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| Hotel Rating Guide |
The AA, RAC, VisitBritain, VisitScotland and the Wales Tourist Board have reached an historic agreement to rate serviced accommodation using a common set of standards.
Building on the collective experience gained running existing recognition schemes and taking into account the results of extensive consumer and industry research, new standards that fully reflect consumer expectations and meet industry needs and which raise quality have been implemented.
For the first time ever, the five organisations will use a single method of assessing and rating serviced accommodation within the respective market places. Irrespective of which organisation inspects an establishment the rating awarded will be the same. This removes confusion and will be clearer for the consumer. It will also make it easier for tourism bodies and the travel industry generally to promote serviced accommodation both at home and overseas.
Stars - Hotels
For hotels, star ratings from one to five are used to assess the standard of quality you can expect.
At this level, staff are polite and courteous and provide informal yet competent service. The majority of rooms are en suite and there is a designated eating area with a reasonable choice of food and wines available.
Staff are smartly presented and provide competent, often informal, service. All rooms are en suite and have a TV. There is at least one restaurant or dining room with a substantial choice of food and wine available.
Staff will be skilled in responding to guests' needs, and there will be a dedicated receptionist on duty. All rooms are en suite and have remote-control TV and direct-dial telephone. There is a restaurant open to residents and their guests and a bar or lounge serving drinks.
A formal, professional service is provided and staff anticipate and respond to guests' needs. Reception is staffed 24 hours a day, with porters available on request. Bedrooms offer superior quality and comfort than at the three-star level; en suite bathrooms have high-quality toiletries. Services such as porterage, 24-hour room service, laundry and dry-cleaning will be available, and the restaurant demonstrates a serious approach to cuisine.
Flawless guest services and professional, attentive staff are a must at this level. Accommodation throughout the hotel is spacious and luxurious, with impressive interior design and immaculate furnishings. En suite rooms offer exceptional quality and provide extras such as bath sheets and robes and an evening turn-down service. The restaurant produces dishes created with a high level of technical skill, complemented by superior wines.
Diamonds - Bed & Breakfast
Bed & Breakfasts are assessed in a different way to hotels, with the emphasis on guest care and quality rather than provision of extra facilities.
Establishments are awarded a diamond rating from one diamond at the simplest level to five diamonds at the luxury end, based on an assessment of cleanliness, service, bedroom comfort, bathroom facilities and the standard of food.
You can expect to find the following minimum standards at all diamond levels:
Friendly, professional check in and check out, with a properly prepared bill
Comfortable rooms equipped to modern standards
Furniture and soft furnishings in good condition. Bedding and towels changed for each new guest and at least weekly if the room is taken for a long stay
Adequate storage, heating, lighting and a sufficient hot water supply
Full, cooked breakfast, but if this is not provided, the fact must be advertised and a continental breakfast given instead
At 2 Diamond Guest Accommodation, you will find: (in addition to what is provided at One Diamond)
A sound overall level of quality and customer care in all areas.
Red diamonds recognise the very best establishments within the three, four and five Diamond rating levels.
At 3 Diamond Guest Accommodation, you will find: (in addition to what is provided at Two Diamond)
A good overall level of quality. For example, good quality, comfortable bedrooms; well maintained, practical decor; a good choice of quality items available for breakfast; other meals, where provided, will be freshly cooked from good quality ingredients.
A good degree of comfort provided for you, with good levels
of customer care.
At 4 Diamond Guest Accommodation, you will find: (in addition to what is provided at Three Diamond)
A very good overall level of quality in all areas and
customer care showing very good levels of attention
to your needs.
At 5 Diamond Guest Accommodation, you will find: (in addition to what is provided at Four Diamond)
An excellent overall level of quality. For example, ample space with a degree of luxury, an excellent quality bed,
high quality furniture, excellent interior design.
Breakfast offering a wide choice of high quality fresh ingredients; other meals, where provided,
featuring fresh, seasonal local ingredients.
Excellent levels of customer care, anticipating your needs.
Rosettes - Restaurants
As with independent restaurants, rosettes from one to five are awarded annually to hotel restaurants for the quality of their food. Not all restaurants receive an AA award, but will generally serve enjoyable food.
Chefs should display a mastery of basic techniques and be able to produce dishes of sound quality and clarity of flavours, using good, fresh ingredients
Innovation, greater technical skill and more consistency and judgement in combining and balancing ingredients are all needed at this level.
This award takes a restaurant into the big league. Expectations of the kitchen are high: exact technique, flair and imagination must come through in every dish, and balance and depth of flavour are all-important
At this level, not only should all technical skills be exemplary, but there should also be daring ideas, and they must work. There is no room for disappointment. Flavours should be accurate and vibrant
The supreme accolade awarded only when the cooking is at the pinnacle of achievement. Flavours, combinations and textures show a faultless sense of balance, giving each dish an extra dimension
Michelin Guide - Restaurants
The Michelin Guide: Stars
The Michelin Guide awards restaurants between one and three stars, and they are coveted. Getting one, or one more, can create a legend; losing one can result in significant heartbreak. The Guide itself says that "certain establishments deserve to be brought to your attention" because of the quality of the cuisine served. Since the Michelin Guide started out as a guide to road-touring, the stars are not only associated with quality, but with driving value.
1 star means that if its on your way, you should stop. For the kind of restaurant it is, a one star establishment should serve very good food in a pleasant environment. But, the Guide warns readers not to compare the very-fancy "de luxe" restaurant that has one star to a simpler restaurant "where you can appreciate fine food at a reasonable price."
2 stars indicates the restaurant deserves a detour. Everything will be top-notch, if not perfect, and you should not expect a bargain.
3 stars means the restaurant merits a special trip. The food, wine, decor and service will be exceptional and you should expect to pay and you should probably leave the kids at home. There were 20 3 star restaurants in the 1995 Michelin Guide.
Michelin - From the 1995 Michelin Guide (red).
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