Five lodging providers in the Myrtle Beach area and one restaurant have earned AAA’s prestigious four-diamond rating.

All the local properties have previously been in the four diamond club: North Beach Plantation has been on the list two years; Mar Vista Grande, three years; Marina Inn at Grande Dunes, six years; Marriott Myrtle Beach Resort & Spa at Grande Dunes, eight years and The Cypress Inn in Conway, 15 years. One local restaurant made the cut, Divine Prime, which made the list for the fourth time.

The local properties were among 69 hotels and 29 restaurants in the Carolinas to receive the rating.

Four diamonds are awarded to properties after trained evaluators stay overnight or dine at the restaurant incognito. About 2,000 properties nationally earn four diamonds.

“AAA’s requirements for a Four Diamond rating are rigorous, and those that achieve this designation are among the finest hotels and restaurants in the world,” David E. Parsons, president and CEO of AAA Carolinas, said in a news release. “Only 3.4 percent of the more than 59,000 annual inspections conducted nationally result in a Four Diamond rating.”

The 49 hotels and restaurants in South Carolina that received four diamonds were honored during a ceremony Monday at Charleston Place.

Contact DAWN BRYANT at 626-0296 or at dbryant@thesunnews.com or follow her at Twitter.com/TSN_dawnbryant.