New York’s Waldorf Astoria Reopens After Eight-Year Makeover

When the Waldorf Astoria New York opened on Oct. 1, 1931, it was “the biggest and most elegant and luxurious hotel in the world.” That’s according to the gregarious Italian who runs it today, managing director Luigi Romaniello.

He’s spent much of his tenure at the Waldorf revisiting its history. After all, it’s been closed for the entire time that Romaniello has been on the job. But now he’s ready to cut the ribbon on the hotel’s next chapter.

As the last journalist to walk the building (and explore its secret spaces) before it closed in 2017 for an ...