I know there can be quite a bit of variation in individual hotels from city to city, but which chain do you think is consistently the best (i.e. overall quality, cleanliness, bang for the buck, service, decor, etc.)? I'm thinking primarily of chains like Marriott, Hilton, Sheraton, Hyatt, Westin, etc. as opposed to very high-end places like Four Seasons or lower end spots like Days Inn. Any opinions?

Honestly I think Hampton Inns are the nicest. Marriotts have too many variations (JW Marriott, Courtyard By Marriott, etc), Sheraton has too many variations (4 Points), and Hyatts are starting to get old and beat up. The same for Wyndhams. Westins however, are very nice.

Hotel age is the biggest key.
I don't choose by chain, I choose by location and hotel age most of the time.

That said, for low price, I like Courtyards best.

Mid-price Westins.

High price, Four Seasons.

I agree with the Hampton Inn vote. Nothing particularly fancy, but good, clean, consistant and friendly.....plus a free continental breakfast. I've never stayed at a bad one.

For moderate hotels when traveling (not as a destination), I love the Embassy Suites. Especially with kids, you have to love the 2 separate rooms, 2 T.V.s and a hot breakfast buffet which is included in the price. Makes it easy to get up and go in the morning.

For the lower price chains I've stayed at Hampton Inns and Holiday Inn Express. They were both great for the money (very cheap). They were clean, and they had free continental breakfasts. Nothing fancy but I think you can trust them when you're on the road and need to stay over.

for the more expensive chains I like Westins and Loews, even though they are far and few between.

Of course RC and 4S are always excellent, but I would put them in a separate, premium class.

I also got to give my vote to Hampton Inn. It always seems a good value for the money.

Find Best Westerns to have generally very good quality standards. That said, have also noticed that in big cities like L.A. and San Fran, the best westerns are often in less-than-desirable neighborhoods.

Also like Hampton Inns and La Quinta Inns. Have seen wild variations in quality standards at Quality Inns, Holiday Inns, Travelodges and Howard Johnson's so tend not to trust them unless both AAA and Mobil have given them 3 stars.

I will concur with Hampton Inn. Have stayed in many along east coast.

Always clean, friendly, ddecent breakfast and when I traveled alone, I always felt secure.