Virtuoso Travel Experts Reveal The Best Hotels, Best Cruises, And More For 2024

The luxury travel network Virtuoso revealed the nominations and winners for its 2024 Best of the Best awards at this year’s Virtuoso Travel Week held in Las Vegas this month. The 36th annual gala spotlights the network’s most popular travel agencies, advisors, and preferred partners.

Virtuoso surveyed hundreds of travel agencies and more than 12,000 high-end travel advisors to select the winners in each category, ranging from the most innovative experience to the best achievement in design. I have personally visited many of the nominated properties and agree with some of these selections, although many deserving countries still need to be included in these honors. Strangely, Italy garnered most of this year’s Hotel of the Year nominations, and no U.S. hotel was included in the new hotel category. Winners will be updated following the ceremony.

HOTEL OF THE YEAR

Bulgari Hotel Roma (Italy)

Located on a historic address at Piazza Augusto Imperatore, in the Campo Marzio area, the Hotel is adjacent to the top sites including Via del Corso, and Spanish Steps. The 114 room and suite hotel incorporate stunning Italian elegance in every detail of its design, hospitality and experience.

Hotel Hassler Rome (Italy)

For over a century the Hassler, located in enviable position at the top of the Spanish Steps has been a legend in Rome. The 87 rooms and suites offer city or garden views and feature some of the most stunning suites in the country. The famed Michelin starred Imàgo restaurant is on the 6th floor with dramatic city views, and of course the famed Hassler Bar is where you can rub shoulders with Hollywood royalty.

J.K. Place Capri (Italy)

This legendary hotel is positioned directly on the water’s edge and appears like a nautically inspired mansion. The 22 rooms (20 with sea views) provide the ultimate glamour getaway from the bustle of the island center. One of the only hotels on the island that’s right on the ocean, and in the old town, on a cliff overlooking the harbor.

Passalacqua (Italy)

One of the 50 Best Hotels in the World, this 18th century villa on the edge of Italy’s Lake Como features 24-suites divided between three buildings: the 18th-century Villa, the neighboring Palazz, and the lakeside Casa al Lago.

The Dewberry Charleston (USA)

The mid-century decor in this 155, including 48 suites hotel is one of the highlights attracting a devoted hipster crowd. The former federal building offers a mix of marble, dark wood and brass, and has become quite the culinary destination for foodies.

BEST NEW OR REIMAGINED HOTEL

Bulgari Hotel Roma (Italy)

Carlton Cannes (France)

Maroma, A Belmond Hotel Riviera Maya (Mexico)

Raffles London at The OWO (England)

Rosewood Munich (Germany)

BEST WELLNESS PROPERTY

*WINNER: Miraval Arizona Resort & Spa (Tucson, Arizona)

Featuring a wide range of casita-style rooms, suites, villas, and retreats, all are designed for comfort and wellness. Surrounded by the tranquil beauty of the Sonoran Desert and sweeping Santa Catalina Mountains, the resort offers wellness programs, spa treatments, healthy cuisine, and world-class wellness specialists.

Cloister at The Boca Raton (Florida)

Grand Hotel Victoria Concept & Spa (Lake Como, Italy)

Hacienda AltaGracia, Auberge Resorts Collection (Costa Rica)

SHA Wellness Clinic (Spain)

BEST OCEAN CRUISE LINE

Explora Journeys

Regent Seven Seas Cruises

Silversea Cruises

Seabourn

Virgin Voyages

BEST RIVER CRUISE LINE

AmaWaterways

Aqua Expeditions

Tauck River Cruising

Uniworld Boutique River Cruises

Viking River Cruises

BEST EXPEDITION CRUISE LINE

Lindblad Expeditions

PONANT

Quark Expeditions

Seabourn

Silversea Cruises

BEST TOUR OPERATOR

WINNER: Micato Safaris. Nominees were Abercrombie & Kent USA, LLC, Classic Vacations, Tauck, Wilderness

BEST ADVENTURE OPERATOR

WINNER: Lindblad Expeditions. Nominees were Backroads, Big Five Tours & Expeditions, Inc, G Adventures, Swain Destinations

HOTELIER OF THE YEAR:

According to Virtuoso, “This award recognizes an experienced hotel manager with unparalleled leadership and vision, an unrelenting passion for the industry, an engaged commitment to the network of Virtuoso travel advisors, and an astute appreciation for detail.”

Nominees are: Allen Highfield (Montage Healdsburg, California), Andrew Pike (The Milestone Hotel and Residences, London), Conor O’Leary (Gleneagles, Scotland), Richard Rooney (Wharekauhau Country Estate, New Zealand), Simone Giorgi (Park Hyatt Milano)