HILTON WAIKALOA, KONA HAWAII

My favorite: Hayman Island, Australia!

Doldar Grand (sp?) in Zurich (sp?)

It's the Dolder and it is indeed a Grand hotel. Maybe not quite the best in the world, but it's up there.

Hotel Cipriani in Venice on the Guidecca Island. It is an Orient Express Hotel.

Ritz-Carlton Naples FL
Pan-Pacific Hotel Vancouver

Tough one for me to answer... But I think that the Stein Ericsen (not sure I spelled that right) in Park City gets my vote. Only stayed there once, but our room had a full living room, fireplace, two balconies with mountain views, two bathrooms big enough to park my truck in with gold plated fixtures and 2 person whirpool tubs, a seperate room with a redwood hot tub and a shower, laundry machines, etc. I'm very partial to hot tubs and big whirlpool baths in my room. In fact, I'm delighted to have just one of them in the room--3 is sheer decadence! Definitely the most luxurious room I have ever stayed in, and it was only $300. They have a wide variety of rooms, with different decor as each room is owned by a different person, and rented out by the hotel when the owner is not in residence. They have quite a restaurant and pretty good service for America. Bet you can't get a room there for the Olympics though...

How does one compare a perfect toast with caviar to a hot fudge sundae? IMHO, "best" hotels vary by type, place and expectation, and sudaes with wetnuts are perfect today, hot butterscotch tomorrow.

Service perfection: The Oriental Bangkok, where, after a 2 year absence after ONE prior stay, the doorman greeted me with "Welcome Home Dr. Goldfinger" -[they memorize the passport photos of guests who have stayed before]. The fact that he mistook my mother for Elizabeth Taylor made her stay and her day! In the US, the Manele Bay on Lanai, where just when, walking along the beach, you feel thirsty a table with lemonade appears along the path.

Exhuberant warmth- I'll agree with Snowqualamie Falls Lodge in Washington, and abroad, the guest house in the Lisu village a few hours by elephant from Chiang Mai (the opium didn't hurt the mood, but the village women teaching us dance steps was the winner)

Setting- Amandari (or almost any of the chain) in Bali, the Plaza in NY

NOW>..how about the more fun WORST HOTEL EXPERIENCES?

I've never been to Hong Kong or Bangkok... among the best I've personally stayed in:

Hilton Short Hills (N.J., USA)
Bellvue Palace, Bern, Switzerland
Ritz-Carlton, Boston
Royal Park, Tokyo
Okura, Kobe

and my personal favorite:
Nagoya Hilton