UPDATE: In 2007, I visited Georgia's two Mobile Travel Guide five-star hotels -- the Four Seasons Atlanta and the Lodge at Sea Island -- to understand why travelers would pay top dollar for an overnight stay. It's a question that many have when they hear of hotel rooms that cost $1,000 or more a night.
Mobile’s star-system -- which in recent years has been taken over by Forbes Travel Guide -- is considered the gold standard in hotel rankings (another is the AAA Five Diamond). The exacting qualifications that must be met to receive the top honors often elude even the fanciest lodging, which makes receiving a five-star designation so desirable in the industry.
Today, the Lodge at Sea Island and the Four Seasons Atlanta have been joined by the Cloister in Sea Island as the state’s three top hotels as designated by Forbes. Below is a story that explains how the state’s two five-star lodgers at the time stayed on top.
ORIGINAL STORY: At the Four Seasons Atlanta and the Lodge at Sea Island, it all starts the moment you pull into the circular driveway.
The staff rushes out to greet you as soon as the car door is opened. They know your name. You don't even have to worry about your luggage because it's taken care of before your feet hit the ground.
From there, it's nothing but continuous service to make you feel as if you're the only guest around. Nothing you request is too outlandish. No expense is spared for your comfort.
At a five-star hotel, you're a rock star.
Georgia's top two hotels --- as rated by Mobil Travel Guide, the author of the star system --- are about to get more competition for that lofty designation.
Some of the most prestigious brands in the hotel industry --- St. Regis, Rosewood and Mandarin --- will open their doors in Atlanta in the next few years, and each will promote their pedigree as a five-star hotel, the gold standard in the lodging community.
The reason is simple: A five-star designation translates into higher room rates --- a one-night stay at the Four Seasons starts at $400, and at the Lodge the price is $650 --- an automatic preference by the rich and famous and entree into the exclusive ranks of the mega-luxurious.
"What we're talking about here really is the top 1 percent of the top 1 percent," said Mark Woodworth, executive vice president of PKF Consulting Inc., an Atlanta firm that tracks the health of the hotel industry.
Indeed. Of the more than 40,000 hotels in the country, only 37 are five-star. They include such well-known locations as the Beverly Hills Hotel in California and St. Regis in New York, along with inns such as Fearrington House in North Carolina and Twin Farms in Vermont.
"The overall experience determines the rating, not the facility," said Shane O'Flaherty, a spokesman for Mobil Travel. He said 75 percent of the score is based on service quality; 25 percent is the quality of the building. While there is another, equally well-respected rating system --- AAA's diamond ratings --- it is the star measurement that is arguably better known by the general population.
Mobil evaluates about 8,000 hotels annually, O'Flaherty said. They range from high-end hotels such as W to more moderately priced lodges such as Quality Inn and Marriott Suites.
The hotel officials never know when Mobil staffers are coming, and the Mobil workers travel incognito, O'Flaherty said. They stay three days and two nights. Sometimes it's one evaluator, other times it's two to throw off any hotels looking for an out-of-place guest.
"It's very challenging for us as inspectors," O'Flaherty said. "For instance, at the Lodge we might go in pairs to blend in with the environment."
When the points are tallied, some hotels may fall off; new ones may be added. The next ratings will be issued in January, which also marks the 50th anniversary of the star system.
But earning those five stars comes at a price, Woodworth said. What distinguishes five-star hotels is an overabundance of staff. There are concierges, doormen, valets, extra housekeepers, massage therapists and even baby sitters. Many workers are fluent in other languages, to accommodate international travelers.
Five-star hotels also offer additional services that require heavier staffing, including turning down beds at night, around-the-clock room service and little perks such as polishing shoes overnight so guests will find them waiting outside their rooms in the morning.
That costs money. Lots of money, Woodworth said. The annual cost of labor and related spending for the average hotel is about $18,000 per room. For the luxury hotels, it's $40,000 per room. "You have a very large staff-to-guest ratio," he said. "It's a very costly proposition."
Luxury on steroids
While both of Georgia's five-star hotels draw customers with deep pockets, they are very different.
The Four Seasons, part of a Midtown Atlanta tower on 14th Street, attracts royalty, celebrities and corporate honchos in town to do business at Atlanta's Fortune 500 companies. It has been a five-star hotel for the past eight years.
The Lodge, a five-star hotel for five years, is more of a vacation getaway. Situated on a private inlet, its well-tended golf course lures some of the nation's top golfers, while travelers looking to play in the water are driven to its beachfront sister property, the Cloister, in Range Rovers. The hotel was the site of the 2004 G-8 Summit.
What the two hotels share is opulence. Both have spas, and their guest rooms are elegantly appointed. Their restaurants are top-rated, and it's best to wear a jacket when dining there.
The Four Seasons offers skyline views, marble bathrooms and Bulgari products in suites. The Lodge overlooks manicured lawns, includes a private airport and features a bagpipe serenade on the greens at dusk.
Hitting the mark
It's definitely hard work, said Denise Flanders, general manager for the Four Seasons. Her staffers have to be on their toes at all times.
They try to determine the likes and needs of new guests by asking questions, detailing the hotel's services to gauge interests, or even researching a guest's name on the Internet to glean any "do's" and "don'ts."
For returning guests, notes are put into the computer system to make sure an enjoyable visit is provided.
"The key to all this is communication," Flanders said. "It's a constant cycle. It's never-ending."
At the Lodge, it's even more focused. Every guest is assigned a butler. Need golf balls brought to your room in the morning? Hit the butler button on your phone. Aching from running on the beach? The butler will set up a massage appointment. Forgot your husband's birthday? The butler can have a Rolex gift-wrapped and ready for that last-minute surprise at dinner.
"They have grocery-shopped, taken shoes, jewelry, watches and cars to be repaired and cleaned, as well as arranged for an Aston Martin to be shipped to New York after a guest decided he could not make the drive home and preferred to fly," Rachel Tate, a spokeswoman for the Lodge, said of the butlers. "Butlers have prepared Christmas trees and shopped for 'Santa' to arrive on Christmas Day."
As an added bonus, guests planning to return can leave items in storage at both hotels. They include everything from dozens of shoes for one star athlete who is a frequent visitor to Atlanta to a Mercedes boarded at the Lodge by its owner.
Marsha Middleton, a Four Seasons spokeswoman, said the staff will do everything it can to accommodate a guest, short of "anything immoral or illegal."
Service excellence
Dr. John McGrath spends about 200 days a year on the road. His work as vice chairman of the Hawthorn Group, a public affairs group based outside Washington, takes him all over the country. He has tried many hotels.
But when he visits Atlanta --- about twice a month --- he always stays at the Four Seasons, he said.
"It's not about the appointments," he said of the hotel's extensive marble entry, its spa or its professionally designed suites. "Yes, it's got sheets with high thread counts, but there are a long list of hotels with comfortable sheets.
"What most travelers are looking for in their hotels is a consistent excellence," he said. "Travelers want a hotel that makes good on its promises."
He gets that at the Four Seasons, he said. When he arrives, he skips the registration desk and goes straight to his room. The suit he leaves at the hotel is waiting for him, fresh from a dry cleaning. When he calls room service, the staff already knows what he wants and how he likes it cooked.
"Luxury is wonderful, but it's really superficial," he said. "What I like is that I don't see any difference in how they treated me from the first time I stayed to the 150th. That is how you measure excellent service."
THE RATINGS
Think your hotel is a star? Here's Mobil Travel Guide's criteria for getting a star rating.
***** An exceptionally distinctive luxury environment, offering expanded amenities and consistently superlative service, makes these hotels and inns the best in the United States and Canada. Attention to detail and the anticipation of guests' every need are evident throughout this exclusive group of hotels.
**** Outstanding establishment in a distinctive setting, with expanded amenities and exceptional service to create a luxury experience. Services may include automatic turndown service, valet parking and 24-hour room service.
*** Well-appointed establishment with a full-service restaurant and expanded amenities and services such as room service, fitness center and optional turndown service.
** Comfortable establishment that is clean and reliable with expanded services including a full-service restaurant.
* Clean, comfortable and reliable establishments with limited services and amenities.
