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Auto Club: Top Southern California Hotels and Restaurants Earn 2011 AAA Four Diamond Awards

Seventy Southern California hotels and 34 restaurants have earned the 2011 AAA Four Diamond Award, the Automobile Club of Southern California announced today. Seven locations appear for the first time on the 2011 list including Lake Arrowhead Resort & Spa, Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes, La Valencia Hotel, as well as Cut, and Donovan's Steak & Chop House restaurants. Patina received its 20th consecutive AAA Four Diamond Award rating.

The coveted rating plaque featuring a design of four raised simulated diamonds and the AAA Four Diamond Award logo are presented to hotel and restaurant general managers and executive chefs to recognize the award-winning properties, which rank among the top 3.4 percent of more than 2,600 Southern California hotels, motels, and restaurants inspected by the Auto Club, the nation's largest AAA affiliate.

"North America's AAA Diamond Rating System is a long-time trusted systematic method of rating lodgings and restaurants, especially during what has been a difficult economic year for the hospitality industry and also for travelers," said the Auto Club's Approved Accommodations Supervisor Patricia Marenco. "Southern California's hotels and restaurants that earn the AAA Four Diamond award maintain a very high standard of service in their hotels and restaurants in order to continue pleasing their guests."

The list of 2011 AAA Four Diamond hotels and restaurants throughout Southern California follows, along with the consecutive years each property has earned the award:

Inyo/Mono Counties Hotel                                               Years

Death Valley National Park  The Inn at Furnace Creek                      24

Los Angeles County Hotels

Beverly Hills               Beverly Wilshire, A Four Seasons Hotel        18
                            Montage Beverly Hills                          2
                            SLS Hotel at Beverly Hills                     2

Glendale                    Hilton Los Angeles North/Glendale             11
                            & Executive Meeting Center

Hollywood                   Renaissance Hollywood Hotel & Spa              3

Los Angeles                 Sofitel Los Angeles                           18
                            Omni Los Angeles Hotel                         8
                            InterContinental Los Angeles Century City     23
                            Hyatt Regency Century Plaza & Spa             28

Pasadena                    The Westin -- Pasadena                         6

Rancho Palos Verdes         Terranea Resort                                1

Santa Monica                The Fairmont Miramar Hotel & Bungalows         9
                            Le Merigot -- A JW Marriott Beach Hotel & Spa  9
                            Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel                22

Universal City              Hilton Los Angeles/Universal City              4

West Hollywood              The London West Hollywood                      3
                            Sunset Marquis Hotel & Villas                  4

Los Angeles County Restaurants

Beverly Hills               Cut                                            1
                            Spago Beverly Hills                            7

Calabasas                   Saddle Peak Lodge                             14

Glendale                    Gennaro's Ristorante                          11

Long Beach                  The Sky Room                                   7

Los Angeles                 Gardens (Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles       16
                            at Beverly Hills)
                            Patina                                        20

Marina del Rey              jer-ne restaurant                             10
                            (The Ritz-Carlton Marina del Rey)

Pasadena                    The Raymond Restaurant                         6

Santa Monica                Valentino Santa Monica                        16

Westlake Village            Hampton's                                      4

Orange County Hotels

Anaheim                     Disney's Grand Californian Hotel & Spa        10

Dana Point                  Blue Lantern Inn                              20
                            Laguna Cliffs Marriott Resort & Spa            7

Huntington Beach            The Waterfront Beach Resort, A Hilton Hotel   20
                            Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach Resort & Spa    8

Irvine                      Hyatt Regency Irvine                           8

Laguna Beach                Montage Laguna Beach                           1
                            Surf & Sand Resort                            20

Newport Beach               The Balboa Bay Club & Resort                   7
                            Fairmont Newport Beach                         4

Orange County Restaurants

Anaheim                     Napa Rose                                      1

Fullerton                   The Cellar                                    21

Huntington Beach            The Californian (Hyatt Regency Huntington      8
                            Beach Resort & Spa)

Laguna Beach                Studio (Montage Laguna Beach)                  3

Newport Beach               Palm Terrace Restaurant (Island Hotel)         4
                            The First Cabin At The Balboa Bay              7
                            Club & Resort
                            The Ritz Restaurant & Garden                  18

Riverside County Hotels

Cabazon                     Morongo Casino Resort & Spa                    6

Indian Wells                Hyatt Grand Champions Resort                  24
                            Miramonte Resort and Spa                       3
                            Renaissance Esmeralda Resort and Spa           8

Lake Arrowhead              Lake Arrowhead Resort & Spa                    1

Palm Desert                 JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa       24

Palm Springs                The Willows Historic Palm Springs Inn         14

Rancho Mirage               Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa                2
                            The Westin Mission Hills Resort & Spa          2

Temecula                    Pechanga Resort and Casino                     9

Riverside County Restaurants

Rancho Mirage               Wally's Desert Turtle                         18

Palm Springs                Europa Restaurant at the Villa Royale Inn      6
                            Le Vallauris                                  18

Riverside                   Duane's Prime Steaks & Seafood (Mission Inn)  16

San Bernardino County Hotels

Big Bear Lake               Alpenhorn Bed & Breakfast                     11

San Diego County Hotels

Coronado                    Hotel del Coronado                             6
                            Loews Coronado Bay                            19

Del Mar                     L'Auberge Del Mar                              9

Julian                      Orchard Hill Country Inn                      15

Lakeside                    Barona Resort & Casino                         1

La Jolla                    Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa                  6
                            Hyatt Regency La Jolla                        21
                            La Valencia Hotel                              1
                            The Grande Colonial                            3

Pala                        Pala Casino Spa and Resort                     7

Rancho Santa Fe             Rancho Valencia an Auberge Resort             21

San Diego                   Hard Rock Hotel San Diego                      3
                            Omni San Diego Hotel                           6
                            Rancho Bernardo Inn                           34
                            Pacific Terrace Hotel                          4
                            San Diego Marriott Hotel & Marina             27
                            The US Grant, A Luxury Collection Hotel        4
                            The Westgate Hotel                             4
                            The Westin San Diego                          17

Valley Center               Harrah's Rincon Casino & Resort                2

San Diego County Restaurants

Carlsbad                    Vivace (Hyatt Park Aviara Resort)             12

La Jolla                    A.R. Valentien (The Lodge at Torrey Pines)     7
                            Donovan's Steak & Chop House                   1
                            George's California Modern                    11
                            Sky Room (La Valencia Hotel)                  20

Rancho Santa Fe             Mille Fleurs                                  20

San Diego                   Baci's                                         7
                            Bertrand at Mister A's                        17
                            El Bizcocho Restaurant (Rancho Bernardo Inn)  21
                            Grant Grill (The US Grant)                     4

San Luis Obispo County Hotels

Cambria                     Pelican Cove Inn                               3
                            Blue Whale Inn Bed & Breakfast                20

Cayucos                     Cayucos Sunset Inn                             9

Pismo Beach                 Dolphin Bay Resort & Spa                       2

Santa Barbara County Hotels

Santa Barbara               Fess Parker's Doubletree Resort                5
                            Harbor View Inn                               14
                            Inn on Summer Hill                            21

Santa Ynez                  Chumash Casino Resort & Spa                    7
                            Santa Ynez Inn                                 9

Solvang                     The Ballard Inn                               18
                            Petersen Village Inn                          27

Santa Barbara County Restaurants

Santa Ynez                  The Willows (Chumash Casino Resort & Spa)      6

Solvang                     The Ballard Inn Restaurant (The Ballard Inn)   6

AAA's Diamond rating program is the only hotel and restaurant review system in the nation that uses specially trained full-time field representatives. As part of AAA's national network, the Auto Club's own staff reviews establishments in Southern California without prior notification using objective and detailed rating procedures.

Lodging inspections include at least one unannounced inspection each year. Inspectors review and rate exterior, grounds and public areas, room décor, ambiance and amenities, guest room, bathrooms, housekeeping and maintenance, management and staff and guest services. Once the inspection process is complete, properties that meet all requirements receive a rating of one to five Diamonds.

AAA approves and rates more than 57,000 lodgings and restaurants each year throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. A wide range of property listings are included in printed regional TourBook® guides and on www.AAA.com, where many travel planning and information services -- including the well-known TripTik® Travel Planner, TourBook® listings and Diamond Ratings -- are now available to non-members as well. They are also available, in part, on www.AAAmaps.com. The AAA Four Diamond rating is exclusive in that less than 4% of all AAA approved properties achieve this rating.