Top 25 Hotel Brands Worldwide: Readers’ Favorites of 2

This year’s World’s Best Awards survey closed on Mar. 2, just before widespread stay-at-home orders were implemented as a result of COVID-19. The results reflect our readers’ experiences before the pandemic, but we hope that this year’s honorees will inspire your trips to come—whenever they may be.

The best hotel brands in the world share several qualities, but chief among them is sterling service — specifically, the ability to intuit guests’ needs and desires, then execute on them flawlessly to create a truly unforgettable stay. As luxury travelers continue to crave destination-driven experiences, iBestTravel readers also prioritize brands whose properties marry setting, architecture, and décor into a deep sense of place.

Every year for the World’s Best Awards survey, iBestTravel asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe — to share their opinions on the top hotels, resorts, cities, islands, cruise ships, spas, airlines, and more. Readers rated hotel brands on their locations, rooms/facilities, food, service, and overall value.

To create a sense of hospitality, hotel brands rely heavily on their staff members, who often go above and beyond to ensure guests feel welcomed and well cared for. The storied Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, which maintains a collection of 36 properties and came in at No. 21 this year, inspired a sense of “belonging” in one traveler, who also said guests are treated “like royalty at any of their hotels.” Readers also waxed poetic about Aman, this year’s No. 6, saying the ultra-luxe brand’s 32 locations all offer an “unreal level of service” and are “worth the splurge.” Of course, achieving the highest levels of hospitality is no simple feat. In the case of Rosewood Hotels & Resorts (No. 16), one reader attributed its success to striking “the appropriate balance of execution, authentic delivery, sophistication, and luxury.”

Several reader favorites are buoyed by new additions to their portfolios. No. 3 Oberoi Hotels and Resorts and No. 15 Mandarin Oriental both opened new properties that landed on this year’s It List of best new hotels around the world. The former welcomed its new Marrakesh location — a 28-acre spread inspired by the city’s 16th-century Islamic college (Ben Youssef Madrasa) and set against a backdrop of fruit groves and the Atlas Mountains — while the latter rooted itself in Doha’s emerging Msheireb Downtown neighborhood with a modern, 158-room outpost.

But this year’s winner wrested the top spot from last year’s repeat winner — Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas, which now sits at No. 7 — through a combination of consistently irreproachable service and sumptuous accommodations. Read on to find out which brand reigns supreme.

1. The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts

Arriving at The Leela Palace Udaipur — Sivan Askayo

Score: 96.82

More information: theleela.com

Though the brand has just nine properties, this India-based collection managed to leap from the No. 10 spot in 2019 to take this year’s No. 1 position. Perhaps Leela’s focus is one of its greatest strengths. “I love small brands like these,” wrote one reader. “They can consistently give you high-quality accommodations and service.” Of course, the allure of India might also have played a role, as travelers have long felt drawn to places like Delhi’s Red Fort and Udaipur’s Lake Pichola. Multiple people enthused that Leela’s properties are in “the best locations,” which include many of India’s major tourism hubs. Cases in point: two of the brand’s hotels also secured spots on this year’s list of top 100 hotels in the world: the Leela Palace New Delhi at No. 32 and the iconic Leela Palace Udaipur at No. 19, which was also crowned this year’s top resort in India.

2. Capella Hotels & Resorts

Reception of the Capella Sanya Hotel — Courtesy of Capella Hotels, Resorts, and Spas

Score: 96.36

More information: capellahotels.com

3. Oberoi Hotels & Resorts

The Oberoi Marrakech hotel — Courtesy of Oberoi Hotels & Resorts

Score: 95.16

More information: oberoihotels.com

4. Red Carnation Hotel Collection

Exterior of The Rubens, a Red Carnation hotel — Courtesy of Red Carnation Hotels

Score: 94.29

More information: redcarnationhotels.com

5. One&Only Resorts

Plunge pool at One&Only Gorilla's Nest — Courtesy of One&Only

Score: 94.22

More information: oneandonlyresorts.com

6. Aman

Bathroom at the luxury Aman hotel in Amanyangyun, China — Courtesy of Aman

Score: 93.74

More information: aman.com

7. Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas

The spa at the Six Senses Paro, in Bhutan — Christopher Wise

Score: 93.66

More information: sixsenses.com

8. Taj Hotels Palaces Resorts Safaris

Boat arriving at the Taj Lake Palace hotel — Courtesy of Taj Hotels

Score: 93.45

More information: tajhotels.com

9. Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas

Woman in an infinity pool at an Anantara hotel — Courtesy of Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas

Score: 93.01

More information: anantara.com

10. Rocco Forte Hotels

Guest room at Rocco Forte House — Courtesy of Rocco Forte Hotels

Score: 92.83

More information: roccofortehotels.com

11. Belmond

Pool at the Belmond Hotel das Cataratas — Courtesy of Belmond

Score: 92.69

More information: belmond.com

12. Inkaterra Hotels

View from an Inkaterra Hotels property — Courtesy of Inkaterra Hotels

Score: 92.24

More information: inkaterra.com

13. The Peninsula Hotels

Dancing leaves art installation in the lobby of The Peninsula Paris hotel — Courtesy of The Peninsula Hotels

Score: 92.22

More information: peninsula.com

14. Sofitel Legend

Bar at the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hotel in Hanoi — Courtesy of Sofitel Legend

Score: 92.17

More information: sofitel.accor.com

15. Mandarin Oriental

Lobby of the Mandarin Oriental, Santiago luxury hotel — Courtesy of Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group

Score: 91.95

More information: mandarinoriental.com

16. Rosewood Hotels & Resorts

Room at a Rosewood hotels property in Guangzhou, China — Courtesy of Rosewood Hotels & Resorts

Score: 91.43

More information: rosewoodhotels.com

17. Auberge Resorts Collection

View from a deck at Nanuku, Auberge Resorts Collection — Courtesy of Auberge Resorts Collection

Score: 91.23

More information: aubergeresorts.com

18. The Luxury Collection

Exterior of The Liberty Hotel, a Luxury Collection hotel — Courtesy of The Luxury Collection

Score: 90.69

More information: the-luxury-collection.marriott.com

19. Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts

Pool with a view at the Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia at Comcast Center — Courtesy of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts

Score: 90.57

More information: fourseasons.com

20. Montage Hotels & Resorts

Townhouse bedroom at the Montage LOs Cabos hotel — Courtesy of Montage Hotels & Resorts

Score: 90.47

More information: montagehotels.com

21. Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts

Lobby at the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills — Courtesy of Waldorf Astoria Hotels and Resorts

Score: 89.95

More information: hilton.com

22. St. Regis

Pathway at the St Regia Bahia Beach Resort — Courtesy of St. Regis

Score: 89.88

More information: st-regis.marriott.com

23. Hyatt Ziva

Hyatt Ziva hotel pool — Courtesy of Hyatt Ziva

Score: 89.79

More information: hyatt.com

24. Langham Hotels & Resorts

Bathroom with a view at The Langham, Chicago hotel — Courtesy of Langham Hotels & Resorts

Score: 89.77

More information: langhamhotels.com

25. Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts

Ornately decorated room at the Shangri-La, Paris luxury hotel — Courtesy of Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts

Score: 89.63

More information: shangri-la.com

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