Forth Hotel Atlanta, Georgia is an eclectic boutique that marries romance with opulence: park views from many rooms, and bold patterns that clash exquisitely with minimalist design. Dining venues include a rooftop lounge and modern Italian steakhouse, plus a private members' club that makes it all feel like a hip social hub.

With a gorgeous setting in a 19th-century mansion in Midtown, a charming urban neighborhood, Stonehurst Place gets off very much on the right foot. And though the recently renovated house is impeccably preserved, a careful look will reveal that it’s kept pace with the times. Not only are the amenities up to date — especially the oversized bathrooms and the high-end electronics — but a fair bit of the furnishing is modern as well, if subtly so.

Not all that long ago, Atlanta’s Clermont Hotel was famous for two things: the landmark sign on its rooftop radio tower, and the Clermont Lounge, a legendary slice of nightlife in the basement. Both of those features still exist, but what’s in between them — a 1920s red-brick edifice that’s seen good times and bad — has been thoroughly renovated, and reinvented as a 94-room boutique hotel, complete with a hip restaurant by a celebrated local chef and a couple of in-demand nightspots.