Four Central Pennsylvania accommodations and two restaurants have again been deemed outstanding and have earned the AAA Four Diamond Award.

AAA Central Penn honored the businesses recently during a luncheon at the Hotel Hershey, one of the award recipients. The others were the Inn and Spa at Intercourse Village, Leola Village Inn and Suites, the Hilton Harrisburg and its Golden Sheaf restaurant, and the Circular Dining Room at the Hotel Hershey. After the meal, the representatives spoke with Sandy Fenton for a taping of her radio talk show "Let’s Talk Travel with AAA."

Leonard R. Sempier, president/CEO of AAA Central Penn, said that not only should these establishments be proud of their accomplishment because only about 1,000 Four Diamonds are awarded in the United States each year, but because they earn it consistently year after year.

Hotel Hershey’s General Manager Brian O’Day spoke about the hotel’s spa and The Oasis Restaurant, which serves meals to spa patrons in their robes, the renovated golf club house that reopened in May and a pavilion for weddings that opened in October. Ronald P. Suski, director of food and beverage at the Circular Dining Room, emphasized the popularity of the restaurant’s Sunday brunch and that reservations were necessary a few weeks in advance for most Sundays and a year in advance for holidays. The restaurant is open daily. For information, visit www.hotelhershey.com.

Elmer Thomas of the Inn and Spa at Intercourse Village said his property offers nine country suites, three with Jaccuzzies for two. The 1909 Victorian-style home, which has been in Mennonite ownership for almost 100 years, offers five rooms. The inn caters to couples and mostly leisure travelers. Patrons are served a five-course breakfast by candlelight. Spa services and packages are available. For information, visit www.amishcountryinns.com.

Bill Kohl, president of the Hilton Harrisburg, said the 341-room hotel built in 1990 is mainly a business and convention hotel. Kohl, and Joe Massaro, general manager of the hotel, said that some leisure-travel families do stay there and weekend packages are available. Kohl added that winemaker dinners are offered and the new Raspberries California Bistro, which opened in the fall, offers a healthy-lifestyle menu, featuring lots of vegetable offerings and low-carb desserts. James Brown, food and beverage manager at the Golden Sheaf Restaurant, said patrons can expect small, elegant tables with linens and fine china. American regional cuisine is served. The restaurant is open to the public for dinner Monday-Saturday, 5:30-10 p.m. Reservations are highly recommended. For information about the hotel, visit www.hilton.com and go to the Harrisburg site. Or call 717-233-6000. To reach the restaurant, call 717-237-6301.

The Leola Village Inn and Suites offers 61 unique rooms in six buildings, according to owner Debbie Shirk, who added that the latest addition is a pool that their Amish workers built and the stone sides make it look like a pond. Debra Allen, innkeeper, said that the clientele is corporate during the week and leisure on weekends. The inn also offers a large spa with an area specific to men with a barber on staff who offers a straight-edge shave. For information, visit www.leolavillage.com.

Displaying their Four-Diamond Awards are, from left, front: Debbie Shirk and Debra Allen, owner and innkeeper of the Leola Inn and Suites, President/CEO of AAA Central Penn Leonard R. Sempier, Brenda L. Sheehan, Circular Dining Room dining services manager; back: Ronald P. Suski, Circular Dining Room director of food and beverage, and Brian O’Day, Hotel Hershey general manager, Elmer Thomas, Inn and Spa at Intercourse Village owner, John Reis, Golden Sheaf director of food and beverage, James Brown, manager of the Golden Sheaf, and Bill Kohl, president, and Joe Massaro, general manager of the Hilton Harrisburg.

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