Exclusive Feature: Travelers are happy with their hotel stays, more so than in recent years, says the latest JD Power and Associates' annual survey of North American hotel guests;

In fact, the survey says travelers have reached their highest level of satisfaction with hotels in years.

The survey, now in its 18th year, gathered responses from more than 67,000 guests who stayed in hotels in North America from May 2013 to May 2014. They were asked questions based on a variety of factors, including: the reservation process; check-in and checkout; rooms and other facilities; food and beverage options; and rates and fees.

Overall satisfaction among travelers of all age groups averages 784 points on a 1,000-point scale, up 27 points from 2012, the highest level of satisfaction reached since the survey started using a new survey methodology in 2006. 

Still, there's one group of travelers that remains critical: Millennials. This hard-to-please age group, typically between 18-30 years old, are traveling more often and spending more money, but they're also more fault-finding when it comes to hotel stays.

There's good new for this demographic, though: the survey found that Millennials are committing more to brands, making hotel loyalty programs a great catch for this bourgeoning travel group.

The biggest gripes from hotel guests aren't shocking. They include dirty rooms and bad Internet connectivity. Over the past few years, hotels have started looking into how to better serve up broadband and Internet capabilities for guests.

The demand for great WiFi access hasn't wavered, according to this study, so the hunt for better broadband continues.

The J.D. Power and Associates survey rated hotels by category. Here is the full list of hotel brands with the highest guest-satisfaction scores, by category:

• Luxury: Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts
• Upper Upscale: Kimpton Hotels (second consecutive year)
• Upscale: Hilton Garden Inn
• Midscale Full Service: Holiday Inn (fourth-consecutive year)
• Midscale: Drury Hotels (ninth-consecutive year)
• Economy/Budget: Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham (second-consecutive year)
• Upper Extended Stay: Homewood Suites by Hilton (second-consecutive year)
• Extended Stay: Candlewood Suites

This is strictly an exclusive feature, reprints of this article in any shape or form without prior written approval from 4Hoteliers.com is not permitted.

Melanie Nayer is a hotel reviewer and expert on luxury travel around the world. She has covered all aspects of hotels including corporate restructures, re-branding initiatives, historical aspects and the best of the best in luxury hotels around the world.

Melanie writes a weekly exclusive column for 4Hoteliers.com