LT Looks at Global Traveler 2008 Reader Survey Hotel Results
The Fifth Annual Global Traveler readers’ survey results were released last week. Global Traveler is a print and online magazine out of Yardley, PA. The press release says Global Traveler readers average 33 roundtrips per year and 96% regularly fly in premium cabin class. Over 31,000 readers evaluated 55 categories of travel.
The usual contenders are in the top ranks for airlines with Singapore Airlines, British Airways, Air France, and Emirates taking plenty of honors.
On the hotel front the results are across the board for hotel loyalty with representatives from all the major chains – except Marriott! Interesting to see the results, but are they really meaningful to global travelers for practical travel planning?
Starwood Hotels – Westin Hotels voted Best Domestic Hotel Chain. Westin would also get my vote for 2008. Westin Hotels were my most frequented domestic hotel brand in 2008, a year when my domestic hotel stays reached the highest number of hotel nights since 1993. Westin Hotels are consistently good upscale properties.
Westin Kierland Resort, Scottsdale, Arizona (SPG Category 5 hotel)
Hyatt Hotels – Park Hyatt voted Best International Hotel Chain.
Can you find one? There are fewer than 20 international Park Hyatt hotels currently open outside the USA (and only 5 Park Hyatt hotels in the USA). I have actually only seen two Park Hyatt hotels – Melbourne, Australia and Sydney. Perhaps the Sydney Park Hyatt will make my stay during my scheduled July 2009 trip. The Sofia Coppola movie “Lost in Translation” with Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson featured the Park Hyatt Tokyo.
Park Hyatt Hotel, Sydney, Australia
Hilton Hotels – Conrad brand voted best hotel chain in Europe.
Considering there are only four Conrad Hotels in Europe, perhaps this should be the best hotel chain in Ireland, where two of the Conrad Hotels are located. I’ve only been to the Conrad Brussels. My vote for Europe would go to Starwood’s Luxury Collection which fared well in the 2008 Conde Nast Awards.
Starwood Hotels – Sheraton Hotels voted best hotel chain in Latin America.
My trip to South America last year included stays at the Sheraton Libertador in Buenos Aires where I was upgraded to the Presidential Suite. The bathroom had its own sauna room, a tub that could hold four, and a shower with eight shower heads.
The Sheraton Colonia in Uruguay was a birdland paradise. A two hour Buquebus ferry ride across the wide river separating Argentina from Uruguay, the Rio de la Plata. I loved the paranoia adrenaline rush of walking the golf course in the winter adjacent to the river with numerous signs warning of wild animals awaiting the unsuspecting golfer. All I saw was an incredible variety of songbirds. And the Sheraton Colonia restaurant was a treat with four attendants standing by to meet my every whim.
Sheraton Colonia Golf and Spa Resort, Colonia, Uruguay June (winter) 2007
IHG Priority Club Rewards – Best Hotel Loyalty Program
As I have explained in Loyalty Traveler posts over the past month, the IHG Priority Club Rewards program is the easiest program to reach top elite status without actually needing to stay in hotels. Just spend in the right places and sign up for points earning bonuses. And when you need a hotel, particularly for road warriors and travelers outside urban centers, IHG has more hotels than the other two upscale large programs of Hilton and Marriott.
Marriott Hotels – What? No Marriott! Marriott Hotels was shut out of the Global Traveler reader survey results.
See the full results of the GlobalTraveler survey here.
Website: http://www.GlobalTravelerUSA.com
