For most of us, a foyer is simply a space to drop a handbag or stash some shoes — if you're lucky to have one. But as these apartments prove, a stunning entrance is kind of like a beautifully wrapped gift: It hints at the fabulousness within.

An ideal spot for an art collection, the dramatic, 27-foot-long central gallery of this Upper West Side condo at 2150 Broadway (up for sale for $11.9 million) leads from the entry, past two of the apartment’s five bedrooms and ends, almost triumphantly, at a light-flooded great room with a Juliette balcony at the end.

The grand 35-foot-by-13-foot reception gallery of this $28 million Upper East Side co-op at 998 Fifth Avenue has coffered ceilings, marble floors and two sets of windows to the outside (so you can assess whether or not to grab an umbrella as you leave home in the morning).

The 28-foot-long entry foyer of this four bedroom and three and a half bath co-op at 941 Park Avenue (yours for $11.499 million) has 10-foot ceilings finished with intricate moldings, faux-limestone walls and oak flooring stenciled in a Swedish and Greek key pattern.

The opulent entry of this neoclassical townhouse at 232 East 63rd Street (on the market for $21.5 million) has gold accents in the ceiling, a marble black and white checkered floor and red silk walls—not to mention security screens above the front door and a private garage off of the foyer (large enough to fit a limo, natch).

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