This year's winner, the Spanish Balearic Islands, got readers' vote for having the most enticing places to stay, scoring higher even than the Maldives and Mauritius, which they think have the best beaches, along with Seychelles and Barbados.
Italy is Conde Nast Traveller readers’ favourite country for the second year in a row. So what is it that impresses them about the place? Pretty much everything, it seems. It settled at the top thanks to remarkably high scores in all five criteria on which Conde Nast Traveller asked them to vote, but ultimately beat the competition with top marks for culture and food. Elsewhere, they think the USA has the best places to stay (followed closely by France), and they love New Zealand and Australia for their epic landscapes, with near-identical scores for scenery. And where do they feel most welcome? Well, it seems they blow hot and cold: they say that Greece is the world’s most hospitable country, followed by Canada.
1. Italy 94.49
2. USA 93.89
3. France 92.98
4. Spain 91.80
5. Greece 90.05
6. Australia 89.72
7. New Zealand 88.44
8. Thailand 86.89
9. South Africa 86.70
10. India 85.44
11. Canada 83.50
12. Turkey 82.95
13. Switzerland 80.85
14. Sri Lanka 80.47
15. Ireland 79.28
16. Mexico 77.84
17. UAE 77.16
18. Vietnam 75.26
19. Iceland 74.07
20. Portugal 73.82
Islands
This year’s winner, the Spanish Balearic Islands, got their vote for having the most enticing places to stay, scoring higher even than the Maldives and Mauritius, which they think have the best beaches, along with Seychelles and Barbados. They have a healthy appetite for the food on Sicily, but St Lucia captured their heart for its dramatic scenery, and those other Spanish outposts, the Canary Islands, cashed in with the highest score for value for money.
Mykonos, Greece.
1. Balearic Islands 95.69
2. Greek Islands 94.88
3. Maldives 93.75
4. Sicily 93.35
5. Seychelles 92.95
6. Mauritius 91.90
7. Barbados 91.28
8. St Lucia 90.86
9. Canary Islands 90.08
10. Malta 88.45
11. St Barth’s 87.22
12. Bali 86.09
13. Isle of Skye 85.06
14. Cuba 83.87
15. Corsica 82.92
16. Antigua 81.70
17. Hawaiian Islands 81.29
18. Sardinia 80.58
19. Cyprus 80.13
20. Capri 78.89
Oversea cities
Conde Nast Traveller readers gave European beauties Florence, Rome and Barcelona picture-perfect scores for architecture, but New York pranced ahead of the pack thanks to its great nightlife and its variety of places to stay. Heading south, Sydney is hailed as having the friendliest people in the world, but when it comes to soaking up culture, nowhere does it quite as well as Paris and Venice.
1. New York 90.54
2. Paris 89.25
3. Rome 87.98
4. Barcelona 87.34
5. Venice 86.16
6. Sydney 85.50
7. Florence 85.17
8. Hong Kong 83.95
9. Cape Town 82.75
10. San Francisco 81.48
11. Istanbul 80.37
12. Vancouver 79.57
13. Dubai 78.39
14. Berlin 77.34
15. Amsterdam 76.13
16. Madrid 74.88
17. Singapore 74.28
18. Bangkok 73.51
19. Las Vegas 72.59
20. Lisbon 72.31
Overseas Holiday Hotels
Parrot Cay by COMO (pictured) in the Turks & Caicos not only won the award for best hotel in The Americas & Caribbean but scored so highly it made the number-one spot in ‘best of the best’ Top 100. They raved about absolutely everything, but decided to single out its beachfront location and relaxed atmosphere for special mention. Elsewhere in the Caribbean, you displayed a robust appetite for the food at Eden Rock on St Barth’s and think the open-sided rooms at Anse Chastanet, St Lucia deserve top
billing. Of all the hotels in Europe, Turkey & Russia, there is nowhere they would rather be on holiday than Le Bristol Paris. They are bowled over by its restaurants (and who wouldn’t, with four Michelin stars between them?) and updated classic atmosphere. But it was over to Italy for the hotel with the best location, with virtually identical scores for Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli on sparkling Lake Garda and Hotel Splendido overlooking Portofino.
Soneva Fushi, Maldives.
Their favourite place to stay in The Middle East, Africa & The Indian Ocean is Soneva Fushi in the Maldives, which you believe cannot be bettered for both service and design. The stupendous villas on North Island earned the Seychelles property the top slot for rooms, and last year’s winner, Singita Grumeti, got superlative marks for its awesome Serengeti location.
In Asia & India, Thailand’s delightful Four Seasons Resort Chiang Mai scored consistently well in all areas, but shot to number one thanks to a double first for service and location. In India, the restored Taj Falaknuma Palace in Hyderabad was commended for its majestic atmosphere and Amankila in Bali for its timeless design, while the seven excellent restaurants at the Mandarin Oriental Bangkok gave the hotel top marks for food.
Over in Australasia & The South Pacific, Huka Lodge in New Zealand, no stranger to these awards, just keeps hitting the mark: this time it won for its elegant rooms and farm-fresh food. In Australia the relatively new Southern Ocean Lodge was singled out for innovative design, and you thought the lagoon-side location of Four Seasons Resort Bora Bora was absolute perfection.
The Americas & Caribbean
1. Parrot Cay by COMO, Turks & Caicos Islands 96.16
2. Eden Rock, St Barth’s 95.05
3. The London West Hollywood, Los Angeles 93.65
4. Banyan Tree Mayakoba, Mexico 92.44
5. Post Ranch Inn, Big Sur, California 91.10
6. Anse Chastanet Resort, St Lucia 90.01
7. The Beverly Hills Hotel & Bungalows, Los Angeles 88.97
8. The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, Canada 88.23
9. Hotel Saint-Barth Islede France, St Barth’s 87.01
10. Hotel Bel-Air, Los Angeles 85.94
11. Sandy Lane, Barbados 85.01
12. Beverly Wilshire, BeverlyHills (A Four Seasons Hotel), Los Angeles 84.57
13. One&Only Ocean Club, Bahamas 83.97
14. Soho Grand Hotel, New York 81.70
15. The Plaza, New York 80.86
16. Amangani, Jackson Hole, Wyoming 78.61
17. Hotel Monasterio, Cusco, Peru 77.79
18. Sugar Beach, A ViceroyResort, St Lucia 77.27
19. The Algonquin Hotel, New York 75.69
20. ViceroyAnguilla 74.90
The Middle East, Africa & The Indian Ocean
1. Soneva Fushi, Maldives 95.29
2. Four Seasons Resort Seychelles 94.50
3. Singita Grumeti, Tanzania 93.90
4. North Island, Seychelles 93.27
5. Kasbah Tamadot, Morocco 92.34
6. One&Only Reethi Rah, Maldives 91.05
7. Cape Grace, Cape Town, South Africa 90.37
8. Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa, Dubai 89.97
9. Ellerman House, CapeTown, South Africa 88.85
10. The Oyster Box, South Africa 88.34
11. The Chedi Muscat, Oman 87.27
12. Singita Sabi Sand, South Africa 86.15
13. Huvafen Fushi, Maldives 85.46
14. Banyan Tree Seychelles 84.86
15. La Mamounia, Marrakech, Morocco 84.39
16. Four Seasons Resort Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt 83.34
17. Fregate Island Private, Seychelles 82.34
18. Mount Nelson Hotel, Cape Town, South Africa 81.70
19. Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru 81.34
20. Shompole, Kenya 80.72
Europe, Turkey & Russia
1. Le Bristol Paris 93.00
2. Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli, Lake Garda, Italy 92.26
3. Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris 91.14
4. Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc, Cap d’Antibes 89.74
5. Hotel de Russie, Rome 88.51
6. Hotel Splendido, Portofino, Italy 87.31
7. The Romanos, Costa Navarino, Greece 86.15
8. La Residencia, Mallorca 84.92
9. Hotel Cipriani, Venice 84.47
10. W Barcelona 83.27
11. Four Seasons Hotel Istanbul at the Bosphorus 82.24
12. Le Sirenuse, Positano, Italy 81.92
13. Hotel Danieli, Venice 81.59
14. Villa d’Este, Lake Como, Italy 79.96
15. Grand-Hotel du Cap-Ferrat, Saint-Jean Cap-Ferrat, France 78.75
16. Hotel Arts Barcelona 77.97
17. Le Meurice, Paris 77.12
18. Son Brull Hotel & Spa, Mallorca 75.30
19. La Chevre d’Or, Eze, France 73.22
20. Capri Palace Hotel & Spa, Italy 73.09
Australasia & The South Pacific
1. Huka Lodge, Taupo, New Zealand 91.66
2. Southern Ocean Lodge, Kangaroo Island, Australia 90.55
3. Four Seasons Resort Bora Bora, French Polynesia 89.60
4. The Langham, Sydney 88.31
5. Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef, Australia 87.98
6. Saffire Freycinet, Tasmania, Australia 86.03
7. Otahuna Lodge, Christchurch, New Zealand 84.74
8. Emirates Wolgan Valley Resort & Spa, Australia 84.00
9. Qualia, Hamilton Island, Australia 83.16
10. Bora Bora Pearl Beach Resort & Spa, French Polynesia 82.00
11. Blanket Bay, Glenorchy, New Zealand 81.42
12. Lilianfels Resort & Spa, Blue Mountains, Australia 80.26
13. Park Hyatt Sydney 78.95
14. Hayman, Great Barrier Reef, Australia 78.39
15. Sails in the Desert Hotel, Ayers Rock, Australia 78.08
16. Blue Sydney 77.73
17. Kauri Cliffs, Matauri Bay, New Zealand 75.85
18. Peppers Cradle Mountain Lodge, Tasmania 74.42
19. The Henry Jones Art Hotel, Hobart, Tasmania 73.45
20. InterContinental Bora Bora Resort & Thalasso Spa, French Polynesia 73.28
Asia & India
1. Four Seasons Resort Chiang Mai, Thailand 92.43
2. Taj Falaknuma Palace, Hyderabad, India 91.74
3. Mandarin Oriental Bangkok, Thailand 89.87
4. La Residence d’Angkor, Siem Reap, Cambodia 88.93
5. Banyan Tree Phuket, Thailand 87.69
6. Devi Garh by Lebua, Udaipur, India 87.12
7. The Oberoi Udaivilas, India 85.82
8. Amankila, Bali 85.28
9. Rambagh Palace, Jaipur, India 84.97
10. The Datai Langkawi, Malaysia 84.36
11. The Sarojin, Khao Lak, Thailand 82.98
12. Uma Paro, Bhutan 82.14
13. Aman at Summer Palace, Beijing 80.93
14. Dhara Dhevi Chiang Mai, Thailand 80.12
15. The Fullerton Hotel, Singapore 79.03
16. Amanpulo, The Philippines 77.88
17. Pangkor Laut Resort, Malaysia 75.82
18. The Oberoi, Lombok, Indonesia 75.32
19. Six Senses Ninh Van Bay, Vietnam 73.93
20. Alila Ubud, Bali 72.98
Conde Nast Traveller readers take their spa retreats very seriously and this year’s winner, the strict Parkhotel Igls in Austria, got a top-ranking score for its unique approach. But you also lavished praise on the exercise programmes at Body Holiday, Le Sport on St Lucia, the treatments at Ananda in the Himalayas, and the beauty products at Espace Henri Chenot at Palace Merano in Italy.
Parkhotel Igls in Austria.
Spa
1. Parkhotel Igls, Austria 93.54
2. COMO Shambhala Estate, Bali 93.50
3. Brenner’s Park-Hotel & Spa, Baden-Baden, Germany 92.31
4. Chiva-Som International Health Resort, Hua Hin, Thailand 91.56
5. Banyan Tree Phuket,Thailand 91.10
6. Ananda in the Himalayas, India 90.67
7. Espace Henri Chenot, Palace Merano, Merano, Italy 89.66
8. The Body Holiday, Le Sport, St Lucia 88.58
9. Grayshott, Surrey 87.34
10. Canyon Ranch in Lenox, Massachusetts, USA 86.26
11. Lefay Resort & Spa Lago di Garda, Italy 85.01
12. FX Mayr & More, Carinthia, Austria 84.47
13. Cal-a-Vie Health Spa,San Diego, USA 84.02
14. Enchantment Resort, Arizona, USA 82.74
15. SHA Wellness Clinic, Alicante, Spain 82.16
16. Clinique La Prairie, Montreux, Switzerland 81.06
17. Sanctuary Camelback Mountain Resort & Spa, Arizona, USA 80.34
18. LaSource Resort, Grenada, Caribbean 79.81
19. Hotel Therme Vals, Switzerland 78.85
20. Vigilius Mountain Resort, Lana, Italy 77.50
Villa Rental Companies
They want a house with a pool for 15 close friends, and they want it now. Who do they call first? This year Abercrombie & Kent Villas & Chalets crossed the winning line with top marks for both range of villas and destinations. But when it comes to on-the-ground support, The Thinking Traveller is their preferred villa company, and Simpson Travel has them hooked for value for money.
1. Abercrombie & Kent Villas & Chalets 92.40
2. James Villa Holidays 91.57
3. The Thinking Traveller 88.20
4. Simpson Travel 86.75
5. Villas of Distinction 85.18
6. Vintage Travel 83.28
7. SJ Villas 81.83
8. CV Travel 81.83
9. Owners Direct 79.59
10. Five Star Greece 76.03
When it is time to sort out a holiday, their favourite company to speak to is Scott Dunn, which they think is brilliant for its variety of destinations and service. They judged runner-up Kuoni best for range of places to stay, and put Trailfinders ahead of the pack for reliability. But for first-hand knowledge of destination, they gave the top score to Carrier, followed by ITC Classics.
1. Scott Dunn 88.71
2. Kuoni 88.06
3. Trailfinders 87.44
4. Carrier 86.19
5. ITC Classics 83.85
6. Elegant Resorts 81.79
7. Abercrombie & Kent 80.44
8. Turquoise Holiday Company 78.75
9. Cox & Kings 77.50
10. Africa Travel 76.51
11. Hayes & Jarvis 75.34
12. Cazenove+Loyd 74.24
13. Greaves Travel 73.02
14. Audley 71.60
15. Red Savannah 71.44
Airlines
On a Short-Haul Holiday, they prefer British Airways for its range of routes, its food and its standard of service. But Lufthansa tops their list for punctuality, closely followed by Swiss International Air Lines. For a Long-Haul Holiday, Emirates flies high above the rest for in-flight entertainment and service, but British Airways fares best for food and Etihad Airways for airport lounges. When on Business, they plump for British Airways because they say it has the best loyalty reward scheme and airport lounges around.
Short-Haul Holiday
1. British Airways 87.23
2. Lufthansa 86.17
3. Swiss International Air Lines 84.94
4. SAS ScandinavianAirlines 83.04
5. Air France 81.88
6. Aer Lingus 80.64
7. TAP Portugal 79.48
8. Flybe 75.60
9. Alitalia 75.04
10. EasyJet 74.72
Long-Haul Holiday
1. Emirates 92.03
2. British Airways 91.05
3. Etihad Airways 90.24
4. Singapore Airlines 88.84
5. Malaysia Airlines 87.02
6. Virgin Atlantic 85.58
7. Cathay Pacific 84.70
8. Air New Zealand 82.47
9. Qantas 80.22
10. Thai Airways 77.39
Business
1. British Airways 89.21
2. Singapore Airlines 88.08
3. Emirates 87.45
4. Qatar Airways 84.80
5. Virgin Atlantic 83.59
6. Etihad Airways 81.93
7. Air France 79.90
8. Lufthansa 79.37
9. KLM 76.75
10. Cathay Pacific 75.06
Airports
They think Changi in Singapore is the best airport in the world, with the most efficient security checks and flight information, but they have a taste for the restaurants at Heathrow Terminal 5, and Dubai headed to the front of the queue for its shops.
Changi International Aiport.
1. Changi, Singapore 87.92
2. Heathrow Terminal 5, London 86.48
3. Hong Kong International 85.70
4. Dubai International 84.27
5. Kuala Lumpur International 83.53
6. Copenhagen Airport 82.39
7. Zurich Airport 80.71
8. Barcelona Airport El Prat 79.68
9. Madrid-Barajas Airport 79.35
10. Schiphol, Amsterdam 77.59
11. Munich Airport 77.11
12. City Airport, London 76.21
13. Frankfurt Airport 75.19
14. Beijing Capital International 73.58
15. Sydney Airport 72.76
Cruise Lines
Cunard Line sailed straight to the top of the Large Ships category with irrepressible scores for both service and entertainment, although Crystal Cruises rules the waves for cabins and MSC Cruises is unbeatable come supper time. In the Small Ships category, they put this year’s winner, Silversea Cruises, on a pedestal for its service, but were more impressed with the cabins on Seabourn and the food on Windstar Cruises.
Large Ships
1. Cunard Line 90.65
2. Crystal Cruises 88.21
3. MSC Cruises 87.33
4. Holland America Line 86.15
5. Celebrity Cruises 84.88
Small Ships
1. Silversea Cruises 88.30
2. Seabourn 87.38
3. Windstar Cruises 85.24
4. Oceania Cruises 84.56
5. Viking River Cruises 83.28
Photo caption: Milan, Italy.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales.
She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
