The 148-room Mandarin Oriental in Back Bay offers some of Boston's most luxurious standard rooms, plus a 16,000-square-foot spa and extraordinary service. It has no pool; and the views aren't as grand as those at the high-end properties on Copley Square. But it's as special as any hotel in Boston -- and a clear winner if you prefer contemporary to traditional decor and ambience.

One of the city's top hotels with amazing service, a parkfront location, a great health club with a beautiful pool, and an iconic restaurant, the 273-room Four Seasons offers luxurious and spacious rooms with stunning granite bathrooms. But there's no full spa on-site.

The Boston Ritz-Carlton is refreshingly intimate with spacious, luxurious standard rooms and access, for a fee, to one of the city's best gyms, with its own spa, salon, and pool. But it doesn't thrill stylewise, service is uneven, and the restaurant is unremarkable.

Boasting the city's only rooftop pool, this 285-room Back Bay hotel offers spacious standard rooms with floor-to-ceiling windows, a fitness center with South End views, and an affordable French brasserie. Score a cheap rate, and it's worth it -- despite the lack of 24-hour room service and the daily Wi-Fi charge.

A former Federal Reserve bank turned luxury hotel in the grey, sterile Financial District, the Langham boasts immaculate, distinctively Bostonian rooms (with flat-screen TVs and Wi-Fi), spot-on service, and a stellar spa, but significant street noise keeps it from attaining perfection.

Palatial, contemporary, and elegant, the InterContinental offers huge, immaculate rooms and an array of decadent amenities (massage, pool, sushi, cocktails) in a scenic harborside location, but the service doesn't quite compare to that at Boston's best luxury hotels.

With large, stylish rooms, a Jean-Georges restaurant, a happening bar, and a Bliss spa, the sleek, 235-room outpost of the trendy brand offers a striking, modern alternative to Boston's historic hotels and traditional chains. Too bad it lacks the unique charms of smaller boutique properties.

Opened in 2008, the 150-room Fairmont Battery Wharf has great harborside views, attentive service, spacious standard rooms, a celebrated restaurant, and a location on the site of one of Boston's most historic wharves. Overall, it's a great harborfront pick.

Steeped in history, stuffed with ghost lore, and teeming with old-world grandeur, the surprisingly affordable Omni Parker House is the place to stay for a taste of Boston's literary and political past. But manage your expectations when it comes to service and rooms.

One of the cheapest hotels in Cambridge, the Hyatt Regency could get away with being a bare-bones business hotel. In fact, it's better than that: The rooms were renovated in 2010, there are quality amenities (including an indoor pool and a well-equipped gym), and it has a charming location overlooking the Charles River. It's a great value for those who don't need to be in the thick of things.