July is that month when all the travel mags start unrolling their red carpets and donning out prizes. Perhaps summer is a slow news month, perhaps people are in the midst of making plans and payments for vacations present and future. Whatever the case, and despite my repulsion of rating travel and making lists, I am compiling my own--for my own sake and for any out there who may be curious. Contrary to real magazines that claim to have surveyed thousands of customers and applied reliable quantitative methods, my list is 100% personal and subjective. I've compiled my judgments based on my own experiences of the past 12 months; "NEW" denotes new for me. So here's my list (Links included where applicable):
DESTINATIONS
- Best New Country: MALDIVES
- Best New City: Valparaiso, CHILE
- Best Small Town: L'Anse St. Jean, QC, CANADA
- Best Island: Grimsey, ICELAND
- Best Shopping: Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA
- Best Suntan: Kalahari Desert, BOTSWANA
- Best New Art Museum: Houston Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX, USA
- Best Guided Tour: Cardiff Castle, Cardiff, WALES
- Best Nightlife: Reykjavik, ICELAND
- Best-looking natives: INDIA & ARGENTINA (impossible tie)
- Best Airport: Schiphol Amsterdam, NETHERLANDS
- Best US Airline: Continental Airlines, USA
- Best International Airline: Emirates, UAE
- Best foreign airline: Kingfisher Airlines, INDIA
- Best Business Class Lounge: British Airways, Heathrow Terminal 5 (seriously, but I liked it).
- Best Business Class Flight: LAN, Santiago, Chile to JFK
- Best Railway: SNCF, FRANCE
- Best Subway: Kiev Metropolitan, Kiev, UKRAINE
- Best Cruise Line: Holland America, NETHERLANDS
- Best Car Rental: Hertz, worldwide
- Best City Hotel: Fouquet's Barriere, Paris, FRANCE
- Best Countryside Hotel: Patagonia Camp, Torres del Paine, CHILE
- Best Boutique Hotel: Hotel Nuss, Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA
- Best Bed & Breakfast: The Grange, Llangranog, WALES
- Best Safari Lodge: Xudum, Okavango Delta, BOTSWANA
- Best Design: Le Meridien Bangkok, Bangkok, THAILAND
- Best Indoor Swimming Pool: Hotel Remota, Puerto Natales, CHILE
- Best Outdoor Swimming Pool: Aman New Delhi, New Delhi, INDIA
- Best Hotel Gym: Hyatt Regency, Kiev, UKRAINE
- Best Room with a view: The Westcliff, SOUTH AFRICA
- Best Bed for sleeping: Taj Palace Hotel, New Delhi, INDIA
- Best Pillows: Sofitel, NY, New York, USA
- Best Bathrooms: The Westcliff, SOUTH AFRICA
- Best interior design/room decor: Pashan Garh, INDIA
- Best chocolates left on the pillow: Sofitel, NY, New York, USA
- Best New Spa: The Spa Retreat, Conrad Rangali, MALDIVES
- Best New Resort: Aman New Delhi, New Delhi, INDIA
- Best Massage Ever: Mizpe Hayamim, Galilee, ISRAEL
- Best New Massage: Royal Cliff Beach Resort, THAILAND
- Best Spa town: Zrece, SLOVENIA
- Best telephone customer service: ZipCar, USA
- Best Hotel Staff: &Beyond, worldwide
- Best Waitstaff: CityZen, Washington, DC, USA
- Best Wi-Fi: anywhere in DENMARK
- Best Border Guards: Canadian Immigration, Trudeau International Airport, Montreal, QC, CANADA
- Best Beach: Horseshoe Bay, BERMUDA
- Best Coastline: Pembrokeshire, WALES
- Best Mountains: Andes, Patagonia, CHILE
- Best Hiking: Landmannalaugar Nature Reserve, ICELAND
- Best Diving: Rangali Reef (Conrad Rangali), MALDIVES
- Best Fishing, Odyssey Boreale, QUEBEC
- Best New National Park: Parc National des Monts Valin, Saguenay, QUEBEC
- Best Wildlife Experience: Chobe-Under-Canvas, BOTSWANA
- Best Guides: &Beyond
- Best Zoo: Zoo Sauvage de St. Felicien, Saguenay, QUEBEC
- Best All Around City for Eating: Bangkok, THAILAND
- Best Restaurant Reviewed: CityZen, Washington, DC, USA
- Best Local Cuisine: Manolo Caracol, Panama City, PANAMA
- Best Italian Food: Centro Vinoteca, NY, New York
- Best design for a restaurant: Adour, Washington, DC, USA
- Best Airline Food: Korean Air, KOREA
- Best Pastry: Ladurée, Paris, FRANCE
- Best Doughnuts: Apple House, Front Royal, VA, USA
- Best New Cheese: Stori Dimon, ICELAND
- Best Cheese: Spenwood, ENGLAND
- Best Hamburger: Redwood, Bethesda, MD, USA
- Best Steak: Pinnacle Grill, MS Oosterdam, Holland America Cruise Line, MEXICO
- Best Seafood: Boat Shed Cafe, Nelson, NEW ZEALAND
- Best Chef: Executive Chef at Breeze, Le Bua Hotel, Bangkok, THAILAND
- Best Guidebook EVER Used: Rough Guide Morocco
- Best New Guidebook Used: Botswana Safari Guide, Chris McIntyre, Bradt Travel Guides
- Best New Travel Literature: Irreverent Curiosity, David Farley (Penguin)
- Best City Guides: Blackbook (and not just because I write for them)
- Best Travel Blog: Intelligent Travel
- Best In-Flight Magazine: IN (LAN)
- Best travel photos taken by friends: Brian Gratwicke (India); Sasha Vasiljev (Italy)
- Longest nonstop flight: Johannesburg, South Africa to Washington, DC, USA (18 hours)
- Most expensive manicure: $60
- Longest wait for baggage claim: London Heathrow Terminal 4 (1 hour 20 minutes).
- Longest layover: Dubai, UAE (8 hours)
- Most lost luggage: American Airlines, USA
- Closest near death experience: zip-lining, Argentine Military Base, Igauzu, ARGENTINA
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