A majority of people on a motoring trip are not going to be considering a five-star hotel as their temporary home away from home. When budget-minded travelers make their plans, they usually hold with a family tradition of making their own fun as inexpensively as possible. On a vacation, entertaining themselves can include such non-pricey activities as hiking, checking out the local natural beauty, and even hitting the local movie theater. If anyone considers calling room service, that is promptly quashed (especially on a business trip); the days when they were kids raiding the hotel swimming pool are, sadly, long past.

Typically, “luxurious accommodations” denotes something as basic as a comfortable bed in a fastidiously cleaned room. You can be sure that a 5-star hotel goes a good bit beyond this basic. You can get a suite of rooms each containing a fireplace. You can order an elaborate catered meal in your room. You may find yourself walking on marble floors as you cross the lobby. And you may find recreation rooms to rival the most expensive gyms. You might be able to engage a world-class masseur or masseuse to work you over nicely after a workout. Now, I have never used all the facilities offered by a five-star, and God knows I didn’t need everything they make available, but if you don’t think you will be overdoing it, or being wastefully extravagant, then by all means do it. You should look at these luxury hotels as an experience to be had at least once in a lifetime, if for nothing other than pure curiosity.

The five-star hotel just dares us to stay at it. The impressive degree of luxury proffered makes it a dare difficult to brush aside. And while the price of a stay is not cheap, the total value of a stay at any such establishment worldwide makes it well worthwhile. Some of the rooms we can register for come with deluxe units, king-size beds, and the proverbial “view”, some are terraced and contain a magnificent king-sized four-poster, and some are breezy, spacious suites with multiple balconies. The architectural design of these hotels, particularly that of the internal spaces, is superbly realized, making them a draw if for nothing other than the art of their design.

Regardless of location, most five-star hotels will provide for us a thoroughly up-to-date, and decidedly comfortable, stay-over, which will make it all that much harder to not come back. Part of this memorable experience is the, um, bathroom. Yes, we will remember the huge tubs and showers, attractively tiled, the deluxe toiletries laid out for afterward, and for us ladies, a darling dual vanity. The icing on the cake? A personal concierge service to help you get ready for drinks and dancing in the stunning lounge/bar.

One can expect to find most of the standard facilities one could find in any hotel, such as air conditioning, cable TV, private bath, hair dryer, mini-bar, room safe, coffee maker, parking lot, telephone and Internet access. One might also be provided with a sauna, tour arrangement desk, and a breakfast nook. Five-star hotels, regardless of where they are located, always enjoy a permanent elevated status among their peers in the lodging world, and the proof is in one’s experience of a five-star stay, an experience that will erase any doubts about the claim that one is staying in one of the best hotels in the world. In such an establishment, one can look forward to dining on international cuisines and following it with a visit to a private bar relaxing enough to invite a prolonged stay, and wishes of staying forever.