DENVER, Oct. 31 - Three Colorado hotels have earned the hospitality industry's top designation for 2007: the AAA Five Diamond Award. The Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, The Little Nell in Aspen, and the Ritz-Carlton Bachelor Gulch in Beaver Creek join an exclusive club of 93 hotels chosen nationally from more than 60,000 AAA rated properties across the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. The Broadmoor was chosen for the 31st consecutive year and is one of only three hotels in the nation who has maintained the distinction since the Diamond ratings were first applied to hotels. The Little Nell in Aspen was chosen for the 16th consecutive year; the Ritz-Carlton Bachelor Gulch in Beaver Creek was selected for the second consecutive year. "It takes every department functioning on all cylinders to achieve this distinction," said Broadmoor Hotel spokesperson Allison Scott. "The skill is making it look easy." To become AAA Approved and Diamond rated, hotels and restaurants undergo a thorough inspection by one of AAA's 65 full time, professional evaluators. There is no fee or charge to be inspected or listed. Five Diamond establishments complete a more extensive review that includes a series of inspections and final committee review. Some 60,000 hotels and restaurants nationally will be listed in the 2007 AAA TourBook guides, in print and on www.aaa.com/diamonds. Twenty-eight Colorado hotels received the Four Diamond rating. Both the Brown Palace Hotel & Spa in Denver and the General Palmer Hotel in Durango received the award for the 31st consecutive year. New to the Four Diamond Award list in Colorado this year are The Grand Hyatt in Denver and the Lodge at Vail. While there are no restaurants in Colorado that made the Five Diamond Award list, 25 Colorado restaurants received the Four Diamond Award. The restaurant with the greatest longevity on this list is The Flagstaff House Restaurant in Boulder, with 18 consecutive years. New to the Four Diamond Award list for restaurants in Colorado are the Summit in Colorado Springs, and Vail's Restaurant Kelly Liken and the Wildflower. AAA first started listing accommodation information in its travel publications in the early 1900s. In 1937, the first field inspectors were hired to inspect hotels, motels, and restaurants. In 1963, AAA began to rate all accommodations as good, very good, excellent or outstanding. The Diamond rating process, introduced in 1977 for hotels and 1989 for restaurants, continues to be recognized, as the most trusted rating process for North American travelers. AAA Colorado reaches one in four households in the state and is an advocate for safety and security for all travelers. As North America’s largest motoring and leisure travel organization, AAA provides its nearly 49 million members with travel, insurance, financial and automotive-related services, as well as member-exclusive savings. ###
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