For a long time, the Peabody was the only Memphis hotel to provide a five-star experience. Then the Madison moved into a chic beaux arts building downtown and shook things up a bit. The lobby here is full of bold patterns, and there's a music theme throughout, with music notes as door handles, and album covers lining the elevator walls. The rooms are quite pleasant, with purple accents contrasted against black-and-white geometric patterns and contemporary furniture in the sitting areas, which feel as if they were designed for a rock star. If you're looking to splash out, go for a king suite on the highest floor available (at times you can find them on sale for under $200). The ground-level bar and restaurant Eighty3 is a nice feature, but the Twilight Sky Terrace, which opened in 2013, is where you want to spend your evening, perched beside a fire, high above the Mississippi River, the lights twinkling 17 stories below you. Hotel service is friendly but a little spotty—both at the front desk and on the housekeeping side, but this is still my favorite place to stay in all of Memphis.