Most promising: The Old Embassy
This one is a Guardian Travel scoop. Strictly speaking The Old Embassy (name to be confirmed) shouldn't be on our list, because it is not scheduled to open until September. But such an interesting prospect deserves a mention. The venue is Warsaw's pre-war Soviet embassy, which was converted from a block of mansion flats in the 1920s, continued to operate after the 1939 Nazi-Soviet invasion of Poland (the NKVD may have invited the Gestapo in for tea), only closing when Germany ended its alliance with the USSR in 1941. I've had it confirmed that the notorious Vyacheslav Molotov really did pay a visit, and apparently The Old Embassy are going to take me up on my idea for their house drink: The 'Molotov Cocktail', involving flaming Sambuca, and a blend of Polish and Russian vodkas. After an estimated $21 million (£13m) conversion, it will have five stars, a restaurant and a bar; but this is hardly the point. Restoration is led by Grzegorz Rygiel, whose portfolio includes the facelift of New York's Grand Central Terminal. Here, the stucco hammers and sickles will be preserved, as will the Bolsheviks' original colour scheme (in places, it is a weird, duck-egg blue). The old embassy is conveniently located on central Warsaw's Poznanska Street, where tarmac was recently replaced with cobblestones.
• Rooms estimated to start at €80. No website – check in September.
Most beautiful: Rialto
Warsaw's first boutique hotel, Rialto, was convincingly finished in art deco style and could be used as a location for Agatha Christie's Poirot. Much of the furniture is antique, and was selected at auction houses across Europe, although each room has a distinct variation on the pre-war decorative theme – from colonial to Secessionist to William Morris.
• +48 22 58 48 700, rialto.pl/welcome.html. Doubles from €90, excluding breakfast
Most prestigious: Le Meridien Bristol
Le Meridien Bristol is 110 years old. It was backed by the pianist Ignacy Paderewski, who toured the world playing Chopin to lobby for Polish independence – and later became the country's prime minister. The Bristol was a top address in the decadent Warsaw of the 1920s and 1930s, and features, appropriately, in the spy novels of Alan Furst. Visitors include Margaret Thatcher and Nigel Kennedy. Boasting a private garden and one of Warsaw's poshest cafes, it is the perfect starting place for a stroll along the two kilometres of Krakowskie Przedmiescie and Nowy Swiat; pedestrianised on summer weekends, when it is known as Europe's longest catwalk.
• +48 22 551 1000, starwoodhotels.com. Doubles from around £81, excluding breakfast
Best bargain: Witt
Although billed as a hostel, Witt is a big apartment run like a family guesthouse, with a wholesome welcome, simple furnishings and a bargain price. Traditional ornate ceramic stoves give the place an old-world feel, which inspired Roman Polanski to bring Maureen Lipman here and film a scene of The Pianist. It is a short walk from the main train station, and adjacent to Mandala, which is a curry restaurant downstairs (the kitchen staff are Nepalese), and has a graffitied beer garden in the summer and a scruffy nightclub upstairs.
• +48 603 632 588, hostelwitt.pl. Double/twin from £33 per night
Most sociable; Nathan's Villa
Nathan was a British backpacker who went east shortly after the end of the cold war in 1989, had an adventure, and never came back. Today he operates a hostel empire across Central Europe, but his Warsaw "villa" is reputedly the best. It is great value, clean and well located (the city's first British fish and chip shop, excellently done by Polish "remigrants" from the UK, is three minutes away). A typical scene at Nathan's is seeing a platoon of Dutch nursing students accost Americans with Canadian flags on their rucksacks to plot a night of hedonism in Warsaw's dive bar land. There is usually a party on a t Nathan's, and it's usually best left to travellers in their 20s.
• +48 22 622 29 46, nathansvilla.pl. Doubles from £37
Out of town: Villa Otwock
Villa Otwock is about a 40-minute drive from the city centre, but it is worth it for the nature and the fresh air. Otwock is a commuter town, situated on the winding Swider, a tributary of the massive River Vistula. Much of the flood plain has been given over to the Wyspy Swiderskie wildlife reserve on its east bank, with several sandy beaches and a long band of wetland abundant with wild flowers, butterflies, lizards, snakes, hawks and beavers – all thriving on the edge of the capital. The hotel itself has an indoor garden sheltered by Poland's largest glasshouse, a fancy restaurant, and apartment suites.
• villaparkwesola.pl, +48 22 788 05 88. Doubles from £85, excluding breakfast
Most eclectic: Oki Doki
Oki Doki is run by people with a taste for the surreal, and a love for junk and wild colour schemes. No room numbers here, just ideas. You have a choice of sleeping in a Socialist Paradise, in "The House of the Invisible Hand" or in Narnia; though the scariest prospect is "The Normality House". Internet access and self catering facilities are available, all for a very reasonable price.
• +48 22 828 01 22 okidoki.pl. Doubles from £34
Most attentive: Le Regina
Le Regina is in Warsaw's so-called New Town, which was a built in the 17th century and restored from ruins after the second world war. The hotel is excellently located for the tourist trail, and round the corner from Marie Curie's house. The hotel was planned to be Warsaw's most stylish, and has been finished with polished marble and frescoed walls. Reputedly, the service is impeccable. • +48 22 531 60 00, leregina.com. Doubles from €80, excluding breakfast
Best self catering: Residence Diana
This is currently the best serviced apartment option in town, and perfectly located through a courtyard off Chmielna, Warsaw's fashionable pedestrian street. It's the perfect base for business or study trips lasting several weeks, and for in-laws visiting the rising number of Anglo-Polish couples who have emigrated from the UK.
• 00 800 7747 7477 residencediana.com. Apartments from €80
Best throwback: Marriott
Built in 1989, the turquoise shimmering Marriott instantly became a post-cold-war monument to the arrival of capitalism, positioned as it was to face off Stalin's barbed gift to Poland, the Palace of Culture. Throughout the 1990s, the Marriot was synonymous with ex-communist mafiosos and other low lifes. George W Bush also stayed here. Though renovated, it still has an entertainingly kitsch whiff of Dynasty about it. The Marriot also has the best view in town, from the 40th-floor Panorama Bar (pictured), where a shot of Belvedere will set you back the equivalent of £6.
• +48 22 630 63 06, marriott.com/wawpl. Doubles from £63, excluding breakfast
