The Travel + Leisure 2012 World’s Best Awards Readers’ Survey Results of Top Hotels, Cities, Islands, Cruise Lines, Airlines, and More Announced Today
http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/worlds-best-hotels
http://www.travelandleisure.com/travel-guide/kangaroo-island/hotels/southern-ocean-lodge
New York, NY (July 6, 2012) – Osprey at Beaver Creek, Colorado is named Best Resort in the Continental U.S., Honolulu
makes its debut on the list of Top 10 Cities in the U.S. and Canada, Nayara Hotel, Spa & Gardens is the first Costa Rican resort to rank among the top 10 hotels overall, and Vieques, Puerto Rico is voted the Best Island in the Caribbean, Bermuda, and the Bahamas in the Travel + Leisure 2012 World’s Best Awards readers’ survey, announced today. The results of the 17th annual Travel + Leisure World’s Best Awards survey revealing readers’ favorite hotels, cities, islands, cruise lines, airlines, car-rental agencies, spas*, safari outfitters, and tour operators are listed on www.TravelandLeisure.com now, will be featured in the August digital editions on iPad®, NOOK Color™, and Kindle Fire™, and is the cover story of the August issue of the magazine, on newsstands July 20.
Singita Grumeti Reserves in northern Tanzania is the top-ranked World’s Best Hotel overall for the second consecutive year and is one of four properties in Africa to place in the top 10 among hotels worldwide. Australia’s four-year-old Southern Ocean Lodge, on 
Kangaroo Island, makes its debut on the Top 100 Hotels list at No. 3. Hotel Santa Caterina, Amalfi, Italy is the top Resort in Europe and is featured on the T+L August issue cover. Triple Creek Ranch in Darby, Montana is the No. 1 Inn and Small Lodge in the Continental U.S. for the third year, and is ranked
No. 2 among hotels worldwide. New York City holds its title for the twelfth year in a row as the Best City in the U.S. and Canada, and ranks No. 7 among top cities overall, while Bangkok retains its number one ranking in the world for the third year in a row. Istanbul rises to its highest ranking ever in the survey at No. 3 on the list of Top Cities Overall. Among cities in the U.S. and Canada, Chicago rises to the No. 2 spot and New Orleans moves up to No. 5 this year from No. 6 in 2011.
Two companies have held onto their No. 1 rankings every year since the poll began in 1996: Crystal Cruises (Best Large-Ship Cruise Line) and Singapore Airlines (Best International Airline). The 2012 results, including the Top 100 Hotels, Top 50 Resorts in the Continental U.S., Top 10 Cities Overall, and Top 10 Islands Overall, among other lists, are featured on www.TravelandLeisure.com/worldsbest now.
Here’s the entry on Southern Ocean Lodge:
Southern Ocean Lodge
- World’s Best Hotels (2012)
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On a sparsely populated island 30 minutes by plane from Adelaide sits this lodge, which is contemporary in design and green in attitude. The 21 spacious suites have limestone floors, artwork by local artisans, and outdoor terraces. Air-conditioning is unnecessary: the property was constructed to take advantage of natural weather patterns. Owners James and Hayley Baillie developed only one percent of their total acreage on the wildlife-filled isle, leaving the rest of the land in a preservation trust. Guests learn about the resort’s sustainability policy upon check-in, underscoring the Baillies’ appreciation of the landscape’s natural beauty.
ARTICLES
TRAVEL + LEISURE 2012 WORLD’S BEST AWARDS WINNERS OVERALL
WORLD’S BEST CITY Bangkok
WORLD’S BEST HOTEL Singita Grumeti Reserves Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
WORLD’S BEST ISLAND Boracay Philippines
WORLD’S BEST LARGE-SHIP CRUISE LINE Crystal Cruises
WORLD’S BEST SMALL-SHIP CRUISE LINE Seabourn
WORLD’S BEST RIVER CRUISE LINE Viking River Cruises
WORLD’S BEST INTERNATIONAL AIRLINE Singapore Airlines
WORLD’S BEST DOMESTIC AIRLINE Virgin America
WORLD’S BEST SAFARI OUTFITTER Micato Safaris
WORLD’S BEST TOUR OPERATOR Row Adventures
WORLD’S BEST CAR-RENTAL AGENCY Hertz
WORLD’S BEST DESTINATION SPA Red Mountain Resort Ivins, Utah
WORLD’S BEST HOTEL SPA Capella Pedregal Los Cabos, Mexico
Travel + Leisure Editor-in-Chief Nancy Novogrod said, “Even after 17 years, the opportunity to see what travel experiences resonate with our readers still intrigues and delights me. While some passions change over time, the allure of the exotic and the new remains as strong as ever, as does the attraction to trips that provide distinctive and long-lasting memories. Along with great service, our readers crave adventure and the outdoors, reflected in their selection of this year’s top three resorts in the Continental U.S., all located in Colorado mountain towns. And, this year, we’re introducing our World’s Best Awards Hall of Fame, celebrating the winners who have been recognized for the last ten years or more of the survey—congratulations to all 97 of you!”
TRAVEL + LEISURE 2012 WORLD’S BEST HOTEL WINNERS BY REGION
CONTINENTAL U.S.
TOP RESORT Osprey at Beaver Creek Colorado
TOP LARGE CITY HOTEL Waldorf Astoria (formerly the Elysian Hotel) Chicago
TOP SMALL CITY HOTEL Wentworth Mansion Charleston, South Carolina
TOP INN/SMALL LODGE Triple Creek Ranch Darby, Montana
HAWAII
TOP RESORT Four Seasons Resort Hualalai Hawaii, the Big Island
CANADA
TOP RESORT Wickaninnish Inn, Tofino, British Columbia
TOP CITY HOTEL Auberge Saint-Antoine Quebec City
THE CARIBBEAN, BERMUDA, AND THE BAHAMAS
TOP RESORT The Reefs Bermuda
MEXICO
TOP RESORT Live Aqua Cancún
TOP CITY HOTEL Four Seasons Hotel México, D.F. Mexico City
CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA
TOP RESORT Nayara Hotel, Spa & Gardens La Fortuna, Costa Rica
TOP CITY HOTEL Palacio Duhau – Park Hyatt Buenos Aires
EUROPE
TOP RESORT Hotel Santa Caterina Amalfi, Italy
TOP LARGE CITY HOTEL Four Seasons Hotel Istanbul at the Bosphorus
TOP SMALL CITY HOTEL Four Seasons Hotel Istanbul at Sultanahmet
TOP INN/SMALL COUNTRY HOTEL Katikies Hotel Santorini, Greece
ASIA
TOP RESORT Oberoi Udaivilas Udaipur, India
TOP CITY HOTEL The Peninsula Bangkok
AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST
TOP LODGE/RESORT Singita Grumeti Reserves Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
TOP CITY HOTEL One&Only Cape Town, South Africa
AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND, AND THE SOUTH PACIFIC
TOP RESORT Southern Ocean Lodge Kangaroo Island, Australia
TOP CITY HOTEL The Langham Melbourne
TRAVEL + LEISURE 2012 WORLD’S BEST CITY AND ISLAND WINNERS BY REGION
REGION CITY ISLAND
CONTINENTAL UNITED STATES AND CANADA New York City Vancouver Island B.C., Canada
MEXICO AND CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA Cuzco Peru Galápagos Ecuador
EUROPE Florence Santorini Greece
ASIA Bangkok Boracay Philippines
AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND AND THE SOUTH PACIFIC Sydney Great Barrier Reef Australia
HAWAII Maui
THE CARIBBEAN, BERMUDA, AND THE BAHAMAS Vieques Puerto Rico
AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST Cape Town
TRAVEL + LEISURE 2012 WORLD’S BEST HOTEL SPAS WINNERS BY REGION*
CONTINENTAL U.S. Allison Inn & Spa Newberg, Oregon
CANADA Fairmont Chateau Whistler
HAWAII Grand Wailea Maui
MEXICO Capella Pedregal Los Cabos
THE CARIBBEAN, BERMUDA, AND THE BAHAMAS Sandy Lane Barbados
CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA Nayara Hotel, Spa & Gardens La Fortuna, Costa Rica
EUROPE The Ritz Paris
ASIA Discovery Shores Boracay, Philippines
AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST Twelve Apostles Hotel & Spa Cape Town, South Africa
AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND, AND THE SOUTH PACIFIC Four Seasons Resort Bora-Bor
Follow the Travel + Leisure 2012 World’s Best Awards conversation on Twitter with @travlandleisure #tlworldsbest.
