Source: Forbes

New York City is home to some of the most legendary hotels in the world. Highly touted for their service, luxury and elegance, many of them also have a rich history that adds to the experience of staying there.

Here are a handful of top Manhattan hotels that boast as much substance as style.

The Algonquin

Prices have definitely increased since The Algonquin opened in 1902 with a nightly rate of two dollars but, surprisingly, so has the hotel's mystique.

For a decade, starting in the summer of 1919, influential writers including Dorothy Parker, Harpo Marx and George S. Kaufman met over lunch at the hotel every day to discuss their work. They called their group the Vicious Circle, and, over a century later, they are still the envy of writers. Even President John F. Kennedy admitted, "When I was growing up, I had three wishes. I wanted to be a Lindbergh-type hero, learn Chinese and become a member of the Algonquin Round Table."

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Thanks to the money he won in a Vicious Circle poker game, Harold Ross financed and created The New Yorker in 1925. Today, guests of The Algonquin receive free copies of the classic literary magazine, and some of the floors are wallpapered with its famous cartoons.

The Algonquin has been the site of many other timeless creations, as well. In 1950, William Faulkner wrote his Nobel Peace Prize speech in his suite. Maya Angelou wrote the screenplay for her memoir, "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" on Algonquin stationery, and in 1956 Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe composed the music for "My Fair Lady" in Suite 908.

The hotel is also known for its resident feline. In the 1930s, original owner Frank Case took in a stray cat that wandered into the hotel. He named him Rusty until actor John Barrymore, a regular guest, decided he needed a more theatrical name and changed it to Hamlet after one of his own stage roles. The hotel has since been home to three female cats (each named Matilda) and eight males (each named Hamlet). The current Hamlet has his own following on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Read the full article at Forbes