Another World's Best List: This Time Top 50 Hotels

[PeterRS]

For a decade around 1990, there was a popular TV series that regularly placed Bangkok's then-named Oriental Hotel (now the Mandarin Oriental) as the best in the world. Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous was a cloying peaen to all those places none of us could afford to visit hosted by the equally cloying Robin Leech. 

Since then world class hotels have opened all over the place. Virtually the only one I ever stayed in (apart from The Oriental in Bangkok which was business-related and free!) was the gloriously understated Park Hyatt in Tokyo, the hotel where director Sophia Coppola filmed much of her lovely movie Lost in Translation with Bill Murray and Scarlet Johansson. That visit was also technically free as I blew almost my entire stash of Hyatt points. But I adored the hotel.

Now a new Organisation called The World's 50 Best Hotel Academy made up of 580 hoteliers, hotel industry experts and travel journalists has come up with its first 50 best hotels list. Perhaps not surprisingly 4 of the top 5 - and 5 of the top 10 - are in Asia. 9 more Asian hotels are included in the full list. 

Top spot goes to a small hotel bordering Lake Como in Italy, Passalacqua. The next four are The Rosewood Hong Kong, Four Seasons Bangkok (the new one by the river), The Upper House Hong Kong (which used to be a block of serviced apartments above the centrally located Marriott Hotel before being converted into a luxury hotel) and Aman in Tokyo. In 10th place is Bangkok's Mandarin Oriental. This lower ranking does not surprise me as the rooms in the new wing (well, new in the mid-1970s) are now pretty much on the small side.

Definitely surprising to me is a hotel and hotel chain I have never heard of before - Capella. Capella Bangkok on the river comes 11th and another great river hotel the much more Thai-styled The Siam located up river from the Royal Palace comes in at 42nd. Capella Singapore is at 28 whereas the one other Singapore-listed hotel Raffles is at 17.

The 101 room Capella Bangkok - which to me looks like a block in a housing estate. Even the pool looks extremely small!

Celebrated older hotels no longer have their shine. London's top hotels are Claridges at 16, The Connaught at 22, NoMad at 46 and The Savoy at 47. Neither the Ritz in Paris or London are on the list, but Paris has four other hotels. Only one New York hotel is listed - the Aman.

Few if any of us will have any chance at staying at any of these hotels unless we win a lottery or had bought shares in Berkshire Hathaway half a century ago. In my case, I am not really a fan of top hotels even if someone else pays.

I was once on a business trip to New York with a client who was on the Board of Sheraton in Asia. He had booked us into the St. Regis on 5th Avenue. We were arriving on different flights from an earlier visit to Las Vegas - me taking a roundabout route with 3 flights to maximise airline points. When I arrived at LGA late in the evening, my suitcase had missed a connection. So I arrived at the St. Regis and was ushered into a small suite looking virtually like a tramp.  Having underwear and socks cleaned at the overnight laundry was more expensive than buying them new. And at breakfast wearing a red sweat shirt and blue jeans amid a plethora of bespoke-suited businessmen, I felt utterly stupid!

Full list here - https://edition.cnn.com/travel/world-50-best-hotels-2023-cmd/index.html

[10tazione]

Thanks for reminding me to play the lottery

 

[PeterRS]

2 hours ago, 10tazione said:

Thanks for reminding me to play the lottery

 

I play every time I am in Hong Kong. The Mark 6 draw is three times a week with a minimum top prize each time of US$1 million. Since there is no top prize winner in 6 out of 10 draws and the Jockey Club which runs the lottery adds addtional Snowball amounts several times a year, most top prize winners receive more than that million. The highest amount ever won was US$11,840,180. (But I wouldn't quibble if I only won that million!)

No idea how much i have spent over many years and the most I ever won was just under US$6. The consolation is that most of that lottery's profits go to needy social welfare causes.

[floridarob]

at the corner of Wireless rd and Rama IV the new project known as "One Bangkok" will include like 5- 5* hotels....aiming at the Chinese market.

[vinapu]

21 hours ago, PeterRS said:

 

Few if any of us will have any chance at staying at any of these hotels unless we win a lottery

I doubt  I'd spend money on such unnecessary  luxuries even if I won big. Perhaps for 1 night just to know how rich people flush toilets and brush their teeth.

Most trips I spend 1-3 night in something I consider more luxurious and while I like experiences,  difference in price is definitely NOT compensated  by difference in quality.

At least 3 more Bangkok hotels should be on that list : Le Siam, Furama Sathorn and Baan Silom

[vinapu]

21 hours ago, 10tazione said:

Thanks for reminding me to play the lottery

 

I do play the same numbers from January 1990 without any hope of winning but some people do and I still keep on my desk photo of my clients who won big back in early 90-ties.

Another client of my office  before  I joined there was part of group of restaurant employees who won really big but since it was split among 30 odd people her share was enough to buy a house  but not enough to stop working. 

My third brush with rich and famous was client of grocery store I used to shop before they closed. manager showed me her and said " she is wife of guy who won big and was in yesterday's paper".  

My personal best since 1990 was equivalent of about 2000 Baht but it was in days when 1000 baht was good ST tip.

[PeterRS]

For those who have won a lottery, I see the Peninsula Group has finally opened a hotel in London. It has a great location at Marble Arch but rooms rates start at £1,300. No idea if this incudes tax and service, but I suppose if you have to ask you can't afford to say there. 🤣

Incidentally, for those with shorter memories, the Peninsula Group built a hotel in Bangkok on Rajadamri at the end of the 1970s. It opened at a time of economic recession and the Group sold it only a few years after opening. It then became The Regent which many years later sold it to The Four Seasons. It's now named the Anantara. It's lobby is modelled almost exactly on that in its flagship Peninsula Hong Kong hotel.

Forgot that i did actually spend one night with a client at the Peninsula Hong Kong. Soon after my bag had been delivered to the room, there was a knock on the door. It was the roomboy with a silver platter of designer soaps from which I had to choose the one I wanted. "Roomboy" was somewhat of a misnomer. The Peninsula had a policy of keeping its staff as long as possible. My roomboy looked around 70! But the soaps were all large bars in their original plastic boxes. Lasted me many weeks!

https://edition.cnn.com/travel/peninsula-hotel-london-opens/index.html

[PeterRS]

5 hours ago, vinapu said:

I doubt  I'd spend money on such unnecessary  luxuries even if I won big.

I'm curious. What would you spend it on - apart from bigger tips to the boys in Pattaya 🤣

[vinapu]

11 hours ago, PeterRS said:

But the soaps were all large bars in their original plastic boxes. Lasted me many weeks!

 

reminded me my friend telling us about the week in resort in Caribbean and saying ' I did not even unwrap my soap " to everybody's laugh. She was perplexed until somebody explained to her that it sounded like she skipped on showering.

7 hours ago, PeterRS said:

I'm curious. What would you spend it on - apart from bigger tips to the boys in Pattaya 🤣

next trip or extending current one. My tea tastes the same whether I use silver or aluminum teaspoon

Boys in Pattaya can't complain about my tips because they get the same like their Bangkok friends even if we know Pattaya, tips included,  is cheaper.

But I admit I have weak spot when comes to hotels, I like big rooms and often I'm willing to pay premium for that. It's why any time I take both Furamas , Quarter Saladaeng, Raya  or Baan Silom over Quarter Silom , Icon Styles or Amara.

[PeterRS]

8 hours ago, vinapu said:

next trip or extending current one. My tea tastes the same whether I use silver or aluminum teaspoon

Boys in Pattaya can't complain about my tips because they get the same like their Bangkok friends even if we know Pattaya, tips included,  is cheaper.

But I admit I have weak spot when comes to hotels, I like big rooms and often I'm willing to pay premium for that. It's why any time I take both Furamas , Quarter Saladaeng, Raya  or Baan Silom over Quarter Silom , Icon Styles or Amara.

But I think all of the above many times over will not go anywhere near spending your $1 million. Surely there must be something else that would eat up the rest? Or are you going to donate that to @TotallyOz's welfare fund? 😵

[vinapu]

42 minutes ago, PeterRS said:

But I think all of the above many times over will not go anywhere near spending your $1 million. Surely there must be something else that would eat up the rest? Or are you going to donate that to @TotallyOz's welfare fund? 😵

I rather set my own welfare fund than fund somebody else's . As things are now I don't see any reason to try to spent that imaginary million as fast  as I can.  But I would  be happy to win it , if only to know how people suddenly lavished with good fortune feel

[PeterRS]

1 hour ago, vinapu said:

But I would  be happy to win it , if only to know how people suddenly lavished with good fortune feel

Very happy I'd think! LOL Apart from those who think they should have won more 😵

[TotallyOz]

7 hours ago, PeterRS said:

But I think all of the above many times over will not go anywhere near spending your $1 million. Surely there must be something else that would eat up the rest? Or are you going to donate that to @TotallyOz's welfare fund? 😵

I have stayed in 6 of them. I think I need to get out of Asia more! The Oberoi Amarvilas (Agra, India) is the one the BF loved when we visited India as our balcony overlooked the Taj.

I was surprised the Welcome Plaza in Pattaya was not on the list as my first visit to Thailand, I was assured it was truly amazing (ended up only one night).