20090826 -- Five-Diamond Hotels (1)

Five-Diamond Hotels

What makes a great hotel?
SC: The Stars and Diamonds ranking systems – what are they and how do they work?
DC: "Diamonds" are the ranking system used by the American Automobile Association(AAA). Rankings range from one to five diamonds and are awarded annually based on the service performance of a hotel. The more diamonds a hotel has, the more luxury it provides for its guests. The Fairmont Olympic Hotel in Seattle is one of only three hotels in North America that has maintained a five-diamond designation for 25 consecutive years. A number of different ranking organizations use "stars." Rankings usually range from one to five stars – again measuring the level of service and quality of the hotel.

SC: What makes a five-diamond hotel a five-diamond hotel?
DC: Adherence to service standards in what sets a five-diamond hotel apart from the rest. When evaluated by AAA, a hotel must achieve a score of 300 or higher, out of a possible 352 points, to be designated withe the prestigious five-diamond award.

Points are given for meeting a serious of detailed service-related criteria ranging from friendliness and attentiveness of staff to clearlinesee and service available.
Once a year, AAA arrives unannounced and evaluates hotels from a guest's perspective.

designate v. 選出/給予某種稱謂
designation n. 選派
eg: Phil has received the "Most Valuable Player" designation three times.
eg: The resort has the designation of "the best resort in the country for honeymooners".
eg: His designation as ambassador to France was confirmed today.

adherence n. 堅持/固守
adherence to
eg: Close adherence to a study plan usually helps Cheryl get great marks.
eg: Adherence to top quality ingredients makes the restaurant outstanding even after all these years.
eg: Our principal's adherence to rules in well-known among students.

criteria pl n. criterion的複數
criterion n. (判斷、批評的)標準/準則/尺度
eg: Students need to meet three criteria before they are allowed to go on the class trip.

attevtive adj. 體貼的/留意的
attentiveness n. 留意
=> give special care to something
eg: The attentiveness of the flight attendants made Jordan's trip very comfortable.
eg: The attentiveness of the flight attendants impressed everyone of us.
eg: It was Paul's attentiveness that actually won Vivian's heart.


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Are you all set?
= Are you ready?

set apart 挪出來/擱置一旁

set apart 與眾不同
=> distinquish someone from someone else
eg: His talent sets him apart from his classmates.

set in one's ways 頑固保守
=> not flexible

set in gold 鑲嵌
=> setting

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The more diamonds a hotel has, the more luxury it provides for its guests.

The more + object + subject + verb
=> how an increaing something will lead to an increasing something else

eg: The more phone calls I answers, the more headaches I get.
eg: The more cans the students collect and recycle, the more money they can raise for the class trip.