Forbes Travel Guide, the only independent, global rating system for luxury hotels, restaurants and spa, today unveiled its 2023 Star Awards. The hotel ratings expanded into new destinations, including Athens, Bodrum, Capri, Copenhagen, Cusco, Cyprus, Oslo, Sicily, Stockholm and Tunis. The 65th annual list features 360 Five-Star, 585 Four-Star and 433 Recommended hotels; 79 Five-Star, 113 Four-Star and 67 Recommended restaurants; and 119 Five-Star and 195 Four-Star spas worldwide. In Canada, five stars were awarded to nine hotels: The St. Regis Toronto, The Shangri-La Toronto, The Shangri-La Vancouver, Rosewood Hotel Georgia in Vancouver, The Ritz-Carlton Toronto, The Hazelton Hotel in Toronto, The Four Seasons Toronto, The Four Seasons Read more
Four Seasons
It’s probably fair to say that no single city in the world has taken a bigger hit from COVID-19 than New York. But this is one of the greatest cities on the planet (and toughest), and they’ve laid out a plan to pull themselves out of it with a newly-unveiled group called The Coalition for NYC Hospitality & Tourism Recovery. I also have news about the re-instatement of flights around the world by Emirates, American Airlines, Korean Air, Qatar Airways and others. I also have an update on how Los Cabos, Mexico plans to open for tourism on June 1. Read more
One of the great things about New York City is that the tourism folks don’t rest on their laurels. They come to Toronto regularly, for example, to talk about what’s new and what folks should see. They stage events all over the world to try to lure tourists to their city. They don’t just assume (as does Italy) that everyone will want to come there, so they WORK for their business. And it’s paying off. Last year, NYC welcomed a record 58.3 million visitors, their sixth straight record-breaking year. Some 12.3 million of those folks were international visitors, including a Read more
Hotel Wi-Fi is one of those touchstone issues travellers love to talk about. Who’s got the best? And who’s got it for free? There’s a new study out from Hotel WiFi Test that ranks hotels around the world, which is a great idea. The bad news for Canadians is there’s no Canada table. But there is date for Europe and the U.S. and Asia, so it’s still pretty useful. And a bit surprising. Despite continuing criticism, there are far too many hotels in the U.S. that charge for Wi-Fi, which I’ve argued is like charging for water in the shower Read more
I’ve had the good luck to visit 45 or 46 (I think) of the states in the U.S. I haven’t been to North Dakota or Oklahoma or Kansas or Arkansas, so I can’t say this is complete. And there are a lot of incredible properties I haven’t seen in the states I HAVE been to. But I’ve seen a few pretty cool ones, so here’s a list of some MY favourite spots for romance in the U.S. of A., just in time for Valentine’s Day. Travaasa Hana: One of my favourite hotels in the world (see sunrise photo above), with Read more
