Originally Posted by iflyjetz

I really, really to do not want to feed the troll-like responses to anything that may be perceived as snobbery or anti-Club Carlson. This thread has already taken on a much nastier/defensive tone than is necessary.

If you're happier with a Radisson in Paris than the PH Vendome, that's great. That's not meant as an insult; as long as you're happy with the Radisson, why spend the extra money? I've stayed 2 nights in a suite at the PH Vendome, courtesy of my free Hyatt Visa credit card nights. It is one of the top hotels in the world; I had a great stay there. If not for the free credit card nights, I would have stayed somewhere less upscale. Probably the Westin Paris Vendome - same location but much less expensive. That's still more expensive than any Radisson in Paris so I'm sure I'll get flamed for that choice. However, I'm an SPG Plat and Hyatt Diamond so there are other perks that come with top tier status with those hotel chains.

I've seen a post here where someone said that they'd never pay more than $200/night for a hotel room. I understand that; I used to have the same opinion. I'm in a different point in my life where I can afford to spend a bit more on hotel rooms than I used to. Last summer, we traveled to China and we stayed at the St Regis in Lhasa Tibet. This is a place where you can get a decent hotel room for $50 or so. Since it was my daughter's birthday while we were there, I used cash and points for the St Regis - 10K pts + $180 per night. Fantastic hotel, but I'm sure many would call it an overpriced piece of crap. To each his/her own.