Best of Boston

2012 Best Hotel, General Excellence

Mandarin Oriental

There’s something formulaic about high-end hotels these days. Marble vanities + giant flat screens + bazillion-thread-count Frette sheets = the right to charge upward of $500 per night for a room. The Mandarin Oriental, naturally, has all of these luxuries. But the Back Bay hotel also offers more-thoughtful perks, including chilled towels in the gym, rainforest showers, and video-game systems.

776 Boylston St., Boston, 617-535-8888, mandarinoriental.com/boston