Standards for five stars certainly vary. Those for Michelin and Mobil probably are about the highest and most strict, though AAA's five diamond rating is also very strict.
In my books on Belize, I define five stars as ...
One of the top hotels in the Caribbean. It is professionally run and guest-focused with an unusually striking location, architectural design and/or facilities....
My five-stars in Belize are:
Azul Resort, North Ambergris Caye
Blancaneaux Lodge, Mountain Pine Ridge
Caye Chapel Island Resort, Caye Chapel
Cayo Espanto, near Ambergris Caye
Chan Chich Lodge, Gallon Jug
Inn at Robert's Grove, Seine Bight (Placencia)
Lodge at Chaa Creek, San Ignacio
Turtle Inn, Placencia
Victoria House, Ambergris Caye
Fodor's (which I also do for Belize as well as a couple of other destinations, including a new guide to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park) doesn't have one- to five-star ratings. Fodor's top rating is Fodor's Choice. It means that a place, hotel or restaurant is "so wonderful that its worthiness is obvious" or "so unique that superlatives don't do it justice."
In the new (2009 edition) of Fodor's I rated the following Belize properties' Fodor's Choice:
Ambergris Caye
Azul Resort
Victoria House
Other Cayes
Cayo Espanto
Caye Chapel Island Resort
Belize City
D'Nest Inn
Orange Walk District
Chan Chich Lodge
Cayo District
The Lodge at Chaa Creek
Blancaneaux Lodge
Stann Creek District
Hamanasi
Inn at Robert's Grove
Turtle Inn
Toledo District
Hickatee Cottages
Of course, your mileage may vary. My only claim to expertise is that I stay in about 100 hotels a year and over the past 18 years have stayed in 150 to 200 hotels in Belize, some many times, so I have some idea of how various properties compare to each other.
--Lan Sluder
AmbergrisCaye.com 
