AAA Names 16 New Five Diamond Lodgings, Restaurants for 2003
ORLANDO, Fla.--Nov. 18, 2002--AAA's list of Five Diamond Award winners for 2003 includes Miami's first Five Diamond properties in nearly a decade and two new hotels in New York City. The 11 lodgings and 5 restaurants new to the list bring the total number of Five Diamond properties in North America to 130.The Mandarin Oriental, Miami hotel and its Azul restaurant have both been added to the coveted ranks of properties receiving AAA's highest award. The last time Miami had a Five Diamond hotel was in 1994, and Azul is its first Five Diamond restaurant.
In New York City, two new hotels -- The Ritz-Carlton New York, Battery Park and The Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park -- bring that city's total of Five Diamond properties to 11, 5 hotels and 6 restaurants. New York City has the most Five Diamond hotels in any one city.
"The 130 Five Diamond properties represent a select group," said Michael Petrone, director, AAA Tourism Information Development. "Their staffs have worked hard to create a truly pleasurable travel or dining experience and they deserve special recognition for meeting such high standards."
In addition to the lodgings previously mentioned, there are eight others added to the list this year bringing the total number of hotels on the list to 77: The St. Regis Monarch Beach Resort & Spa, Dana Point, The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay, The Lodge at Torrey Pines, La Jolla, all in California; Ponte Vedra Inn and Club, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.; Kahala Mandarin Oriental Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii; Peninsula Hotel, Chicago, Ill.; Stein Eriksen Lodge, Park City, Utah; and Four Seasons Nevis, Charlestown, Nevis.
In addition to Azul, four other restaurants have been added to the list this year raising the number of restaurants to 53: Arun's, Chicago, Ill.; Victor's, New Orleans, La.; The 1913 Room, Grand Rapids, Mich.; The Herbfarm Restaurant, Woodinville, Wash.
AAA is hosting its annual Five Diamond Awards celebration at the Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco tonight. Each property will be honored individually and presented with a plaque.
Other notable facts about the 2003 list include:
| -- | The Herbfarm Restaurant is Washington's first Five Diamond restaurant. |
| -- | Michigan and Utah have their first Five Diamond properties since 1985. |
| -- | Florida and Illinois are the only states to gain both a Five Diamond restaurant and lodging. |
| -- | California and Florida both added three Five Diamond properties to the list this year while Illinois and New York added two each. Other new winners are in Hawaii, Utah, Louisiana, Michigan and Washington. |
| -- | The only international property added to the list this year is in the Caribbean. |
More than 42,000 properties are evaluated by AAA each year and less than one-third of 1 percent attain Five Diamond status. Each property undergoes an unannounced evaluation and properties receiving a Five Diamond for the first time are generally reviewed at least twice.
AAA began field inspections of hotels and restaurant in 1937. In 1963, a rating system was created which later became the Diamond Ratings in 1976. Restaurants have been rated using the Diamond Ratings since 1989.
As North America's largest motoring and leisure travel organization, AAA provides more than 45 million members with travel, insurance, financial and automotive-related services. Since its founding in 1902, the not-for-profit, fully tax-paying AAA has been a leader and advocate for the safety and security of all travelers.
Note: A listing of the 2003 Five Diamond Restaurants and the 2003 Five Diamond Lodgings is available on the AAA newsroom website at http://www.aaa.com/news