New poll question: would you rather fly first class or stay at a five star hotel?

No doubt. Hotel, of course. That's an experience. The first class is only for more comfort, but can never be compared with a stay in a Four Seasons or Aman Resort.

You need to add a third choice: Would you rather ride an authentic Haughton elevator?

I have to agree with Nybacker, Lucky - you really have to spell out some parameters to make this meaningful. For this purpose I am going to assume you mean First Class on a TATL or TPAC international flight vs. a 5* hotel for 3 nights in a major city. Because most of us can easily survive even a 5-hour transcon in a middle seat (which I did last month after my UA flight went mechanical) and similarly don't get much value on a 1 night stay in a 5* where we often arrive late and checkout early due to business requirements. Given that assumption, and assuming the worst (i.e. F on UA instead of F on SQ) I'd choose the F flight any day, because I simply won't sleep well if at all in the economy section, putting me out-of-commission for at least a day at my destination. Whereas I can easily survive at a lesser hotel as I rarely use any of the staff at a 5* nor do I care about the threadcount or other luxury perks. Keep in mind however that the length of stay and purpose/location of trip are critical factors. For example, if I was flying my family (4 tix) to a resort for a week I might take the 5* resort rather than the F seats. But it's a pretty subjective decision, you have to balance the quality of the 3* hotel (which might be mediocre in London or New York, and not great in Mexico) vs. the discomfort and exhaustion of flying with your kids in the cattle car. There is also the cost factor. If you are paying cash, F seats on TATL or TPAC could run your $10k per ticket, whereas I'd bet I can book a room at many 5* resorts for <$500 per night. So in reality, for most of us air travel in F is only an option if you can score upgrades or award seats vs. more relatively affordable 5* hotels.

Assuming long-haul - first, no question. I can be comfortable enough in a 3-star (especially where I have status), but I don't sleep well in economy. For short-hauls, the opposite answer. Under 8 hours, I don't care as much about the seat.

I would fly First Class than stay in a 5 star hotel. When I travel, we are in the hotel to sleep. More often than not we don't even eat breakfast in the hotel. We like to get out and experience the city/town that we are visiting. Personally for us, as long as the hotel is in a safe area and clean we're happy. Wi-fi is an added benefit. We typically go for 4 star hotels but 3 star is also fine.