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Conde Nast Traveler today announced the results of its 2009 Readers' Choice Awards, ranking the best cities, islands, cruise lines, airlines, hotels, resorts, and car rental agencies worldwide. The awards appear in the November issue (on newsstands October 20) and are derived from the Conde Nast Traveler Readers' Choice survey. This year, 25,008 readers voted on more than 10,000 properties and destinations.
"The big news is that, undaunted by tough times, our readers are still out there, discovering the coolest experiences and reaffirming an enduring passion for travel," said Conde Nast Traveler Editor in Chief Klara Glowczewska. "It's clear that our readers are as devoted to the worldwide diversity of travel as ever."
The full list of winners is on cntraveler.com at: cntraveler.com/readerschoice
The results of the 2009 Readers Choice Awards reveal some surprising news:
* The friendliest U.S. cities are Charleston, Savannah, and Honolulu, while the least friendly, by an uncomfortable margin is New York (54/100--ouch)
* Ubud, Bali, is the friendliest town of all
* Santa Fe, New Mexico, bumped New York City out of the #3 spot for best U.S. city to visit. San Francisco remained #1 and New York City slid to #4.
* San Francisco takes the Best U.S. Cities category for a whopping 17th year in a row, a feat never before accomplished by any destination or property. One reason: its worldwide high restaurant score.
* Ubud dethrones Bangkok as the Best Asian City. Bangkok held the top spot since the category debuted in 2004.
* Newcomer Virgin America was once again named the Best Domestic Airline, for the second year in a row, with JetBlue Airways at #2.
* Singapore Airlines is again the #1 International Route Airline, and has led this category for 21 of the past 22 years. (Only Swissair, in 1994, has taken the top spot from Singapore Airlines.)
* The growing number of mega-ship cruise lines merit their own category for the first time, led by Celebrity.
* With so many superb hotels with fewer than 50 rooms, this year's survey has three new categories: Small Hotels in Europe, Small Hotels in the United States, and Small Resorts in the United States with the Kenwood Inn and Spa taking first place.
* Fully one-third of the hotels and resorts on our Top 100 list began their journey on our Hot List of the world's best new properties, published each May, confirming that Conde Nast Traveler readers are ahead of the curve and connoisseurs of the cutting edge.
Below are results for the top three winners in each category.
Top Cities United States
1. San Francisco
2. Charleston, SC
3. Santa Fe
Top Cities Europe
1. Florence
2. Rome
3. Venice
Top Cities Asia
1. Ubud, Bali
2. Bangkok
3. Hong Kong
Top Cities Africa/Middle East
1. Cape Town
2. Jerusalem
3. Beirut
Top Cities The Americas
1. Vancouver
2. Buenos Aires
3. Quebec City
Top Cities Australia/Pacific
1. Sydney
2. Melbourne
3. Queenstown
Top Islands Caribbean/Atlantic
1. Bermuda
2. St. John
3. St. Barts
Top Islands Pacific
1. Maui
2. Kauai
3. Bora Bora
Top Islands Asia/Indian Ocean
1. Maldives
2. Bali
3. Phuket
Top Islands North America
1. Kiawah, SC
2. Vancouver Island
3. Nantucket, MA
Top Islands Europe
1. Mykonos and the Cyclades
2. Bozcaada and the Turkish Aegean Islands
3. Capri
Top Resorts Asia
1. Four Seasons Tented Camp Golden Triangle, Chiang Rai
2. Oberoi Vanyavilas, Rajasthan
3. Four Seasons Resort Bali at Sayan
Top Resorts Mexico
1. One & Only Palmilla, Los Cabos
2. The Tides, Riviera Maya
3. The Tides, Zihuatanejo
Top Resorts Africa
1. Mombo and Little Mombo Camps, Botswana
2. Sandibe Safari Lodge, Botswana
3. Safari Lodges at Phinda Private Game Reserve, South Africa
Top Resorts Europe
1. Hotel du Palais, Biarritz
2. Ashford Castle, Co. Mayo
3. Adare Manor Hotel & Golf Resort, Co. Limerick
Top Resorts Hawaii
1. Four Season Resort Maui at Wailea
2. Four Season Resort Hualalai at Historic Ka'upulehu, Big Island
3. Four Seasons Resort Lana'i, The Lodge at Koele
Top Resorts Atlantic Ocean
1. The Reefs, Bermuda
2. One & Only Ocean Club, Paradise Island, Bahamas
3. Grace Bay Club, Turks and Caicos
Top Resorts Middle East
1. Burj Al Arab, Dubai
2. Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai
3. One & Only Royal Mirage, Dubai
Top Resorts Oceana
1. Bora Bora Lagoon Resort & Spa
2. Huka Lodge, Taupo, New Zealand
3. La Taha'a Island Resort & Spa, French Polynesia
Top Resorts Mainland U.S.
1. Sanctuary at Kiawah Island
2. Inn at Spanish Bay, Pebble Beach
3. Montage Laguna Beach
Top Small Resorts Mainland U.S.
1. Kenwood Inn and Spa, Sonoma
2. Casa Palermo, Pebble Beach
3. Lake Austin Spa Resort, Austin
Top Resorts Canada
1. King Pacific Lodge, Princess Royal Island
2. Emerald Lake Lodge, Alberta
3. Wickaninnish Inn, Tofino, Vancouver Island
Top Resorts Caribbean
1. Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman
2. Curtain Bluff, Antigua
3. Nisbet Plantation Beach Club, Nevis
Top Resorts Central/South America
1. Four Seasons Resort Carmelo, Uruguay
2. Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo
3. Hotel Salto Chico, Explora en Patagonia, Chile
Top Cruise Lines Mega-Ship
1. Celebrity
2. Disney
3. Cunard
Top Cruise Lines Large Ships
1. Crystal
2. Regent Seven Seas
3. Cunard
Top Cruise Lines Small Ships
1. Sea Cloud
2. Yachts of Seabourn
3. Regent Seven Seas
Top Airlines Global
1. Singapore Airlines
2. Emirates
3. Tie: Virgin Atlantic and Cathay Pacific
Top Airlines North America
1. Virgin America
2. JetBlue Airways
3. Midwest Airlines
Top Car Rental Agencies
1. Hertz
2. Enterprise
3. Avis
Top Hotels Southern Europe
1. Il San Pietro di Positano, Positano, Italy
2. Il Pellicano, Porto Ercole, Tuscany
3. Four Season George V, Paris
Top Hotels Northern Europe
1. Hotel Taschenbergpalais Kempinski Dresden
2. Four Seasons Gresham Palace, Budapest
3. Ritz-Carlton, Berlin
Top Small Hotels Europe
1. La Scalinatella, Capri
2. La Colombe d'Or, St-Paul de Vence
3. Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli, Lake Garda
Top Hotels Central America
1. Lapa Rios Ecolodge, Osa Peninsuala, Costa Rica
2. Casa Santo Domingo, Antigua
3. Villas Caletas, Costa Rica
Top Hotels Oceana
1. Blankey Bay, South Island, New Zealand
2. Henry Jones Art Hotel, Hobart
3. Park Hyatt, Sydney
Top Hotels British Isles
1. Chewton Glen, Hampshire
2. Milestone Hotel, London
3. The Goring, London
Top Hotels Caribbean/Atlantic
1. Peninsula House, Samana, Dominican Republic
2. The Caves, Jamaica
3. Hotel Le Toiny, St. Barts
Top Hotels Asia
1. Oberoi Udaivilas, Rajasthan
2. Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo
3. The Peninsula, Hong Kong
Top Hotels Africa
1. The Saxon, Johannesburg
2. Table Bay Hotel, Cape Town
3. Cape Grace, Cape Town
Top Hotels Canada
1. Auberge Saint-Antoine, Quebec City
2. Fairmont Vancouver Airport
3. Hotel Le Germain-Dominion, Quebec City
Top Hotels Mexico
1. Casa Natalia, San Jose del Cabo
2. Las Mananitas, Cuernavaca
3. JW Marriott Hotel, Mexico City
Top Hotels United States
1. 21c Museum Hotel, Louisville
2. The Peninsula, Chicago
3. Mandarin Oriental, Boston
Top Small Hotels United States
1. Blantyre, Lenox, Mass.
2. The Swag, Great Smoky, Mountains, N.C.
3. Tu Tu' Tun Lodge, Gold Beach, Oregon
Top Hotels South America
1. Hotel Monasterio, Cuzco
2. Four Seasons Hotel, Buenos Aires
3. Alvear Palace Hotel, Buenos Aires
Top Hotels Middle East
1. Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Dubai
2. David Citadel Hotel, Jerusalem
3. Park Hyatt Dubai
The Readers Choice Awards gala was held on Thursday, October 15th in New York City at the IAC Building and was hosted by Stanley Tucci and Mary Louise Parker. Select photos and video from the event are available upon request.
Methodology
Every year since 1988, a select sample of Conde Nast Traveler readers have taken the Readers' Choice Survey. In 2009, the questionnaire was available to all readers through a secure Web site. The final tabulations of 25,008 responses were done by Mediamark Research, Inc., of New York City. Poll categories (Cities, Hotels, etc.), and the criteria for each appear at the bottom of the first page in every category. Questionnaires contained lists of candidates (individual cities, hotels, etc.), and write-ins were allowed. Only candidates that received a required minimum number of responses were deemed eligible for an award. Each candidate was rated, by various criterion, on a five-point scale: excellent, very good, good, fair, poor. Criterion scores, which represent the percentage of respondents rating a candidate excellent or very good, were averaged to determine the final score - e.g., in the category of Islands, Maui's 90.1 is the average of its scores for Activities, Atmosphere/Ambience, Beaches, Friendliness, Lodging, Restaurants, and Scenery.
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