The Suite Life

As the new Sex and the City movie prepares to make its debut, New York City gets ready for its close up as well. The show’s ever-present fifth character will be featured in its full glamor in the upcoming film, and hotels around the city are featuring special Sex and the City packages so that everyone can feel fabulous in the Big Apple.

USA Today found a sampling of the deluxe packages at hip hotels such as The Muse Hotel, and classics such as the Mandarin Oriental New York and The Westin New York at Times Square .

The packages include everything from luxury accommodations, hip clothing goodies, special tours and other signature SATC items (sorry, no Jimmy Choo shoes or Birkin Bag included).

If you rather star in your own fabulous New York City experience, take a look at these New York City luxury hotel offers from Perfect Escapes.

Gramercy Park Hotel – Weekend in the Park Package

Hotel Roger Williams – Just Us Girls Package

The Peninsula New York – Summer Splendour Package

The New York Palace – New York Holiday Package

Hotel Mela – Manhattan Luxe Package

By Sarah Ziering for Perfect Escapes

The Chicago Tribune recently reported that hotels in the Windy City are stepping up their high-tech amenities in an effort to make guests feel more at home. While the general consensus is that nothing is as important as impeccable service when it comes to a hotel experience, it can’t hurt to lavish guests with high-tech amenities to accompany the custom pillows and service. In a world where people are plugged in to some sort of device almost constantly, hotels are reaching out to high-tech lifestyles who live in a luxuriously gadgety world.

The Hard Rock Hotel Chicago is installing HDTV’s into every guest room, while The Peninsula is upgraded cell-phone coverage and many area hotels are succumbing to the almost now standard amenity of free wireless internet.

Many Chicago hotels are also offering video game consoles, more accessible outlets, and in-room laptop storage safes in addition to the giant plasma TV’s and entertainment systems.

When you mix luxury with high-tech you can lay in your turned-down, fluffy bed, watching your HDTV, while your ipod charges in the alarm dock next to you, all while a concierge happily arranges for the phone charge your forgot to be replaced and dropped at your hotel room door. It’s virtual hotel bliss.

Find luxury hotels in Chicago on Perfect Escapes

A recent W Magazine article examined a new class of concierge that has emerged in top luxury hotels. These are the “can do” concierges, who will do almost anything at anytime for their guests, and not just the VIP ones.

Increases in luxury hotel competitiveness and in hotel room prices seem to explain why hotels feel the need to both stand out from the crowd and to increase customer loyalty. Just as they are upping the design and amenity standards, so too are luxury hotels making guests feel more special with personal, constant service.

The article explains that 20 years ago, people didn’t use concierges for much more than restaurant recommendations, and assumed their services were reserved for VIP’s. But when the standard room now goes for over $500 per night, every guest has come to expect VIP-level service.

To some degree, that’s exactly what the hotels want. If they can fulfill inventive and sometimes outrageous requests, than they made the guest’s experience memorable and hopefully gained their loyalty. Luxury travel is all about unique, brag-worthy experiences these days, and concierges want to see it happen, especially since user reviews and word of mouth have become paramount to traveler’s hotel decisions. St. Regis’ legendary personal butler service, InterContinental’s pillow bar, and Peninsula’s Concierge Choice newsletter are just a few examples of the efforts made by top luxury hotel chains to make guests’ stays the best possible.

On the other hand, more and more extreme cases have arisen in which guests become downright demanding and difficult with their last-minute and unusual requests (house broken pets, double-decker buses and more). While concierges refuse to do anything “illegal or immoral”, they stick to their “can do” attitude as much as possible, and ask that you take advantage of their services on your next trip. Whether you need a rooftop private dinner for two or a new computer battery, they really are happy to help (most of the time).

Find luxury hotels in top destinations around the world at Perfect Escapes:

New York City

Chicago

Los Angeles

Miami

San Francisco

Las Vegas

By Sarah Ziering for Perfect Escapes

For those of us who love to “live vicariously” through our “friends and families” by listening to their “detailed cave explorations in the Andes” and their “digital slideshows of over 1,000 beautiful landscapes,” Zagats has always been and always will be the epitome of sound-bite reviews. Trip Advisor might be more popular with longer reviews, but Zagat’s will always hold a warm place in my heart.

So, it was nice to see that the Zagat Survey today released the results of its 2007/2008 World’s Top Hotels, Resorts and Spas survey. The guide is based on the experiences of 21,783 frequent travelers and 1,626 professional travel agents who averaged 36.9 hotel nights per year. It includes rates and reviews of 1,287 of the best places to stay and play in the world as well as 48 leading hotel chains.

The following lists show the leading chains, hotels, resorts and spas:

Hotel Chains:

1. Amanresorts
2. Four Seasons
3. Mandarin Oriental
4. Raffles
5. St. Regis
6. Ritz-Carlton
7. Rosewood
8. Orient-Express
9. Oberoi
10. Shangri-La

Large Hotels (100+ rooms):

Peninsula, Los Angeles

1. Four Seasons George V, Paris
2. Peninsula, Chicago
3. Peninsula, Bangkok
4. Peninsula, Hong Kong
5. Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok
6. Four Seasons, Chicago
7. Four Seasons, Budapest
8. Mandarin Oriental, Miami
9. Peninsula, Los Angeles
10. Four Seasons, Las Vegas

Resorts (100+ rooms):

Four Seasons Punta Mita, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

1. Four Seasons/Hualalai, Hawaii
2. One & Only, Baja Peninsula, Mexico
3. Four Seasons Wailea, Hawaii
4. Four Seasons, Canadian Rockies
5. Burj Al Arab, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
6. Four Seasons Resort, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
7. Halekulani, Hawaii
8. Ritz-Carlton, Cayman Islands
9. Four Seasons Resort, Provence
10. Four Seasons, Punta Mita, Mexico

Small Hotels, Resorts & Inns (less than 100 rooms):

Amanjiwo, Borobudur, Indonesia

1. Singita, Kruger Area, South Africa
2. Amanjiwo, Borobudur, Indonesia
3. Four Seasons Tented, Golden Triangle, Thailand
4. Como Shambala, Bali
5. Four Seasons, Chiang Mai, Thailand
6. Oberoi Udaivilas, Rajasthan, India
7. Amankila, Bali
8. Gidleigh Park, Devon, U.K.
9. Four Seasons Sayan, Bali
10. Blanket Bay, Queenstown, New Zealand