stimpy

I just got an email from Taj announcing this.

Am I the only one puzzled by this one? I know there is no accounting for taste, but...

Revolution

Taj Palace Rambagh in Jaipur & Taj Lake Palace in Udaipur were highly praised in a recent issue of the Gallivanter's Guide. Seems like Taj has been renovating them. Apparently even better than the Oberoivilas.
But again it is one of those meaningless polls...fun to read but would never choose a hotel based on one of them.

Kettering Northants QC

Best hotel in the world is impossible to call - for you, for me, and certainly Conde Nast!

Some polls are extremely suspect - particularly when it's judged by the mysterious panel of "travel experts". I suspect in many cases that these polls in magazines are little more than backhanded ways of thanking those that take your advertising space. How on earth you can make a distinction between say a small palace in India, a city hotel in Hong Kong, and a beach resort in say Waikiki is beyond me. Also a poll is a good cheap page filler.

I recall, one Travel magazine (that will remain nameless) had one issue a year that was devoted totally to the annual awards, all very prestigious with someone like Judith Chalmers given bits of perspex to the middle management of various leisure related companies in the ballroom of some where like The Watford Hilton. The rest of the magazine was devoted to adverts from the award winners thanking the readers of the magazine for voting for them. I realised I was living on the wrong planet when Heathrow won something like most efficient Customs and immigration.

These awards carry as much weight as those photos of awards you get on the inside covers of airline magazines when flying into Thailand "The International Bangkok & Thailand Guild of Tailors awards 5 stars and Tailor of the year to the Joy Luck Golden Palace Tailors Shop - 8 pairs of trousers and a Cashmere jacket for $50" - Then on the back page there will be one for "The International Asian Tailors Guild awards Gold medal and Tailor of the year to the Uncle Bobby's of bangkok Tailors Shop - 8 pairs of trousers and a Cashmere jacket for $50".

vuittonsofstyle

There is no way that the Rambagh Palace is the best hotel in the world, but it is an exceptional hotel since its massive refurbishment - quite unrecognisable in many ways from its original incarnation. Some of the best butler service anywhere - not at all intrusive. Really good food, extremely comfortable, individually decorated rooms and suites and a real sense of historic Jaipur.

Taj are doing great things in India, but yes, I suspect that Conde Nast is just a tad biased. No matter what they say, advertising spend certainly influences this type of award.

fastflyer

This is a lovely hotel, but the fact that you cannot take a tuk-tuk all the way to the main entrance was annoying (we couldn't find our car & driver and had a lunch date at the Rambaugh -- no Ricks allowed at the front, only western cars). Also, the odor of Jaipur occasionally wafts over the garden, which although not a fault of the hotel, precludes it from "best in the world" IMHO.

vuittonsofstyle

Was this experience recent? I wonder, as there is no eau de Jaipur these days!

I do not object to the no tuk-tuk policy at The Rambagh. Standards should be maintained, no? Why did you not hire a cab?

TrophyCollector

However you accept the Lexus at the Dolder?

stimpy

nevermind

SanDiego1K

Fascinating. We had the Princess Suite at the hotel ever so many years ago when it was very much faded glory. It's good to learn it has been renovated.

We stayed at Ladera in St Lucia a few months after it was named top hotel in the world, also by Conde Nast. It was anything but. We had booked the hotel a month or so before the award came out. For us, the award raised our expectations, and the hotel simply failed to deliver. We kept looking at the property, or talking about a service issue, saying "#1 in the world? Um, no." Needless to say, that accolade is still in the top of their webpage.

erik123

I think people taking Conde Nast surveys are predominately Americans which skews the results terrible.

paul2

Are you now suggesting that a Lexus and a Tuk Tuk in India somehow equate? Thats not nice.

Kettering Northants QC

I've had a look at the Methodology and it looks strange. My reading would indicate that if X is the minimum number of votes needed to qualify for an award a Hotel that has X votes of say an average of 90% would feature higher up the list than say a hotel that 100X votes at say an average of 89%.

They're not clear on how many nominations a hotel needs to qualify. But if 32,000 people sent in a form my guess is that is X is pretty low. I can't believe that a Gorilla camp in Uganda would have got more than 20 nominations from a list of 32000 world travellers.

As for no Tuk Tuks, and complaints about odours coming from the city. I can see the argument both ways - if you don't want what Jaipur has to offer including tuk tuks - warts and all - why not go to Disneyland and visit the Epcot centre instead? I've never heard people using the smell of the Klongs or the Tuks Tuks being a reason to criticise the Pen or MO in Bangkok - and over the years both of these have vied for the title of Best Hotel in the world with a general consensus that they had a case to make for that title. On the other hand when it comes to Tuk Tuk's maybe the hotel is thinking of it's guests safety and trying to encourage them to use safer forms of transport - western cars - which I guess as a 5 star hotel they will be the sole provider - quids in!

TrophyCollector

Sorry, paul2, I am just trying to find the little contradictions in the otherwise fascinating vuittonsofstyle. She will understand my humour (so I hope). Nothing to do with your Lexus.

Kagehitokiri

TrophyCollector >

Ericka

CNT provides readers a pre-determined list of properties that they may vote for. I stopped voting a few years ago when Amanjiwo wasn't on the pre-determined list. What cr@p!