Escape the city: a sanctuary of art, design, and thermal waters awaits
Forget the weekend pilgrimage to the Hamptons. A new destination is quietly redefining upstate cool: Pocketbook Hudson, a hotel that feels less like lodging and more like stumbling into a meticulously curated dream. Opened just last October, this isn't your grandmother’s Hudson Valley inn; it's a destination designed to captivate the discerning New Yorker—and it’s succeeding.
A factory transformed: design and artistic detail
The bones of Pocketbook Hudson are striking: a renovated 19th-century textile mill, now housing 46 rooms, each a study in refined industrialism. Charlap Hyman & Herrero, the lauded Architecture and design firm (fresh off a Smithsonian Design Award win), orchestrated the transformation, layering contemporary art and bespoke details throughout. Think sculptural lamps casting intriguing shadows, and cooled, lava-like mirrors that seem to warp reality—a deliberate effort to elevate the space beyond the purely functional. But the commitment to design extends to the smallest touches: Eckhaus Latta robes in rooms, Colbo uniforms for the staff, and a boutique showcasing names like Issey Miyake and Comme des Garçons. As Sean Roland, one of the owners, put it, “We wanted to bring that coveted New York edit right here.”
Beyond the rooms: a culinary scene and a wellness oasis
The food scene at Pocketbook Hudson offers a compelling counterpoint to the hotel's aesthetic. At Ambos, the New Argentinian restaurant, the live-fire kitchen creates dishes that are both visually arresting and deeply satisfying. The menu—a testament to the “yes to both” philosophy reflected in the restaurant's name (a nod to the building’s former owner, Eleanor Ambos)—delivered a margarita with honest-to-goodness lime and a smoky steak and waffle fry pairing that defied expectations. But the true revelation lies beyond the rooms, the bar, and the shops: The Baths.
The baths: a sensory reset
Located in a separate building across the courtyard, The Baths is a 6,000-square-foot spa conceived as a space for “sensory immersion and dissolving the boundary between self and environment,” according to Nancy Kim, who led the in-house design team. Drawing inspiration from global havens like the 7132 Hotel’s thermal baths in Switzerland and Iceland’s Blue Lagoon, The Baths offers a sequence of interconnected pools: a 100-degree saltwater pool infused with Amagansett sea salt, a 104-degree pool with targeted jets, and a bracing 55-degree cold plunge. The space itself is a marvel—a vaulted ceiling, brick walls shimmering under bespoke sconces, and expansive windows flooding the area with natural light. It evokes a sense of quietude, almost spiritual in its serenity.
The wellness philosophy here isn’t about ostentatious luxury, but about accessible healing. Remy Maelen, the director of wellness, emphasizes personalized care, offering straightforward massages and facials alongside movement classes that range from creative free-writing sessions to sensory plant meditations. The team even prioritizes introducing local artisans and their work, from Apis Apotheca oils to Beautiful Dyrt’s probiotic tonic – a far cry from the ubiquitous, and often impersonal, wellness products found elsewhere. One can’t help but appreciate the intentionality, the desire to cultivate a space where wellness feels genuinely inclusive.
As I left, Madeleine, my massage therapist, offered a simple wrist rotation exercise to combat the effects of prolonged screen time. A small gesture, perhaps, but one that encapsulated the holistic spirit of Pocketbook Hudson—a reminder that sometimes, the most profound escapes are the ones we can carry with us long after we’ve checked out.