Originally Posted by
offerendum
There have always been big differences within the chains, of course, and RC, for example, no longer has a very good overall reputation with me. I still appreciate FS very much, I actually always have good stays there.
Otherwise, I have to agree that a lot depends on the property and the management.
Now you can have different opinions about Aman, everything there is not gold what glitters, but without question it is a very good chain and my last stay was far too long ago.
I'm not old enough to know from 'always', i'm still just the spry 55 YOA, but i think it logical there
must have been a time when there were much bigger differences between luxe chains. If only because of scale - across the board, there were fewer of them, and they were fewer properties within each chain's portfolio.
(Again, expansion - or managing it, managing growth, protecting the marque - seems to be pretty key here.)
I only find it harder to tell these days. I've stayed in fabulous RCs and a single O&O i was indifferent at best towards.
My own experience with FS has ranged from impossibly great (George V, Bev Wilshire) to pretty dang good (Park Lane, NYC (OG, not downtown)) to generally disappointing, on level w a higher-end IC (Mexico City, Austin).
Aman is a brand I
can't hold an opinion on, at least a truly informed one, as I've never stayed. Only one viewing - lunch at Amanyara, seemed similar to Parrot Cay where i was staying. But from decades of lore and untold amounts of love here on FT, I believe it to be the 'best' and most consistent of the 'larger' luxury brands. It will be interesting to see how long this lasts, seems unlikely they will be closing anything (Sveti?) soon, and expansion continues... properties, sister brands....
This was a full-on hijack by me. Maybe it would make an interesting post/thread title of its own. 'Which luxury chain is most consistent'. Could make for a seatbelt-fasteningbumpy night, too!
