On the first Monday in May, the biggest stars in Hollywood and fashion will take to the iconic steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the 2026 Met Gala. This year, the annual fundraising event will celebrate the Costume Institute’s new exhibition, “Costume Art” with a starry group of co-chairs including Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams, and Beyoncé, who will be making her grand return to the steps after a decade.
But before the glitz and the glamour of the Met steps, the stars seek residence at some of New York’s most luxurious hotels to get ready for fashion’s biggest night out. And when it comes to the crème de la crème of Manhattan hotels, there’s nowhere quite like The Mark. A crown jewel of the Upper East Side and just a few blocks down from the Met, the historic hotel serves as the unofficial Met Gala red carpet, with a handful of the gala’s guests showcasing their Met looks as they depart from the hotel’s famed lobby before heading to the gala’s grand staircase.
The elegance of The Mark is undeniable. From the second you approach the hotel’s black-and-white umbrellas, which line 77th street, and walk into the sleek, yet sophisticated lobby, you experience a level of luxury that is inherently fabulous. So it only makes sense that The Mark is the place celebrities want to be before and after the Met Gala. But what goes into putting on a picture-perfect, pre-Met production, you wonder? Well, a lot.
From months of organizing hotel bookings to executing the strategic Met Monday elevator system, over the years, the Mark staff have perfected their Met Monday operation, which successfully gets an assembly line of stars from their rooms and suites, down to the lobby, and cleared to walk the custom-made Mark red carpet before heading off to the gala. The system, which requires the help of the concierge, security, elevator operators, and staff on every level of the 16-floor hotel, is no easy feat. But like everything at the Mark, the team pulls it off with an effortless elegance. Take it from The Mark’s Associate Director of Marketing, Allegra Acosta, and Chief Concierge Maria Wittrop, Met Monday veterans who are sharing the inside details of the hotel’s craziest, but most fun day of the year.
Make York Mark with a Hotel Stay:
The Mark is known for its chic, black-and-white striped aesthetic, seen as part of the hotel’s exterior and interior design, from the outdoor umbrellas to the marble lobby floor and accent pillows. The black and white design theme continues throughout the property’s restaurants and magnificent guest rooms. So, exactly how much does it cost for a stay in one of those iconic hotel rooms? If you’re looking to book a stay in a classic queen or king room, the starting price is around $1395 a night (depending on the season). But it’s The Mark’s Penthouse Collection, featuring three sprawling sky suites that celebrities love to call home on Met weekend.
Nestled on the 14th floor are the Madison and Central Park Penthouses, both overlooking their respective streets. The two penthouse suites, which start at $45K a night, feature multiple bedrooms, a kitchen, a dining room, an entertainment room, a grand terrace equipped with plush loungers and umbrellas, and more bathrooms, varnished with the hotel’s signature pale green finishes, than anyone could ever want or need. And when stars check into the penthouses for events like the Met Gala, best believe that all of the bed and sitting rooms are full.
“When a celebrity checks into one of these suites [for the Met Gala], they’ll come with full glam squads, team members, stylists, tailors, everything, using every room,” Acosta tells R29.
And for those who can indulge in the finest of luxury, let us introduce you to the Mark Penthouse. With elevators that open directly to the 16th-floor suite (think Blair Waldorf’s penthouse pad in Gossip Girl), the Mark penthouse is one of the finest in New York. At $100K a night, the penthouse has all of the standard amenities when it comes to multiple bedrooms and living spaces, but unlike the “smaller” penthouses, the Mark Suite boasts a unique second-floor terrace, a master bedroom with a double-sided, glass fireplace, a bathroom that has an infinity-style tub, and its very own tech-savvy gym. The Mark Penthouse terrace, with its 360-degree view of the UES, is also a spot for wellness. Equipped with a sleek, black-and-white plunge tub, the spa can be used for either cold dips or as a hot tub. But that’s not all. With the terrace being a prime spot for penthouse guests to entertain, it only makes sense that the hotel takes full advantage of the rooftop space. In the summer, during the US Open, the Mark can transform the terrace into guests’ own personal mini tennis court. And in the winter? A private mini skating rink at the guests’ request, of course. Talk about top-tier service.
Checking in for the Met Gala:
So how do famous faces make the most coveted hotel reservation of the year? Well, for the most part, individual fashion houses and brands are tasked with the responsibility of reaching out to The Mark’s sales team to coordinate hotel bookings with requests starting as early as August, ahead of the upcoming Met Gala. Then, with all the rooms and penthouses booked (with some celebrities requesting the same rooms year after year), Met guests begin to check into the hotel on Thursday and Friday before the gala so they can settle in for a weekend of pre-parties before the big day.
“It’s a very busy weekend. There’s a ton of deliveries and people running around. It’s chaos, but it’s very fun,” Acosta says.
Operation Met Monday at The Mark:
Met Monday is one of the busiest days for The Mark Hotel, and it’s all about traffic flow both inside and outside of the property walls. But as chaotic as it all sounds, the hotel staff are masters in their own art of Met Gala orchestration. Inside the lobby, the hotel’s elevators and staircase serve as the main vehicles for guest traffic flow, which is fluidly navigated by the system run by the hotel’s concierge, security, and the manual elevator operator teams. On Met Monday, guests begin the process of getting ready for the annual gala in the wee hours of the morning, with The Mark’s two elevators, which take you up and down the building’s 16 floors, running normally. But once the clock strikes 4 pm, the elevators switch from automatic to manual, as the concierge starts a call-based system with associates on each hotel floor and security teams.
“We have a security guard inside each elevator, that is operated manually, and we know that talent is ready to come down to the red carpet through the associates stationed on that floor,” Wittrop explains. “Each talent has a number. We are very discreet at The Mark. So we’d just say, ‘Number 6 is coming down.’ Then the security officer will make sure that the elevator goes up to that floor and then bring the talent down to the lobby to have their moment on the red carpet, which is very magical.”
But the operation doesn’t stop in the lobby. A-list guests then have to find their transportation from the Mark to the gala. But like the elevator system, the hotel staff also has an operation for guests’ pick-up.
“So the magic is that we have [all of the cars] stationed on 77th between Madison and Park. (The hotel is between Madison and 5th). The street is closed down for us, and it’s a common misconception that 60 sprinters are just sitting in front of the hotel. I don’t know where they would fit!” she continued, going on to explain that, like the talent, each car has a number that is then called out by the hotel’s coordinators, letting the talent know that their vehicle is ready to pull up in front of the hotel. Once the vehicle is called, it will turn onto 77th, in front of the hotel, for the talent to step into their ride for the night. “It’s all very technical.”
And while the elevator might be the preferred option for those with larger or heavier garments, the fastest and most discreet way to get to the lobby is simply by using the stairs. In The Mark book by Assouline, Karlie Kloss is quoted as saying, “Tip, take the stairs.”
“It’s an insider tip for celebrities and talent that are staying here and getting ready with us because it is so busy on that Monday. And while we have the manual elevators, if you want to avoid being seen, use the stairs,” Acosta says.
Party Dogs and Crisp Cocktails:
On the night of the Met Gala, the hotel’s iconic hot dog cart takes center stage in the hotel’s lobby. Yes, the hotel is known for its fine dining restaurants like Caviar Kaspia and The Mark Restaurant by Jean-Georges, but the famed hot dog stand is an institution all its own. “The Mark hot dog cart has become such a big staple, because we really emphasize the high, low concept. Obviously, we’re on the Upper East Side and this is a luxury hotel, but the hot dogs by Jean-Georges Vongerichten are $6,” Acosta explains. “And Heri, who’s our hot dog connoisseur, has his special toppings and has become an amazing icon for everybody on the Upper East Side, whether you’re staying at the hotel or floating by, going to Central Park, or going to Madison Avenue.” On a typical day, you can find Heri and his stand just outside of the hotel, serving the Upper East Side’s favorite hot dogs from 9 am to 5 pm. But following the gala, the stand moves inside for the hotel’s special celebrity guests as they return from the gala, officially ready to kick off a long night of after parties. From the lobby, guests also pour into The Mark Bar, where they enjoy cocktails made by the hotel’s resident bartender and celebrity favorite, Vlad, who will be celebrating nine years with the hotel next month. “It’s really a time when the talent comes back and is relaxed — the gala is over, so we have our hot dog cart with Mark French fries, and drinks flowing. Everyone is in the lobby, and it’s just really a relaxed, celebratory moment that’s very special,” Acosta adds.
Mark Moments and Extraordinary Service:
When working Met Monday at The Mark, there’s no shortage of surreal moments wrapped up in gala chaos, with a melange of A-list stars, press, PR teams, stylists, and more flooding The Mark’s iconic lobby and running throughout the hotel’s luxe halls. And while there’s an abundance of crazy moments to account for over the years, there are a few standouts that have stuck with the hotel staff.
“It always feels like a blur, but last year, Charli XCX got behind the concierge booth when she returned to the hotel from the gala and was playing concierge with the phone and with the team. She said she always wanted to be a concierge,” Acosta recalls, in addition to sharing one of the hotel’s most far-fetched room service requests. “A few years prior, somebody was very famished, and right before they were leaving, they requested 4 or 5 olives, exactly, just to tide them over.”
“I remember when Tyla came back, after the gala, with only half of the sand dress — they then handed [the cut half] to me. So I’m holding her half of this dress, and it literally only fit my arm!” Wittrop says of the unique fashion moment. “We get all of their dresses, as they are then picked up by the fashion houses, so you get to see the dresses you saw on the carpet.”
And with the caravan of black cars and sprinters gathering around the hotel, sometimes things don’t always go as planned. Wittrop recalls how a minor hiccup in transportation plans sent her team into immediate action.
“One time, a talent’s Sprinter didn’t show up, so we arranged to take the talent in a pedicab to the Met,” she says. “We are always prepared for literally anything.” And that’s what we call top-notch service. Nothing beats the magic of Met Monday at the Mark.
Tune into Met Monday at The Mark livestream on the hotel’s Instagram after 4 PM for a first peek at all the Met Gala action.
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