Travel + Leisure reveal all of the ‘World’s Best’

Tropical landscape with rock islands, lonely boat and crystal clear water, El Nido, Palawan, Philippines

The iconic American travel website, Travel + Leisure, has unveiled its annual string of awards naming the world’s best in, well, bloody everything.

And while we could list everything, that’s a bit mission given there’s over 70 categories of ‘best of’ – yes we got bored around 76 and stopped counting. You can see them all here.

Travel + Leisure’s World’s Best Awards are based on results from an annual survey, where readers are asked to cast their votes for the very best in all aspects of travel, from the top hotels in Rome and the best islands in Asia, to the best Safari lodges in Africa and five different categories of cruise liners.

But we have pinched a few of the top 10 lists for your perusal here, including best cities, airlines, mega-ship ocean cruise lines, airports, river cruise lines, islands, and of course the best APAC cities.

Open up a mammoth excel spreadsheet and start adding these bad boys to your bucket list!

The Best Cities in Australia, New Zealand, and the South Pacific

Since the World’s Best Awards were created, 22 years ago, Sydney has been the top city in Australia, New Zealand, and the South Pacific 22 times in a row, writes T+L.

“You cannot go wrong with a city that is surrounded by water on all sides,” one T+L reader wrote.

“The beaches are amazing, the people are so beautiful, the food is good, and public transit is spot-on.”

So what’s 2017’s top five look like?

  1. Sydney
  2. Queenstown
  3. Melbourne
  4. Wellington
  5. Auckland

The World’s Top 15 Cities

This year’s winner — for the first time ever in the World’s Best Awards’ 22-year history — is Mexico’s San Miguel de Allende, writes T+L.

“San Miguel is one of the most authentic, creative and cost-effective destinations we’ve visited,” wrote one of their readers.

Per T+L, readers rated cities on their sights and landmarks, culture, cuisine, friendliness, shopping, and overall value. For the record, there’s mere points and o.-somethings between each place.

  1. San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
  2. Charleston, South Carolina
  3. Chiang Mai, Thailand
  4. Kyoto, Japan
  5. Florence, Italy
  6. Oaxaca, Mexico
  7. Hoi An, Vietnam
  8. Cape Town, South Africa
  9. Ubud, Indonesia
  10. Luang Prabang, Laos
  11. Santa Fe, New Mexico
  12. Rome, Italy
  13. Siem Reap, Cambodia
  14. Udaipur, India
  15. Barcelona, Spain

The Top 10 International Airlines

Per T+L, in the airlines category, readers rated carriers on cabin comfort, service, food, customer service, and value.

  1. Singapore Airlines
  2. Emirates
  3. Qatar Airways
  4. Cathay Pacific Airways
  5. Japan Airlines
  6. Virgin Atlantic
  7. Air New Zealand
  8. Korean Air
  9. All Nippon Airways
  10. Eva Air

The Top 10 Large-ship Ocean Cruise Lines

Per T+L, readers rated individual cruise ships on their cabins and facilities, food, service, itineraries and destinations, excursions and activities, and value.

Those assessments were combined to generate results for the cruise lines in five categories; large-ship ocean cruise lines have vessels that can carry 600 to 2,199 passengers.

  1. Viking Cruises
  2. Crystal Cruises
  3. Regent Seven Seas Cruises
  4. Cunard
  5. Oceania Cruises
  6. Azamara Club Cruises
  7. Princess Cruises
  8. Costa Cruises
  9. Celebrity Cruises
  10. Holland America Line

The Top 10 International Airports

Airports were rated on access, check-in and security, restaurants and bars, shopping, and design.

  1. Singapore Changi (SIN)
  2. Hamad International, Doha, Qatar (DOH)
  3. Dubai International (DXB)
  4. Incheon International, South Korea (ICN)
  5. Hong Kong International (HKG)
  6. Zurich, Switzerland (ZRH)
  7. Haneda (Tokyo International) (HND)
  8. Ben Gurion International, Tel Aviv (TLV)
  9. Abu Dhabi International (AUH)
  10. Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS)

The Top River Cruise Lines

Per T+L, readers rated individual cruise ships on their cabins and facilities, food, service, itineraries and destinations, excursions and activities, and value.

  1. Crystal Cruises
  2. Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection
  3. Viking Cruises
  4. Aqua Expeditions
  5. Tauck

The World’s Top 10 Islands

Per T+L, readers rated islands according to their activities and sights, natural attractions and beaches, food, friendliness, and overall value.

  1. Palawan, Philippines
  2. Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
  3. Boracay Island, Philippines
  4. Galápagos Islands, Ecuador
  5. Santorini, Greece
  6. Maui, Hawaii
  7. Kauai, Hawaii
  8. Ischia, Italy
  9. Hvar and the Dalmatian Islands, Croatia
  10. Bali, Indonesia

The Top 10 Hotels in the World

Per T+L, hotels were rated on their facilities, location, service, food, and overall value.

  1. Nihi Sumba Island (formerly Nihiwatu), Indonesia
  2. The Brando, Tetiaroa, French Polynesia
  3. Lodge & Spa at Brush Creek Ranch, Saratoga, Wyoming
  4. Lodge at Kauri Cliffs, Matauri Bay, New Zealand
  5. Gibb’s Farm, Karatu, Tanzania
  6. Tswalu Kalahari, Tswalu Kalahari Reserve, South Africa
  7. Triple Creek Ranch, Darby, Montana
  8. Cavas Wine Lodge, Mendoza, Argentina
  9. Inn at Willow Grove, Orange, Virginia
  10. (tie) between Rosewood CordeValle, San Martin, California and Zarafa Camp, Selinda Reserve, Botswana

Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au

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