Conde Nast Traveler Announces the Winners of Its 24th Annual Readers' Choice Awards

NEW YORK, Oct. 11, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Conde Nast Traveler today announced the results of its 2011 Readers' Choice Awards, ranking the best cities, islands, cruise lines, airlines, hotels, and resorts worldwide. The awards appear in the November issue (on newsstands October 18) and are derived from the Conde Nast Traveler Readers' Choice survey. This year, a record 28,876 readers cast a combined eight million votes on thousands of properties and destinations around the world.  The list also highlights a few firsts:

• The Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, Pudong, was named the top hotel in the world.
• Charleston, South Carolina grabs the number one spot in Top Cities in the U.S.
• After only two years since the grand opening, Chicago's Elysian Hotel is named top hotel in the U.S.
• Despite a tough year for Japan, Kyoto claims title as Asia's top city for the first time.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20111011/NY84101)

"The demand for excellence in travel has never been higher, and the results of the 2011 Readers' Choice Awards reflect the most exacting standards by the world's most discerning travelers—the readers of Conde Nast Traveler," said Editor in Chief Klara Glowczewska.

Below are results for the top three winners in each category. The full list of winners is available at:   http://www.concierge.com/tools/travelawards/readerschoice

Top Cities: United States

1. Charleston, South Carolina

2. San Francisco

3. Santa Fe

Top Cities: Europe

1. Florence

2. Barcelona

3. Rome

Top Cities: Asia

1. Kyoto

2. Bangkok

3. Hong Kong

Top Cities: Africa/Middle East

1. Cape Town

2. Beirut

3. Byblos, Lebanon

Top Cities: Canada

1. Quebec City

2. Vancouver

3. Victoria, British Columbia

Top Cities: Oceania

1. Sydney

2. Queenstown, New Zealand

3. Melbourne

Top Cities: Mexico

1. San Miguel de Allende

2. Oaxaca

3. Merida

Top Cities: Central/South America

1. Buenos Aires

2. Cuzco

3. Antigua de Guatemala

Top Islands: Caribbean/Atlantic

1. Bermuda

2. St. John

3. Nevis

Top Islands: Oceania

1. Bora Bora

2. Great Barrier Reef

3. Moorea

Top Islands: Asia

1. Maldives

2. Bali

3. Phuket

Top Islands: United States

1. Maui

2. Kauai

3. Kiawah, South Carolina

Top Islands: Europe

1. Bozcaada and the Turkish Aegean Islands

2. Mykonos and the Cyclades

3. Madeira

3. Mallorca and the Balearics

Top Resorts: Asia

1. Ayana Resort & Spa, Bali

2. Four Seasons Resort Bali at Sayan

3. Four Seasons, Chiang Mai

3. Oberoi Vanyavilas, Rajasthan

Top Resorts: Mexico

1. One&Only Palmilla, Los Cabos

2. Rancho La Puerta, Tecate

3. The Tides, Riviera Maya

Top Resorts: Africa

1. Four Seasons Sharm El Sheikh

1. Safari Lodges at Phinda Private Game Reserve, South Africa

3. Kirawira Luxury Tented Camp, Tanzania

Top Resorts: Europe

1. Hotel Caesar Augustus, Capri

2. Perivolas, Santorini

3. Park Hotel Kenmare, County Kerry

Top Resorts: Hawaii

1. Travaasa Hana (formerly Hotel Hana-Maui)

2. Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea

3. Trump International Hotel Waikiki Beach Walk

Top Resorts: Atlantic

1. The Reefs, Bermuda

2. Parrot Cay, Turks and Caicos

3. One&Only Ocean Club, Bahamas

Top Resorts: Middle East

1. Burj Al Arab, Dubai

2. Ritz-Carlton, Dubai

3. Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi

Top Resorts: Oceania

1. Lodge at Kauri Cliffs, New Zealand

2. Four Seasons, Bora Bora

3. Le Taha'a Island Resort & Spa, French Polynesia

Top Resorts: Mainland U.S.

1. Resort at Pelican Hill, Newport Coast, California

2. Westin Riverfront Resort & Spa at Beaver Creek Mountain, Avon, Colorado

3. Sanctuary at Kiawah Island Golf Resort, South Carolina

Top Small Resorts: Mainland U.S.

1. Keswick Hall at Monticello, Virginia

2. Mii Amo, Sedona

3. Amangani, Jackson Hole

Top Resorts: Canada

1. King Pacific Lodge (Rosewood), British Columbia

2. Emerald Lake Lodge, British Columbia

3. Long Beach Lodge Resort, Vancouver Island

Top Resorts: Caribbean

1. Nisbet Plantation Beach Club, Nevis

2. Jade Mountain, St. Lucia

3. Anse Chastanet, St. Lucia

Top Resorts: Central/South America

1. Four Seasons Resort Carmelo, Uruguay

2. Xandari Resort & Spa, Costa Rica

3. Kanantik Reef & Jungle Resort, Belize

Top Cruise Lines: Small-Ship Lines

1. Seabourn

2. Silversea

3. Windstar

Top Cruise Lines: Medium-Ship Lines

1. Crystal Cruises

2. Regent Seven Seas Cruises

3. Disney

Top Cruise Lines: Large-Ship Lines

1. Celebrity

2. Princess

3. Royal Caribbean

Top Cruise Lines: River Cruises

1. Uniworld Boutique River Cruises

2. Grand Circle Travel

3. Viking River Cruises

Top Foreign Airlines

1. Singapore Airlines

2. Virgin Atlantic

3. Emirates

Top U.S. Airlines

1. Virgin America

2. JetBlue Airways

3. Hawaiian Airlines

Top Small Airlines

1. OpenSkies

2. Porter Airlines

3. Air Tahiti Nui

Top Hotels: Southern Europe

1. Hotel de Paris, Monte Carlo

2. Il San Pietro di Positano, Italy

3. Four Seasons Hotel Istanbul at Sultanahmet

Top Hotels: Northern Europe

1. Mandarin Oriental, Prague

2. Beau-Rivage Palace, Lausanne

3. Regent Berlin

Top Small Hotels: Europe

1. Palazzo Sasso, Ravello

2. Chateau de La Chevre d'Or, Cote d'Azur

3. Villa San Michele, Fiesole, Tuscany

Top Hotels: Central America

1. Lapa Rios Ecolodge, Costa Rica

2. Casa Santo Domingo, Antigua Guatemala

3. Inn at Robert's Grove, Belize

Top Hotels: Oceania

1. Observatory Hotel, Sydney

2. Sydney Harbour Marriott Hotel at Circular Quay

3. The Langham, Auckland

3. Westin Sydney

Top Hotels: British Isles

1. Culloden House, Inverness, Scotland

2. Chewton Glen, Hampshire

3. The Halkin, London

Top Hotels: Caribbean/Atlantic

1. Peninsula House, Dominican Republic

2. The Caves, Jamaica

3. Eden Rock, St. Barts

Top Hotels: Asia

1. Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, Pudong

2. Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok

3. The Peninsula, Tokyo

Top Hotels: Africa

1. Steenberg Hotel, Cape Town

2. The Saxon, Johannesburg

3. Cape Grace, Cape Town

Top Hotels: Canada

1. Langdon Hall Country House Hotel & Spa, Cambridge, Ontario

2. Auberge Saint-Antoine, Quebec City

3. Hotel Nelligan, Montreal

Top Hotels: Mexico

1. Las Mananitas, Cuernavaca

2. La Casa Que Canta, Zihuatanejo

3. Casa de Sierra Nevada, San Miguel de Allende

Top Hotels: United States

1. Elysian Hotel, Chicago

2. 21c Museum Hotel, Louisville

3. The Peninsula, Chicago

Top Small Hotels: United States

1. Colonial Houses, Williamsburg, Virginia

2. Fairbanks House, Amelia Island

3. Fearrington House Inn, Pittsboro, North Carolina

Top Hotels: South America

1. Hotel Fasano, Sao Paolo

2. Alvear Palace Hotel, Buenos Aires

3. Palacio Duhau-Park Hyatt, Buenos Aires

Top Hotels: Middle East

1. Park Hyatt Dubai

2. Al Faisaliah Hotel (Rosewood), Riyadh

3. Four Seasons, Doha

The Readers' Choice Awards gala was held on Monday, October 10th in New York City at the Edison Ballroom and was hosted by Christine Baranski and Chris Noth. Select photos and video from the event are available upon request.

Methodology

The Conde Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Survey, begun in 1988, is available to all readers through a secure Web site. This year's final tabulations of 28,876 responses were done by Global Market Insite, Inc., of Boston. Organization: The online questionnaire contains lists of candidates in various categories (Cities, Hotels, etc.). Individual candidates are judged by relevant criteria for each. Those that receive a required minimum number of responses are deemed eligible for a Readers' Choice Award. Evaluation: Each candidate is rated, criterion by criterion, on a five-point scale: excellent, very good, good, fair, and poor. Those scores, which represent the percentage of respondents rating a candidate excellent or very good, are averaged to determine the final score published here. For example, the Park Hyatt Seoul's rating, 95.2, is the average of its scores for all hotel criteria: Food/Dining, Location, Overall Design, Rooms, and Service.

SOURCE Conde Nast Traveler