I was too young to remember the ones in the nineties.
The first time I remember us flirting with relegation was in 2005 and we all know how that ended. Then we survived on the last day in 2008 and that was a great feeling.
This one is a great escape though, after the Chelsea game many people thought we were goners. Add to that that we've relegated Stoke, the team with the worst set of fans in the league, West Brom, who relegated us in 2005, and (possibly) Swansea, who tried every dirty trick in the book (not necessarily the club, but certainly the city).
I will let those older than me judge whether or not this is the best ever or not.