Premium publication Luxury Lifestyle Magazine has announced the results of its 2018 readers’ travel awards, showcasing some of the most luxurious and opulent hotels on the planet.
The list of hotels includes lodges in secluded parts of South America, exclusive resorts on exotic islands, plush five-star hotels in bustling cities and idyllic castles in remote countryside settings.
The prestigious awards, sponsored by luxury drinks brand Salcombe Gin, also celebrate the very best airlines, airports, cruise liners, travel operators and holiday destinations.
Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi was crowned as the world’s most luxurious hotel in the public vote. Costing approximately £3bn to build, the hotel has 394 rooms and suites, 40 meeting and conference rooms, a white sandy beach, a myriad of pools and fountains, a luxury spa, marble imported 13 different countries and over 1,000 crystal chandeliers.
Dubai’s iconic Burj Al Arab Hotel took second place in the world category, with The Boulders in Arizona third, Switzerland’s The Grand Hotel Les Trois Rois fourth and Atlantis Paradise Island in the Bahamas fifth.
Closer to home, The Grand Hotel & Spa in Yorkshire was named the best city hotel in the UK, edging the likes of the Marriott Hotel County Hall (London) and Radisson Blu Edwardian Hampshire Hotel (London), who finished in second and third place respectively.
The family run Soar Mill Cove Hotel in south Devon was voted as the UK’s best beach and coastal hotel, while Meldrum House Country Hotel & Golf Course in Aberdeenshire took home the award for Britain’s best boutique hotel.
In other UK hotel awards, Eckington Manor in Worcestershire was voted as the best hotel for food, Bovey Castle on Dartmoor secured the title of best hotel for golf, Hoar Cross Hall in Staffordshire was named best spa hotel and the stunning Langley Castle Hotel in Northumberland was awarded the coveted crown of Britain’s most romantic hotel.
The magazine’s readers voted The Grand Hotel Les Trois Rois as Europe’s best hotel, while Viceroy Bali in Indonesia was named Asia’s best hotel and the quirky Mashpi Lodge in Ecuador was victorious in the best hotel in South America category.
Moving on to the best travel destinations on the planet, and it was London that came out on top for the world’s best city, with New York a close second and Rome third. Bali cleaned up in the world’s best island category, the Maldives was selected as the best honeymoon destination and the super luxury L’Alpaga, Megève in France was crowned best ski resort.
Luxury United Arab Emirates based airline Emirates, meanwhile, was named best long haul airline. Virgin Atlantic took second place in this award category, with EVA Air third and British Airways fourth. There was success for KLM, who were crowned best short haul airline, closely followed by Norwegian in second and Swiss International Air Lines in third.
Singapore Changi International Airport held of the challenge of London Heathrow Airport to secure the top accolade for the world’s best airport. Other airports in the top five included Hong Kong International Airport and Hamad International Airport.
There was success for Celebrity Cruises, who sailed away with the award for best large cruise line. The runner up spot went to Crystal Cruises, with P&O Cruises taking third and Cunard fourth. In other cruise related categories, Star Clippers secured the most votes for best small cruise line and Amadeus River Cruises fought off fierce competition from Crystal River Cruises to win best river cruise line.
Nick Gilmartin, editor of Luxury Lifestyle Magazine, said: “Our readers’ travel awards celebrate the very finest in luxury travel. We’ve seen some truly fantastic nominees this year and we congratulate all the winners on their success.
“I was particularly pleased to see a number of family run hotels secure award wins, especially the Soar Mill Cove hotel near Salcombe in Devon as it shows you don’t have to be a billion dollar travel company to offer your customers a luxury and personalised service.”
An expert judging panel shortlisted up to 30 nominees across 26 different categories in February of this year. Luxury Lifestyle Magazine then asked its readers to vote for their favourites over a four month period. In total, 64,971 individual votes were cast in this year’s awards.
Luxury Lifestyle Magazine would like to thank everyone who took the time to vote for the favourite travel companies and Salcombe Gin for their support of this year’s awards.
