Got to agree with Sunbear, the best hotels i've stayed in have been in SE Asia, even if they are not classed as 5star the service is most definitely 5star, and good prices too. Once we got upgraded to a suite at the Ritz Carlton in Singapore the room was fantastic and the staff were more friendly with us in casual clothes as we were out and about than with the all the "suits" who were on business, we felt a bit out of place but were not made to feel like that , plus my money is as good as anyones elses so why should i feel like that anyway?
One of the only problems with booking 5star places is that they do really charge very high prices for drinks and snacks, so while you might get fantastic accomodation and facilities at fairly reasonable prices you are looking at a re-mortgage to have a club sandwich and coke.
I generally look closely at room facilities and bathrooms ( i really hate grotty bathrooms) and location when booking and read as many reviews to then decide the best value for money, i'm also fussy about flight times, no good having a luxury holiday only to have to sit around for hours waiting for the 11pm flight back home if late check-out rooms aren't available.
Like Sunbear, we have also booked private villas with pools and we absolutely love these type of holidays, nothing better than strolling out to your sunbed early morning and enjoying a bowl of crunchy nut cornflakes, for me thats 5star with a twist