Any new additions to this thread? We've been pretty lucky with our hotels lately, so nothing from me, aside from possibly the Grand Hyatt Taipei, which we stayed in a few months ago. Granted, Grand Hyatt's may not actually be considered "luxury", and the Taipei hotel wasn't terrible. But considering the hotel is considered amongst the best in Taiwan, that in itself made it disappointing; tired rooms, tacky decor, and the lack of exceptional service.

One non-disappointment I'd like to report would be the Langham Huntington Hotel in Pasadena, which I stayed in last week. Having grown up in the area and going there even before the change of management to the Ritz-Carlton, I was concerned like many of you of the ownership change to the Langham this year.

I'm happy to say that nothing really seems changed, other than the pink motif that seems to dominate now the branding. But the service was great, the rooms were nice (though I recommend only staying in the Main Building), and the food the best in the area. Highly recommended if you find you need to stay in the San Gabriel Valley.

And to just throw my two cents into the side-topic above, I loved the three Robuchon restaurants I've been to, loved The French Laundry and Ad Hoc (Bouchon not so much), but I am also dying to try elBulli, The Fat Duck and Alinea!