WORLDHOTELS' Best Hotels 2008

For the second time, WORLDHOTELS has awarded the “Performing Excellence Awards” to its top properties at this year’s Leadership Forum in Stockholm, Sweden. The leading hotel group for independent hotels honoured the best hotels in EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa), APAC (Asia Pacific) and The Americas (North and South America), as well as the leading hotel worldwide.

In the Americas, the sophisticated Westminster Hotel in Livingston, New Jersey, and the Graves 601 Hotel in Minneapolis were jointly honoured as the best hotels in the region. Renowned for its hip urban style and great location, The Westminster Hotel offers extensive banquet and conference facilities, and deluxe spa services, whilst the Graves 601 Hotel offers sophisticated modern luxury to the discerning traveller of today. Hotels located in Baltimore came in second and third place: the Tremont Park Hotel and the Tremont Plaza Hotel respectively.

The performance of all WORLDHOTELS properties is measured in yearly quality tests conducted by IFH AG, a renowned consulting company specialising in independent evaluations and benchmarking of hotels quality performances worldwide. Anonymous “mystery inspectors” evaluate each property in up to 1,700 different categories. The testers thoroughly assess every detail from room furnishings and bathroom fittings to restaurant quality and spa amenities, as well as the staff’s service and personal skills. Introduced in 2006, the “Performing Excellence Program” guarantees the continuous optimisation of quality standards at all WORLDHOTELS residences and assures an excellent travel experience to all guests.  This year’s event was sponsored by the luxury destination club, Ultimate Escapes.

· WORLDHOTELS is the longest established Europe based global group for independent hotels and regional hotel brands.

· The company’s strong emphasis is on properties with character and distinction. It has almost 500 affiliate properties in more than 300 destinations and 70 countries worldwide.

· Under the banner “Unique Hotels for Unique People”, WORLDHOTELS offers business and leisure travellers a wide choice of individualistic accommodation options in three distinct collections – Deluxe, First Class and Comfort.

· WORLDHOTELS’ guests benefit from an extensive portfolio of partnerships, including frequent flyer programs from 18 of the world’s leading international airlines, including Air France/KLM, United Airlines and Lufthansa.

· To its affiliate hotels, WORLDHOTELS provides a wide range of sales, marketing, distribution and related services.