Hotel NH Parque Central (Neptuno, e/ Prado y Zulueta, tel. 07/866-6627, fax 07/866-6630, www.hotelnhparquecentral.com, from CUC205 s, CUC270 d year-round) occupies the north side of Parque Central and fuses colonial and contemporary styles. This Dutch-managed hotel is one of the most sophisticated in town and is popular with businessfolk. Its 281 rooms are tastefully appointed with antique reproduction furnishings, king-size beds, and heaps of moden amenities, including Internet modems and marble-clad bathrooms. For views, ask for an exterior room. There are two choice restaurants, a cigar lounge-bar, a business center, boutiques, a rooftop swimming pool, and a fitness room.

A 150-room annex, the NH Parque Central Torre (www.hotelnhparquecentral.com) opens in 2010 as the hippest hotel in the country, with its 21st-century modernist design.

The finest rooms in Havana are at the Hotel Saratoga (Paseo de Martí #603, esq. Dragones, tel. 07/868-1000, fax 07/868-1001, www.habaguanexhotels.com, from CUC170 s, CUC235 d low season, from CUC200 s, CUC275 d high season, CUC424–715 suite year-round). European architects and designers have turned this colonial edifice into a visual stunner inside. Imbued throughout with a hip aesthetic, the hotel effuses sophistication on a par with New York or London. Guest-room decor varies from colonially inspired to thoroughly contemporary. Most rooms have king-size four-poster beds; all have rich color schemes, gorgeous halogen-lit bathrooms, and 21st-century amenities. A rooftop pool, spa, and gym offer fabulous views over the city. And the bar and restaurant are New York–chic (although the food is disappointing).