Borana Conservancy, Kenya
All stays
8,719
Cologne, Germany
The New Yorker Hotel
Riga, Latvia
Grand Poet Hotel and SPA by Semarah
Riga, Latvia
TRIBE Riga City Centre
Ferreries, Spain
Vestige Son Ermità
Fes, Morocco
Palais Faraj Suite & Spa
Vilnius, Lithuania
Neringa Hotel
Huesca, Spain
Canfranc Estación, a Royal Hideaway Hotel
Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
Luxembourg Marriott Hotel Alfa
Budapest, Hungary
Hotel Rum Budapest
Hamburg, Germany
The Westin Hamburg
Santa Rosa Beach, United States of America
WaterColor Inn
St. George's, Grenada
Mount Cinnamon
Bangkok, Thailand
Waldorf Astoria Bangkok
Crete, Greece
Kapsaliana Village Hotel
Rye, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Tillingham Winery
Riviera Maya, Mexico
Viceroy Riviera Maya
Athens, Greece
The Zillers, Athens
Rome, Italy
Villa Spalletti Trivelli
Crete, Greece
The Royal Blue Resort
Milos, Greece
Domes White Coast Milos
Orlando, United States of America
JW Marriott Orlando Bonnet Creek Resort & Spa
Coupeville, United States of America
Captain Whidbey
Catskills & Hudson Valley, United States of America
Wylder Hotel Windham
The Complete Stay
How The World's Best reads a hotel
Four connected views keep the guest experience in focus while reading the property as a place, an operation and a current promise.
The Place
Architecture, landscape, stewardship and the clarity with which the property belongs to its setting.
Sense of place · Design and stewardship · Landscape · Destination relationshipThe Room
Sleep, privacy, proportion, light and the practical comfort that shapes the hours a guest spends alone.
Sleep and quiet · Privacy · Comfort and usability · ConditionThe Stay
Service, dining, wellbeing and the pace of the experience from arrival through departure.
Service and recovery · Dining · Wellbeing · Pace and consistencyThe Record
A current, coherent operation supported by evidence strong enough to carry every published claim.
Current operation · Continuity · Evidence · Integrity of claimsEditorial independence
How decisions are protected
Hotels cannot pay to enter, receive a GEM distinction, improve their editorial account or secure a Best 100 position.
01Commercial separation+
Hotels cannot buy directory inclusion, a GEM distinction, favourable editorial language or a place in the Best 100. Advertising, licensing and partnerships are agreed separately.
02Conflicts and recusal+
Editors and contributors disclose employment, ownership, consultancy, investment and close personal ties. A material conflict removes that person from the decision.
03No geographic quotas+
No country, city, brand, price point or property type receives a reserved place. Context matters, but it does not lower the standard.
04Current identity+
The record belongs to one property in one place. A change of address, concept, ownership, management or operating condition can require a fresh review.
05Corrections+
Substantiated factual errors are checked against the evidence file and corrected. A difference of editorial opinion is not treated as a factual error.
06Product separation+
Directory publication, a GEM rating and the annual Best 100 are separate decisions. No one result implies either of the others.
Every hotel is read against the same declared identity, evidence and publication rules.
Read the hotel framework