Minneapolis
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A number of hip, stylish hotels have opened in Minneapolis in recent years. If it's a truly sexy and stylish pad you're seeking, consider the new W Minneapolis Foshay Tower. The uber-hip W Hotel chain opened this dramatic, super-plush hotel inside the city's most famous historic skyscraper, the 32-story Foshay Tower, which was built in 1929 and is the second-tallest concrete building in the country (behind only the Empire State Building). The 229 high-tech rooms contain flat-screen TVs and DVD players, down duvets, "rain" showers, and custom pillows - the W has quickly become a destination of visiting jet-setters. Other draws include the 27th-floor Prohibition lounge, and the city's retro-cool steak house, Manny's, just off the lobby.

A few blocks away, you'll find a similarly hip and arty boutique property, the Chambers Hotel, which occupies a pair of vintage buildings along Hennepin Avenue, steps from theaters and gay bars. Rooms have tall windows, sleek black-and-white color schemes, bathrooms with cavernous walk-in showers, and 400-thread-count bed linens. Set throughout the hotel are more than 200 original contemporary artworks from the collection of Ralph Burnet, the hotel's owner. Be sure to stop by the lobby to admire the art and have a drink in the sexy, gay-popular lounge, or grab dinner in Chambers Kitchen, which is run by celeb-chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten and turns out tantalizing world-beat cuisine, such as tempura salt-and-pepper walleye with jalapenos and basil.

Also check out the ultra-swanky Graves 601 Hotel, a 22-story stunner whose rooms have such artsy accents as 42-inch flat-screen plasma TVs, CD-stereos, and low-slung beds with glass-etched headboards. Bathrooms have Hermes soaps and freestanding "rain" showers. The hotel's Cosmos has become one of the Midwest's premier restaurants, thanks to a gracious, knowledgeable staff, a stunning dining room with soaring ceilings, and creative, deftly prepared food. Among the entrees, don't miss the Iowa lamb chop with cured lamb belly, fava beans, chevre foam, and fresh lavender.

Moderately priced gay-friendly Minneapolis hotels with handy downtown locations include the Aloft Minneapolis, a stylish Starwood-brand hotel in the Mill District that opened in August 2008, and the Holiday Inn Express, which actively markets to GLBT visitors.

A more intimate, romantic choice, the gay-friendly Nicollet Island Inn overlooks the Mississippi River and the downtown skyline and has 24 individually decorated rooms with reproduction antiques, four-poster beds, and French Impressionist prints. You might also check out the lavish Sunday brunch served in the historic inn's fireplace-warmed restaurant - it's a big tradition in these parts. Here you can dine on wild-mushroom crepes, bouillabaisse, and vanilla pot de creme while seated at a table overlooking the Mississippi River - there are few more romantic settings in all of Minnesota.

Related article: Summer Fun in Minneapolis

Andrew Collins is the author of Fodor's Gay Guide to the USA and as well as numerous other guidebooks.