible to the public.
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