30 Best Hotels Worldwide

Did you know that there are an estimated 190,000 hotels in the world, with 17.5 million hotel rooms among them?

That’s a whole lot of properties. But by definition, only a select few can be considered the best of the best. The cream of the crop, if you will.

That’s why our ears perked up when we heard about the 2019 U.S. News & World Report Best Hotels Ranking list. This report combines the highest-rated hotels in six different major tourism regions around the world: the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe, the Caribbean and Bermuda.

Selections are centered on three criteria: reputation among professional travel experts, guest reviews and hotel class ratings. (In coming years, other geographic regions with extraordinary properties will be added.)

Whether you’re a regular luxury traveler looking to bag all the top spots, or a more budget-minded wanderer searching for a bucket-list property, we’ve got you covered.

The only thing you have to worry about once you’re at one of these standout hotels is deciding which spa services to select and what to order from the extravagant menus.

Best Hotel in the United States: Four Seasons Resort Hualalai

The Four Seasons Resort Hualalai sits a bit removed from a lot of the main action on Hawaii’s Big Island. But that’s okay; once you’re here, you won’t want to leave anyways.  

What makes this resort unique (aside from its excellent customer service and standard luxury resort offerings) is its spectacular location. Nearly every place in Hawaii will take your breath away, but the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai is uniquely built into — and surrounded by — black lava terrain. Where there’s not volcanic rock, there’s white sand beaches, gorgeous green gardens and plenty of pools (seven total, in fact). It’s an Instagrammer’s paradise.

Let’s talk about the pools for a minute. For families, there are plenty of options to choose from. If your child isn’t yet keen on swimming in the open ocean, they can dip their toes into seaside swimming with the Ocean Pool. This pool was carved right from the lava rock and is protected from the big breakers by a breakwater. There’s also an oceanside infinity pool, a 1.8-million pool/aquarium hybrid where you can take snorkeling lessons from a marine biologist, and plenty of pools simply for relaxation.

Finally, don’t forget about all the resort-specific activities. You can learn about star navigation and how to play the ukulele at the Ka’upulehu Cultural Center. When you’re done, you can go on a coffee farm tour, learn about kanpachi (a native fish) aquaculture and harvest sea salt.

After all, one can only do so much lazing about.

#2 Hotel in the United States: The Peninsula Chicago

If you’re in for a big-city adventure, try checking out The Peninsula Chicago. It’s located right on the Magnificent Mile, so there’s no shortage of activities to do here, theaters to explore or fine dining to savor.

This interesting hotel offers a blend of high-class Asian flavors with Midwestern friendliness. In fact, it was the friendliness of the staff that won most people over in reviews for the property.

#3 Hotel in the United States: The Surfside Club, Florida

Continuing along with Four Seasons resorts (do you sense a trend here?), the Four Seasons Hotel at The Surfside Club brings a distinctive blend of old-world Floridian charm and modern architecture to the town of Surfside just outside Miami Beach.

Once you’re here, you can breathe easy, since the resort is spaced out over nine gorgeous acres.

#4 Hotel in the United States: Four Seasons Resort Lanai

If you venture off of the Big Island on your next Hawaiian getaway, try staying at the Four Seasons Resort Lanai on the island with the same name. It’s rated as the #4 pick in the United States for good reason.

Tucked away in the jungle, it offers an ultra-luxurious base camp for adventures like hiking, whale-watching and visiting the picturesque town of Lanai (via a complimentary shuttle, to boot).

#5 Hotel in the United States: Four Seasons Hotel Chicago

Rounding out the list of the best properties in the U.S. is this luxury hotel overlooking Lake Michigan and the Chicago skyline.

Like The Peninsula, the property is located near the Magnificent Mile for easy access to city attractions. It also offers soundproofed spa rooms, marble bathrooms and local Midwestern cuisine to pique your interest.

Best Hotel in Canada: Rosewood Hotel Georgia, Vancouver

Don’t let the name fool you: the Rosewood Hotel Georgia is actually in Vancouver, British Columbia. This hotel features accent designs from the Roaring Twenties (it did open in 1927, after all), so expect plenty of opulence, light leather and dark wood. But the hotel also offers modern design touches designed for your comfort, such as heated bathroom floors and tiled walk-in rain showers.  

Even though the hotel is far from the waterfront, you can relax in the small saltwater pool and take in the view through floor-to-ceiling windows. The Rosewood Hotel Georgia is also quite family-friendly, and offers nice touches like kids-sized robes, bottle warmers for babies and babysitting services. You can even bring Fido or Fluffy with you, as the hotel is pet-friendly and only charges a one-time fee of $41 USD for your furry friends.

If you’re feeling hungry, you can stuff yourself full at the hotel’s many fine-dining restaurants, including a Prohibition-era speakeasy and the farm-to-table (or rather, sea-to-table) seafood-focused Hawksworth Restaurant. The hotel can even arrange a fishing charter for you to go out and catch your own dinner, which the hotel chefs will later prepare for you.

#2 Hotel in Canada: Clayoquot Wilderness Resort, Tofino

Make no mistake about it, the Clayoquot Wilderness Resort, which rolled in at #2, is a different kind of resort. It’s not for the city partiers or delicate flowers. Nope, this is for adventurers looking to redefine the word “glamping” into something even more luxurious.

The seasonal property only offers posh walled tents, complete with furniture, thermostats and plush bedding. They’re the perfect place to catch some rest after a long day of hiking, bird-watching and bear-watching in the rugged heart of British Columbia.

#3 Hotel in Canada: Wedgewood Hotel & Spa, Vancouver

If you’d like something a little less off-the-grid, consider the #3 pick, Wedgewood Hotel & Spa. Each of the rooms in this hotel has a fireplace, a balcony and a marble bathroom.

If you’re feeling a need to work off all of the calories you’ve eaten in the hotel’s fine Italian restaurant, you can visit the fitness center, which features a eucalyptus steam room.

#4 Hotel in Canada: Ritz-Carlton Montréal

Another well-placed hotel is the Ritz-Carlton Montréal, ideally located in the heart of the downtown Quebec capital. Like any self-respecting Quebecois hotel, it features a French fine-dining restaurant on site — Maison Boulud.

What impressed people most about this hotel, however, was the welcoming attitude of the staff.

#5 Hotel in Canada: Fogo Island Inn, Newfoundland

Rounding out the list at #5, the Fogo Island Inn is a great choice for those looking for a remote experience, but who aren’t necessarily trying to play a northern version of Tarzan.

This modern-looking hotel rises on stilts from a rocky outcropping at the edge of an old fishing village. The isolated location ensures you can get away from it all and truly relax, made easy in the hotel’s numerous hot tubs, saunas, and hidden nooks and crannies.

Best Hotel in Mexico: Esperanza, Auberge Resorts Collection, Cabo San Lucas

Cabo San Lucas has a reputation as a bit of a party town. If you’re looking to get away from that, you can easily do so at the Esperanza hotel just outside the city. This cliffside resort feels miles away from all of the hustle-and-bustle, and offers enough lush amenities to make you never want to leave.

The resort’s many restaurants offer temptations like fresh seafood at Cocina del Mar, fresh ceviche and tacos at La Palapa, and a seaside beach party barbeque at El Shack.

Esperanza features casitas (regular hotel rooms), suites and villas. You can even splurge for butler service with some of the room options. Even if you opt for the “budget” option (a casita), you can look forward to a hammock-adorned terrace and private infinity-edge pool, plus a personal concierge. The casitas take up 925 square feet of space, which may even be bigger than your apartment.

When you’re ready for a bit of relaxation, check out the seaside infinity pool. The hotel’s spa has won multiple awards, and boasts steam caves, verdant garden views and beachside cabana massages.

#2 Hotel in Mexico: One&Only Palmilla, San Jose del Cabo

Los Cabos is a popular luxury tourism spot, so it’s no surprise that the #2 hotel on the list — the One&Only Palmilla — is also in the area. The One&Only features five on-site restaurants including Seared, serving aged beef steaks from the Michelin-starred chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten.

Rooms here come equipped with daily fresh fruit deliveries, butler service, Bose speakers and private balconies with daybeds.

#3 Hotel in Mexico: Las Ventanas al Paraíso, San Jose del Cabo

Another Los Cabos resort, the Las Ventanas al Paraíso, a Rosewood Resort, is the #3 pick. It also features fresh fruit deliveries and butler service with each of its suites (and it does only offer suites — no single rooms). Like the One&Only Palmilla, it has five on-site restaurants.

But what separates this resort is that it’s a little more lover-friendly (not that the One&Only Palmilla isn’t). There’s an entire Department of Romance here catering to couples in the mood for an intimate getaway.

#4 Hotel in Mexico: The Rosewood Mayakoba, Cancún-Playa del Carmen

The Rosewood Mayakoba resort is an equally luxurious resort if you’re looking to get away from it all. Get this — the spa is on its own private island in the center of the resort. Guests here also appreciate the resort’s unique building materials, including local jungle wood and limestone.

#5 Hotel in Mexico: The Resort at Pedregal

The final hotel on the list is another Los Cabos favorite that’ll help you feel like you’re escaping into luxury. You have to pass through a private tunnel to get here, at which point you’ll receive a free margarita to welcome you.

It gets even better from there: Each room has a private plunge pool, and guests rave about free quick massages and in-room deliveries of snacks like chips and guacamole.

Best Hotel in Europe: La Réserve Paris — Hotel and Spa

If you’ve ever wanted to pretend you’re a French princess, La Réserve Paris — Hotel and Spa is where you should head. There’s only 15 rooms and 25 suites here, which means there can be quite a wait to book accommodations, but once you’re in you can relax in the ornate style of 19th century Paris. Velvet draperies, gold accents and antique wooden furniture abound.

Here’s one thing the hotel offers that Marie Antoinette didn’t have, though: remotes for each room that control everything from the temperature to the lights (and the TV too, of course).

The hotel is located right near the Champs-Élysées and — appropriate for a French property — offers much for foodies to love. There are only two restaurants here, but you won’t want to miss them. La Pagode de Cos offers seasonal produce, while Restaurant Le Gabriel is a two-starred Michelin restaurant featuring authentic French cooking.

#2 Hotel in Europe: Hotel Sanders, Copenhagen

Hotel Sanders lies in a great location right in the heart of Copenhagen. This runner-up pick earned its rank through excellent hospitality and a homey atmosphere. If hygge is what you seek, you’ll find it in this luxurious European-styled property.

Guests also enjoy free breakfast and free bicycle rentals so they can go forth and explore the city.

#3 Hotel in Europe: Hotel Eden, Rome

Hotel Eden touts excellent and friendly staff, according to guests. You can even request butler service here, if you like.

Moreover, the property is an aesthetic standout: small designer touches are found throughout, in everything from the toilets to the rooftop restaurant.

#4 Hotel in Europe: Hotel de Crillon, Paris

The Hotel de Crillon, another property under the esteemed Rosewood banner, is ideally situated near a number of attractions. Indeed, it boasts amazing views of the Eiffel Tower and the Musée d’Orsay.

Guests particularly love the hotel’s fantastic restaurants serving elegant French cuisine (including a bar with over 100 styles of champagne!), and its welcoming and delightful staff.

#5 Hotel in Europe: Le Sirenuse, Amalfi Coast

If you’re visiting Italy’s Amalfi Coast, you need to check out Le Sirenuse. The most outstanding feature of this hotel is the amazing views from nearly every room. You did come here for the jaw-dropping views, after all.

You can also take in these vistas from the hotel’s pool, which features an enormous mermaid mosaic mural amongst a garden full of potted lemon trees. The hotel does its part to ensure you are active out in the community as well, coordinating daily events and trips.

Best Hotel in the Caribbean: Jade Mountain, St. Lucia

You’ll get an idea of what the Jade Mountain resort in St. Lucia is like right from the start, when you consider that 24 rooms here aren’t called “rooms.” They’re called “sanctuaries,” because they only have three walls. The fourth wall of each sanctuary is entirely open to the surrounding views of The Pitons spires and the Caribbean. Each sanctuary features either a private infinity pool or a private Jacuzzi.

This definitely isn’t a family-friendly resort. It’s designed for couples looking for a romantic getaway. In fact, to aid in that quest, the sanctuaries don’t even come furnished with radios, phones or TVs. Instead, you get a Firefly communication device to page your own personal butler if you require assistance. You also can’t use cell phones in public areas of the resort.

Although you can visit the sister resort, Anse Chastanet (located just down the hill) for meals, there’s also an on-site restaurant exclusive for guests. The Jade Mountain Club offers farm-to-table cuisine plucked fresh from the resort’s own farm, and crafted into Caribbean delicacies by the James Beard award-winning chef Allen Susser.

Jade Mountain has long been famous as a romantic getaway spot. The resort specializes in every stage of romantic travel — proposals, weddings, honeymoons, anniversaries and vow renewals. The resort was even featured on the 14th season finale of “The Bachelor.”

#2 Hotel in the Caribbean: Zemi Beach House & Spa, Anguilla

If you love infinity pools, you need to check out Zemi Beach House & Spa. It’s home to what’s widely regarded as one of the most beautiful infinity pools in the world, a geometric marvel that overlooks the ocean.

If that doesn’t entice you, how about the spa? It’s housed within a 300-year-old wooden Thai house.

#3 Hotel in the Caribbean: Ladera Resort, St. Lucia

Rolling in at #3, Ladera Resort is another hotel with a unique open-walled concept, like Jade Mountain. Each room boasts views of the ocean and the Pitons through a completely open fourth wall, and each room comes with its own plunge pool.

Obviously this is yet another resort designed for couples looking for a romantic getaway, and there aren’t any TVs in the rooms to distract you from that.

#4 Hotel in the Caribbean: Park Hyatt St. Kitts Christophe Harbour

If luxury family travel is more your style, the Park Hyatt St. Kitts Christophe Harbour is one you should check out. This resort offers a kids’ club, free watersports rentals and the requisite private beach.

If you’re too tired to enjoy these amenities, you can relax back in your own room on your private terrace overlooking the beautiful Caribbean scenery.

#5 Hotel in the Caribbean: Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, Puerto Rico

Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve offers a lot for adventurers, including access to a mile-long beach and an 11-mile nature trail through the Puerto Rican forests. You’ll need a shower after all that, of course, which you can take from your indoor/outdoor rain shower.

Then, fill your stomach at the standout restaurant COA, which offers up food from a wood-fired oven on a terrace overlooking the ocean.  

Best Hotel in Bermuda: The Loren at Pink Beach

If you’re on the prowl for the perfect pink-sand beach, then the aptly named Loren at Pink Beach is what you seek. This newly-opened resort — one of the first resorts to be built in quite some time in Bermuda — can be somewhat difficult to get to, since there are no rental cars allowed on the island and the hotel does not operate a shuttle. Once you can find a way to get here, though, this is yet another resort you won’t want to leave anytime soon. (Or ever.)

Each element of this hotel was designed to promote relaxation, with an aesthetic that combines natural wood touches with a light gray and white palette. The building itself was designed to be nestled into the surrounding hillside so that each room has sweeping, drop-dead gorgeous views of the Atlantic Ocean. The hotel even commissioned one of the UK’s finest DJs to create a custom, ever-changing soundscape throughout the hotel.

When it comes time to retreat to your own space, you can look forward to marble bathrooms with rain showers, designer towels and bedsheets, and private terraces with floor-to-ceiling windows to take in the Atlantic views.

#2 Hotel in Bermuda: The Rosewood Bermuda

The Rosewood Bermuda is another resort for anyone who loves pink-sand beaches (and who doesn’t?). In fact, the property boasts the largest private pink-sand beach in all of Bermuda.

This hotel is a little more secluded and spread out than most. You’ll need to take a trolley to get around, or, if you rent a suite, use the private golf cart provided to you. Once here, you can enjoy fine Italian bed linens, deep-soaking tubs in every room, and separate his-and-hers showers.

#3 Hotel in Bermuda: The Hamilton Princess Hotel & Beach Club

The Hamilton Princess Hotel & Beach Club combines charming luxury with a prime-time location. It’s right on the beach, but also right inside of the capital city of Hamilton.

When you’re done, you can return to this Fairmont hotel (also known as the “Pink Palace”) and bask in the glory of marble bathrooms, a saltwater infinity pool and a 5,400-square-foot spa.

#4 Hotel in Bermuda: The Reefs Resort & Club

This boutique seaside resort is perched high up on a cliff overlooking the island’s signature pink-sand beaches.

Guests here can enjoy fine dining with farm-to-table and sea-to-table dishes at Aqua Terra, as well as two other exemplary on-site restaurants. 

For R&R, the resort's Atlantic-facing onsite spa is among the finest on the island.

#5 Hotel in Bermuda: Cambridge Beaches Resort & Spa

If you’re looking for a little more seclusion and privacy than a Spring Break party resort, check out Cambridge Beaches Resort & Spa. The resort is composed entirely of individual cottages, some of which are up to three centuries old.

The hotel also features not one, but four separate beaches. Because really, can you ever have too many beaches?