Hotel Club Awards 2007 recognise Oceania’s best hotels and resorts

In a glittering awards evening in Pyrmont’s Dolton House overlooking Sydney Harbour, online accommodation provider HotelClub.com.au last night announced the winners of The HotelClub Hotel Awards 2007.

The Awards recognise Best Hotels and Resorts in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands and consumers rated the Hilton Sydney, Marriott Surfers Paradise and Crown Towers Hotel Melbourne as their Top 3 Hotels across the Oceanic Region.

In addition, top hotels in each Australian state and territory, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands were announced, as were awards recognising Best Service, Best Boutique, Best Affordable, and Best Country Hotels in the region.

Commenting on The HotelClub Hotel Awards, Ms Chloe Lim, Managing Director of HotelClub.com.au said, “The Award results are significant because it gives the industry the most accurate picture possible of what consumers are demanding today.”

“HotelClub.com.au recognises the powerful voice of consumers in making their travel and accommodation decisions and we launched our annual HotelClub.com survey in 2006 to provide a vehicle for consumers to share their travel and hotel experiences.”

“In today’s online world, consumers are demanding that their opinions be heard through a variety of mediums including blogs, chat rooms and the like and the HotelClub Hotel Awards are a powerful interpretation of what travellers are looking for in hotels and travel providers”.

All winners were chosen by consumers, not by the trade as in most other awards and through an online global survey hosted on
http://www.hotelclub.com.au/, in association with key partners Getaway and ninemsn.

Consumers were asked to nominate hotels based on the following criteria and to provide a score out of 10 for each criterion – with 10 being the highest:-ambiance, family friendliness, rooms, restaurant facilities, cleanliness, business facilities, location, leisure facilities, staff attitude and value for money.

More than 55,000 hotel nominations were received across the region, resulting in 6,500 hotels & resorts being nominated. Of those, 335 were short listed as finalists with a total of 37 awards presented across 18 categories.

The HotelClub Hotel Awards 2007 was hosted by Lochie Daddo and presented by HotelClub.com.au in association with Getaway and ninemsn, with other partners including Harvey World Travel, Virgin Blue, Budget Car Hire, Austereo Network, Insight Guides, Village Roadshow, Menulog.com, RosesOnly, Dymocks, Australian Traveller and NRMA Travel.

HotelClub.com.au offers over 31,000 hotel accommodation choices in 4,500 cities and 120 countries worldwide. HotelClub.com has over 3.5 million consumer ratings and reviews that provide independent advice on each hotel.

The HotelClub Hotel Awards 2007 winners for Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands are:

Top 3 Hotels Overall (Oceania)

Marriott Surfers Paradise Queensland

** New South Wales – Hilton Sydney

** Victoria – Crown Towers Hotel

Top 3 Hotels in New Zealand

Sky City Grand Hotel
Hilton Auckland
Grand Mercure St Moritz

Top 3 Hotels in the Pacific Islands

Shangri-La’s Fijian Resort
Sheraton Denarau Villas
Outrigger on the Lagoon Fiji

Top 3 Hotels in New South Wales

Hilton Sydney
Shangri-La Sydney
Sheraton on the Park

Top 3 Hotels in Victoria

Crown Towers Hotel
Sofitel Melbourne
Grand Hyatt Melbourne

Top 3 Hotels in Queensland

Marriott Surfers Paradise
Palazzo Versace Gold Coast
Sea World Nara Resort

Top 3 Hotels in Western Australia

InterContinental Perth Burswood
Rendezvous Observation City
Duxton Perth

Top 3 Hotels in South Australia

Stamford Grand Adelaide
Hilton Adelaide
Hyatt Hotel Adelaide

Top 2 Hotels in Australian Capital Territory

Hyatt Hotel Canberra
Rydges Lakeside

Top 2 Hotels in Northern Territory
SkyCity Darwin
Novotel Atrium Darwin

Top 2 Hotels in Tasmania

Cradle Mountain Lodge
Wrest Point Hotel Hobart

Best Service

Naviti Resort Fiji,
Coral Coast

Best Affordable

Ibis Melbourne Melbourne,
Victoria

Best Boutique

Henry Jones Art
Hotel Launceston,
Tasmania

Best Country

Cradle Mountain
Lodge Cradle Mountain,
Tasmania

Best Hotel Chain

Accor Group

Best Destination

Fiji

Best Airline

Qantas

Report by The Mole