I live here and like this post very much. It addresses what I see as the key issue, i.e. what combination of Quality (incl. luxury) and Location create the best value for you. To me this makes eminent sense. There are always cheaper or more luxurious, but the best hotel for many is the combination of the two that creates optimum utility.
Good post!
I think normally this is question of budget personal preference, but there were some pretty specific things the OP wanted to do in a pretty tight time frame, which kind of dictates the choices.