London Hotel Collects Four Awards and is UK’s Best for Luxury
UK Dominates Best Inns and B&B’s
Britain’s 10 Dirtiest Hotels – Six Repeat Offenders, Four from the Same Chain
London – January 15, 2008: Fourteen British establishments collected 20 awards in the biggest international hotels awards scheme of its kind, the results of which were announced today. A total of 325 hotels around the world were honoured in the sixth year of the TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice competition. Unlike any other hotel awards programs that survey perhaps thousands of people, TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice winners are based on the millions of real and unbiased reviews and opinions about hotels on TripAdvisor sites and content from across the web.
The Chesterfield Mayfair, in London, took the laurels for best performing British hotel. The establishment, which was a two-times winner in last year’s Travellers’ Choice has enhanced its popularity among travellers and taken awards in four categories (Top 100 Best Luxury World, Top 10 Best Luxury Europe, Best in Top 25 Destinations, Top 10 Best Service Europe). This Regency-style town-house hotel is described by TripAdvisor travellers as “exquisite�?, “beyond expectations�?, “spotless�?, “great value�?, “peaceful retreat�? in a “perfect location�? with “first class service�?.
Last year’s best performing British hotel in the Top 100 Best Luxury category, the Atlantic Hotel in St Brelade, Jersey, made the list again. There were six British hotels in the 100 Best Luxury category, including the Summer Lodge Country House Hotel, Dorchester, which was also ranked in the Top 10 Best Service Europe, referred to on TripAdvisor as “no better, less pretentious small hotel in England�?.
The Rudding Park Hotel, Harrogate, also collected a brace of accolades (Top 100 Best Luxury World and Top 10 Best Luxury Europe), as did the Coswarth House Hotel in Padstow (Top 10 Best Hidden Gems World and Top 10 Best Hidden Gems Europe).
However, it was in the Best Inns & B&Bs Europe category that Britain cleaned up, with five out of the top 10 (Bay Tree House and Annex, London; Chestnuts House, Bath; Gerald’s Place, Edinburgh; Badminton Villa, Bath; Gwynfryn Bed and Breakfast, Conwy, Wales).
Nationwide, awards went to 11 hotels in England and one each in Scotland, Wales and the Channel Islands. Other British successes were the Cottage in the Wood Country Hotel Keswick and the Orchard House, Northumberland National Park, both for Top 10 Best Bargain Hotel Europe.
To find out more about award winning hotels in the TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice Awards 2008, visit www.tripadvisor.co.uk, for more reviews and candid holiday photographs.
The UK’s Top 10 Dirtiest Hotels
TripAdvisor has also announced the UK’s 10 “dirtiest�? hotels, based on traveller ratings for cleanliness. This year saw no less than six repeat offenders, including four from the same hotel group, Britannia. The Europa Gatwick appears on the list for the third year running. However, topping this year’s roll of grime is the Nanford Guest Hotel, Iffley Road, Oxford, which has moved up a place from its #2 ranking last year.
When it made the list last year, the Oxford Mail reported that the hotel has twice been fined for food hygiene offences and that city council spokesman Louisa Dean said: "The Nanford Guest House is one of the very few hotels in Oxford that we do not recommend to visitors.�? Richard Webb, group manager for community safety at Oxfordshire County Council, told the Oxford Mail that the council had been in talks with the hotel about improving standards. Clearly improved standards have not filtered through to the Nanford’s guests who have described it on TripAdvisor as “horrendous�?, “squalid�?, “total and utter dump�?, “dirty, smelly and should be shut down�?.
The Roll of Grime
1. Nanford Guest House* 137 Iffley Road, Oxford OX41EJ
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g186361-d193762-Reviews-Nanford_Guest_House-Oxford_Oxfordshire_England.html
2. Manor Court Hotel, London, 7 Clanricarde Gardens, Notting Hill, London SW5 0PJ
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g186338-d193643-Reviews-Manor_Court_Hotel-London_England.html
3. Britannia Hotel Stockport* Dialstone Lane, Stockport SK2 6AG
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g499520-d248991-Reviews-Britannia_Hotel_Stockport-Stockport_Cheshire_England.html
4. Europa Gatwick* Balcombe Rd | Maidenbower, Crawley RH10 7ZR
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g187051-d192259-Reviews-Europa_Gatwick-Crawley_West_Sussex_England.html
5. Whiteleaf Hotel, 66 - 68 Inverness Terrace, London W2 3LB
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g186338-d192091-Reviews-Whiteleaf_Hotel-London_England.html
6. Park Hotel, London* 64 Belgrave Road, London SW1V 2BP
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g186338-d224393-Reviews-Park_Hotel-London_England.html
7. County Hotel, Carlisle, England 9 Botchergate, Carlisle CA1 1QP
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g190736-d191533-Reviews-County_Hotel-Carlisle_Cumbria_England.html
8. Britannia Hotel Birmingham,* New Street, Birmingham B2 4RX
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g186402-d191979-Reviews-Britannia_Hotel_Birmingham-Birmingham_West_Midlands_England.html
9. Eden Plaza Hotel, 68-69 Queens Gate, South Kensington, London SW7 5JT
http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g186338-d195172-Reviews-Eden_Plaza_Hotel-London_England.html
10. Britannia Country House* Palatine Road, Didsbury, Manchester M20 8UF http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g187069-d191538-Reviews-Britannia_Country_House_Hotel-Manchester_Greater_Manchester_England.html
* Featured on last year’s roll of grime
2008 Travellers’ Choice UK Best Hotels (ranking in brackets)
100 Best Luxury World
The Chesterfield Mayfair Hotel, London (9)
Rudding Park Hotel , Harrogate (12)
The Atlantic Hotel, St Brelade, Jersey (49)
Hotel 41, London (78)
Draycott Hotel, London (85)
Summer Lodge Country House Hotel, Dorchester (91)
Top 10 Best Luxury Europe
The Chesterfield Mayfair Hotel, London (4)
Rudding Park Hotel, Harrogate (7)
Best in the 25 Most Popular Destinations
The Chesterfield Mayfair Hotel, London (6)
Top 10 Best Hidden Gems World
Coswarth House, Padstow (8)
Top 10 Best Hidden Gems Europe
Coswarth House, Padstow (6)
Top 10 Best Bargains Europe
The Cottage in the Wood Country Hotel, Keswick (7)
The Orchard House, Northumberland National Park (10)
Top 10 Best Inns & B&Bs Europe
Bay Tree House and Annex, London (3)
Chestnuts House, Bath (4)
Gerald’s Place, Edinburgh (5)
Badminton Villa, Bath (6)
Gwynfryn Bed and Breakfast, Conwy, Wales (8)
Top 10 Best Service Europe
Summer Lodge Country House Hotel, Dorchester (5)
The Chesterfield Mayfair Hotel, London (6)
Awards Selection
The TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice award winners for 2008 were determined by a combination of TripAdvisor’s Popularity Index and traveller ratings of specific property attributes. TripAdvisor’s Popularity Index is a proprietary algorithm that determines traveller satisfaction based on a variety of sources, including TripAdvisor hotel reviews and travel articles and opinions from across the web. TripAdvisor recently added ratings to the hotel review process, allowing travellers to “grade�? hotels based on a variety of attributes, including cleanliness, value and suitability for specific types of travellers.
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