Condé Nast Traveler today announced the results of its 29th annual Readers’ Choice Awards, ranking the best hotels, resorts, cities, islands, airlines, and cruise lines in the world. Over 300,000 dedicated readers – nearly twice as many as last year — cast votes for 7,394 hotels, 606 cities, 500 cruise ships, 236 islands, in an average survey time of 8.4 minutes. The result? The 1,402 best travel experiences in the world.
The 2016 Readers’ Choice award winners:
- Top Large and Small U.S. Cities: New York City for the second year in a row and Charleston, S.C., for the sixth year in a row!
- Top Hotel in the U.S.: Virgin Hotels Chicago
- Top Resort in the U.S.: The Lodge & Spa at Brush Creek Ranch, Saratoga, Wyoming
- Top Island in the World: Boracay, Philippines
- Top Hotel in Europe: Ballyfin, Co. Laois, Ireland
- Top Hotel in Asia: Mandarin Oriental Tokyo
- Top Hotel in South America: Hotel Unique, São Paulo
- Top Safari Camp: Ulusaba Private Game Reserve, Sabi Sand, South Africa
- Top Airline in the World: Singapore Airlines
- Top U.S. Airline: Virgin America
- Top Large Cruise Line: Disney
- Top Midsize Cruise Line: Crystal Cruises
- Top Small Cruise Line: Seabourn Cruise Line
- Top River Cruise Line: Grand Circle Cruise Line
- Top Beach Resort in Mexico: El Dorado Maroma, Playa del Carmen
- Top Beach Resort in the Caribbean: Le Sereno, St. Barths
Highlights
- 24 properties that appeared on CNT’s HOT LIST in May 2016 also made the RCA list
- Smaller properties have grown their presence against the global hotel chains.
- The votes cast by leisure travelers outnumbered the ones by business travelers.
New travel trends
- Luxury, all-inclusive resorts are for a wide cadre of travelers, not just couples.
- Caribbean properties are stronger than ever despite recent health alarms.
- Italy cannot be beat.
- U.S. secondary cities are more popular than ever.
The Readers’ Choice Awards are announced in the November issue of Condé Nast Traveler, on newsstands nationwide on October 25, 2016. The full list is published exclusively online, at www.CNTraveler.com/rca
