LOS ANGELES, CA--(Marketwire - October 13, 2009) - Sixty-six Southern California hotels and 32 restaurants have earned the 2010 AAA Four Diamond Award, the Automobile Club of Southern California announced today. Six locations appear for the first time on the 2010 list, including the SLS Hotel and the Montage in Beverly Hills; two in Rancho Mirage; one in Pismo Beach and one in San Diego County.
The coveted rating plaque featuring a design of four raised simulated diamonds and the AAA Four Diamond Award logo are presented to hotel and restaurant general managers and executive chefs to recognize the award-winning properties, which rank among the top 3.4 percent of more than 2,600 Southern California hotels, motels, and restaurants inspected by the Auto Club, the nation's largest AAA affiliate.
"North America's AAA Diamond Rating System is a long-time trusted method of rating lodgings and dining establishments, especially during what has been a difficult economic year for the hospitality industry and also for travelers," said the Auto Club's Approved Accommodations Supervisor Patricia Marenco. "Southern California's hotels and restaurants that earn the AAA Four Diamond award maintain a very high standard of service in their hotels and restaurants in order to continue pleasing their guests."
The list of 2010 AAA Four Diamond hotels and restaurants throughout Southern California follows, along with the consecutive years each property has earned the award:
Inyo/Mono Counties Hotel Years
Death Valley National Park Furnace Creek Inn 23
Los Angeles County Hotels
Beverly Hills Beverly Wilshire Four Seasons Hotel 17
Montage Beverly Hills 1
SLS Hotel at Beverly Hills 1
Glendale Hilton Los Angeles North/Glendale 10
& Executive Meeting Center
Hollywood Renaissance Hollywood Hotel & Spa 2
Los Angeles Sofitel Los Angeles 17
Omni Los Angeles Hotel 7
InterContinental Los Angeles Century City 22
Hyatt Regency Century Plaza 27
Pasadena The Westin--Pasadena 5
Santa Monica The Fairmont Miramar Hotel & Bungalows 8
Le Merigot - A JW Marriott 8
Beach Hotel & Spa
Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel 21
Universal City Hilton Universal City & Towers 3
West Hollywood The London West Hollywood 2
Sunset Marquis Hotel & Villas 3
Los Angeles County Restaurants
Beverly Hills JAAN (in Raffles L'Emitage Beverly Hills) 6
Spago Beverly Hills 6
Calabasas Saddle Peak Lodge 13
Glendale Gennaro's Ristorante 10
Long Beach The Sky Room 6
Los Angeles Gardens (Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles 15
at Beverly Hills)
Patina 19
Marina del Rey jer-ne restaurant 9
(The Ritz-Carlton Marina del Rey)
Pasadena The Raymond Restaurant 5
Santa Monica Valentino Restaurant 15
Westlake Village Hampton's 3
Orange County Hotels
Anaheim Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa 9
Dana Point Blue Lantern Inn 19
Laguna Cliffs Resort & Spa, 6
A Marriott Resort
Huntington Beach Hilton Waterfront Beach Resort 19
Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach 7
Resort & Spa
Irvine Hyatt Regency Irvine 7
Laguna Beach Surf & Sand Resort 19
Newport Beach The Balboa Bay Club & Resort 6
Fairmont Newport Beach 3
Orange County Restaurants
Fullerton The Cellar 20
Huntington Beach The Californian (Hyatt Regency 7
Huntington Beach Resort & Spa)
Laguna Beach Studio (Montage Laguna Beach) 2
Newport Beach Palm Terrace (The Island Hotel 3
Newport Beach)
The First Cabin At The Balboa Bay 6
Club & Resort
The Ritz Restaurant & Garden 17
Riverside County Hotels
Cabazon Morongo Casino Resort & Spa 5
Indian Wells Hyatt Grand Champions Resort 23
Miramonte Resort and Spa 2
Renaissance Esmeralda Resort and Spa 7
Palm Desert Desert Springs, JW Marriott Resort & Spa 23
Palm Springs The Willows Historic Palm Springs Inn 13
Rancho Mirage Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa 1
The Westin Mission Hills Resort & Spa 1
Temecula Pechanga Resort and Casino 8
Riverside County Restaurants
Rancho Mirage Wally's Desert Turtle 17
Palm Springs Europa Restaurant at the Villa Royale Inn 5
Le Vallauris 17
Riverside Duane's Prime Steaks & 15
Seafood (Mission Inn)
San Bernardino County Hotels
Big Bear Lake Alpenhorn Bed & Breakfast 10
San Diego County Hotels
Coronado Hotel del Coronado 5
Loews Coronado Bay 18
Del Mar L'Auberge Del Mar 8
Fallbrook Pala Casino Spa and Resort 6
Julian Orchard Hill Country Inn 14
La Jolla Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa 5
Hyatt Regency La Jolla 20
The Grande Colonial 2
Rancho Santa Fe Rancho Valencia an Auberge Resort 20
San Diego Hard Rock Hotel San Diego 2
Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego 17
Omni San Diego Hotel 5
Rancho Bernardo Inn 33
Pacific Terrace Hotel 3
San Diego Marriott Hotel & Marina 26
The US Grant 3
The Westgate Hotel 3
The Westin San Diego 16
Valley Center Harrah's Rincon Casino & Resort 1
San Diego County Restaurants
Carlsbad Vivace (Four Seasons Resort Aviara) 11
La Jolla A.R. Valentien (The Lodge at Torrey Pines) 6
George's California Modern 10
Sky Room (La Valencia Hotel) 19
Rancho Santa Fe Mille Fleurs 19
San Diego Baci's 6
Bertrand at Mister A's 16
El Bizcocho Restaurant 20
(Rancho Bernardo Inn)
Grant Grill (The US Grant) 3
San Luis Obispo County Hotels
Cambria Pelican Cove Inn 2
Blue Whale Inn Bed & Breakfast 19
Cayucos Cayucos Sunset Inn 8
Pismo Beach Dolphin Bay Resort & Spa 1
Santa Barbara County Hotels
Los Olivos Fess Parker's DoubleTree Resort 4
Santa Barbara Harbor View Inn 13
Inn on Summer Hill 20
Santa Ynez Chumash Casino Resort & Spa 6
Santa Ynez Inn 8
Solvang The Ballard Inn 17
Petersen Village Inn 26
Santa Barbara County Restaurants
Santa Ynez The Willows (Chumash Casino Resort & Spa) 5
Solvang The Ballard Inn Restaurant 5
(The Ballard Inn)
AAA's Diamond rating program is the only hotel and restaurant review system in the nation that uses specially trained full-time field representatives. As part of AAA's national network, the Auto Club's own staff reviews establishments in Southern California without prior notification using objective and detailed rating procedures.
Lodging inspections include at least one unannounced inspection each year. Inspectors review and rate exterior, grounds and public areas, room décor, ambiance and amenities, guest room, bathrooms, housekeeping and maintenance, management and staff and guest services. Once the inspection process is complete, properties that meet all requirements receive a rating of one to five Diamonds.
AAA approves and rates more than 31,000 lodgings and 27,000 restaurants each year throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. A wide range of property listings are included in regional TourBook® guides, with a yearly distribution of nearly 20 million, and on AAA.com, where many travel planning and information services -- including the well-known TripTik® Travel Planner, TourBook® listings and Diamond Ratings -- are now available to non-members as well. The AAA Four Diamond rating is exclusive in that less than 4% of all AAA approved properties achieve this rating.
The 2010 AAA Five Diamond Award lodging and restaurant recipients will be announced in November.
Contact Information: CONTACT: Jeffrey Spring/Elaine Beno 714-885-2333