World’s Best Service 2012
The city hotels, resorts, airlines, and cruise lines that nabbed top honors for service in T+L?s annual World?s Best Awards survey.
From June 2012
Appeared as “2012 World’s Best Service” in T+L Magazine
Top 10 Hotels Overall: City
1. Park Hyatt, Milan 98.95
2. Stafford London by Kempinski 98.40
3. Four Seasons Hotel Gresham Palace, Budapest 98.07
4. Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi 97.50
5. Milestone Hotel, London 97.39
6. Olissippo Lapa Palace, Lisbon 97.33
7. Palacio Duhau-Park Hyatt, Buenos Aires 96.92
8. Eliot Hotel, Boston 96.84
9. Trump International Hotel & Tower, Chicago 96.67
10. The Peninsula, Bangkok 96.53
Top 10 Hotels Overall: Resorts, Inns, and Lodges
1. Lodge at Kauri Cliffs, Matauri Bay, New Zealand 100.00
1. Oberoi Udaivilas, Udaipur, India 100.00
1. Posada de Mike Rapu, Explora Rapa Nui, Easter Island 100.00
4. Singita Sabi Sand at Sabi Sand Private Game Reserve (Ebony Lodge, Boulders Lodge, Castleton Camp), Kruger National Park area, South Africa 99.54
5. Oberoi Rajvilas, Jaipur, India 99.49
6. Singita Grumeti Reserves (Sasakwa Lodge, Sabora Tented Camp, Faru Faru Lodge, Singita Explore Mobile Tented Camp), Serengeti National Park, Tanzania 99.13
7. Blackberry Farm, Walland, Tennessee 99.00
8. Royal Malewane, Kruger National Park, South Africa 98.82
9. Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi, Chiang Mai, Thailand 98.75
10. Four Seasons Resort, Carmelo, Uruguay 98.67
10. La R?sidence Phou Vao, Luang Prabang, Laos 98.67
Top 10 Hotels: Continental U.S. and Canada
City Hotels
1. Eliot Hotel, Boston 96.84
2. Trump International Hotel & Tower, Chicago 96.67
3. Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek, Dallas 96.07
4. Woodlands Inn, Summerville, South Carolina 96.00
5. Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park 95.83
Resorts and Inns
1. Blackberry Farm, Walland, Tennessee 99.00
2. Triple Creek Ranch, Darby, Montana 98.62
3. Stein Eriksen Lodge, Park City, Utah 97.42
4. The Wauwinet, Nantucket, Massachusetts 97.33
5. Four Seasons Resort, Jackson Hole, Wyoming 96.67
Top Hotels: Hawaii
Resorts
1. Four Seasons Resort Hualalai, Big Island 97.74
2. Travaasa Hana, Maui 95.29
3. Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea 95.18
4. Halekulani, Oahu 94.82
5. Four Seasons Resort Lanai, The Lodge at Koele 93.64
Top Hotels: Mexico
City Hotels
1. Four Seasons Hotel M?xico, D.F., Mexico City 95.24
2. Casa de Sierra Nevada, San Miguel de Allende 93.33
3. W Mexico City 78.75
Resorts
1. One&Only Palmilla, Los Cabos 97.39
2. Ritz-Carlton, Canc?n 96.67
3. Esperanza, an Auberge Resort, Los Cabos 95.79
4. Four Seasons Resort, Punta Mita 94.84
5. Las Ventanas al Para?so, A Rosewood Resort, Los Cabos 94.12
Top Hotels: The Caribbean
Resorts
1. Curtain Bluff Resort, Antigua 97.65
2. Hotel Saint-Barth Isle de France, St. Bart?s 97.14
2. Nisbet Plantation Beach Club, Nevis 97.14
4. Amanyara, Turks and Caicos 96.84
5. Jade Mountain, St. Lucia 96.76
Top Hotels: Central and South America
City Hotels:
1. Palacio Duhau-Park Hyatt, Buenos Aires 96.92
2. Alvear Palace Hotel, Buenos Aires 96.25
3. Hotel Monasterio, Cuzco, Peru 95.89
4. Hotel Casa Santo Domingo, Antigua, Guatemala 95.46
5. Four Seasons Hotel, Buenos Aires 94.58
Resorts and Lodges:
1. Posada de Mike Rapu, Explora Rapa Nui, Easter Island 100.00
2. Four Seasons Resort, Carmelo, Uruguay 98.67
3. Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo 95.60
4. Victoria House, Ambergris Cay, Belize 94.17
5. Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel, Peru 93.68
Top Hotels: Europe
City Hotels:
1. Park Hyatt, Milan 98.95
2. Stafford London by Kempinski 98.40
3. Four Seasons Hotel Gresham Palace, Budapest 98.07
4. Milestone Hotel, London 97.39
5. Olissippo Lapa Palace, Lisbon 97.33
Resorts and Inns:
1. Turnberry, a Luxury Collection Resort, Ayrshire, Scotland 97.65
2. Hotel Villa Cipriani, Asolo, Italy 97.50
3. Ch?teau Eza, Eze Village, France 97.33
4. Palazzo Sasso, Ravello, Italy 96.80
5. Domaine Les Cray?res, Reims, France 96.36
Top Hotels: Asia
City Hotels:
1. The Peninsula, Bangkok 96.53
2. The Peninsula, Tokyo 96.47
3. Ritz-Carlton Beijing, Financial Street 96.25
4. Mandarin Oriental, Tokyo 96.00
5. St. Regis, Singapore 95.78
Resorts:
1. Oberoi Udaivilas, Udaipur, India 100.00
2. Oberoi Rajvilas, Jaipur, India 99.49
3. Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi, Chiang Mai, Thailand 98.75
4. La R?sidence Phou Vao, Luang Prabang, Laos 98.67
5. Oberoi Amarvilas, Agra, India 97.22
Top Hotels: Africa and the Middle East
City Hotels:
1. Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi 97.50
2. Four Seasons Hotel Cairo at the First Residence 95.65
3. Four Seasons Hotel Cairo at Nile Plaza 95.29
4. Burj Al Arab, Dubai 95.15
5. Mount Nelson Hotel, Cape Town 94.00
Resorts and Lodges:
1. Singita Sabi Sand at Sabi Sand Private Game Reserve (Ebony Lodge, Boulders Lodge, Castleton Camp), Kruger National Park area, South Africa 99.54
2. Singita Grumeti Reserves (Sasakwa Lodge, Sabora Tented Camp, Faru Faru Lodge, Singita Explore Mobile Tented Camp), Serengeti National Park, Tanzania 99.13
3. Royal Malewane, Kruger National Park, South Africa 98.82
4. Ol Donyo Lodge, Mbirikani Group Ranch, Kenya 98.29
5. Kirawira Luxury Tented Camp, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania 97.65
5. Mombo & Little Mombo Camps, Moremi Game Reserve, Botswana 97.65
Top Hotels: Australia, New Zealand, and the South Pacific
City Hotels:
1. The Langham, Melbourne 95.46
2. Park Hyatt, Melbourne 93.33
3. InterContinental, Sydney 90.67
4. Park Hyatt, Sydney 90.00
5. Four Seasons Hotel, Sydney 89.33
Resorts and Lodges:
1. Lodge at Kauri Cliffs, Matauri Bay, New Zealand 100.00
2. InterContinental Bora Bora Resort & Thalasso Spa, French Polynesia 96.67
3. Lilianfels, a Luxury Collection Resort, Blue Mountains, Australia 90.67
4. Voyages Longitude 131?, Ayers Rock, Australia 86.67
5. Reef House Boutique Resort & Spa, Cairns, Australia 85.33
Top Airlines: Domestic
1. Virgin America 86.77
2. JetBlue Airways 80.77
3. Hawaiian Airlines 80.61
Top Airlines: International
1. Singapore Airlines 91.95
2. Etihad Airways 89.68
3. Emirates 89.61
Top Cruises: Large-Ship
1. Crystal Cruises 97.30
2. Regent Seven Seas Cruises 94.85
3. Disney Cruise Line 92.45
Top Cruises: Small-Ship
1. Seabourn 98.26
2. Silversea Cruises 95.25
3. SeaDream Yacht Club 94.82
Top Cruises: River
1. Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection 93.26
2. Tauck 91.79
3. Viking River Cruises 91.08
World?s Best: Winning Service
For the first time in Travel + Leisure World?s Best Awards history, three resorts, all in far-flung destinations, received perfect service scores. Here?s how they stack up.
Kauri Cliffs Golf Resort & Spa
Location: Remote, 6,000-acre oceanfront escape on New Zealand?s North Island.
Staff-to-Guest Ratio: 1:1
Top Activity: Teeing off on the par 72 championship golf course, on a bluff with views of the Pacific.
Employee Spotlight: Shaun Cawood, the food and beverage manager, once drove from his home to the hotel in the middle of the night to fulfill a request for Cognac and cigars.
Extreme Request: Arranging a car purchase for a guest?s three-month stay.
T+L Readers Say: ?The staff predicted our every need.?
The Details: $$$$
Oberoi Udaivilas
Location: Gilded retreat overlooking Lake Pichola, in Udaipur, India.
Staff-to-Guest Ratio: 1.6:1
Top Activity: A ride around the courtyards and reflecting pools atop one of the hotel?s Indian elephants.
Employee Spotlight: Roop Singh, the caretaker of the property?s 20-acre Bada Mahal conservancy, educates guests about the on-site spotted deer, wild boar, and peacocks.
Extreme Request: Dinner and a private stargazing session with one of Udaipur?s most renowned astrologers.
T+L Readers Say: ?I?ve traveled widely and have never stayed at a better hotel; the service is impeccable.?
The Details: $$$$
Posada de Mike Rapu, Explora Rapa Nui
Location: Hilltop lodge on Easter Island, a five-hour flight west of Santiago, Chile.
Staff-to-Guest Ratio: 1:4
Top Activity: A trek past moai sculptures, along the volcano?s edge, to natural rock pools.
Employee Spotlight: Head guide Joanna Faulkner plans unique experiences, such as a private picnic in a volcanic cave within earshot of the surf.
Extreme Request: Coordinating a helicopter arrival from a yacht to the island?s mountainous terrain.
T+L Readers Say: ?Excellent custom hiking adventures led by in-the-know locals.?
The Details: Three-night minimum. $$$$$
Hotel Pricing Key
$ Less than $200
$$ $200 to $350
$$$ $350 to $500
$$$$ $500 to $1,000
$$$$$ More than $1,000
[box type=”tick”]Methodology
Rankings are based on reader votes collected in the Travel + Leisure World?s Best Awards survey. Scores shown have been rounded to the nearest hundredth of a point; in the event of a true tie, properties and companies share a ranking. For the complete methodology and more results, go to travelandleisure.com/worldsbest.[/box]