In a year where the travel industry faced unparalleled challenges, the Awards recognize accommodation and transport partners across 220 countries and territories.
Drawing on millions of customer reviews, today Booking.com announced it will present 1,147,344 Traveller Review Awards for 2021, recognizing partners across 220 countries and territories who made travel experiences more memorable for travelers. The breadth and spread of winners in the Awards’ ninth year is a powerful testament to Booking.com’s partners’ dedication and resilience, as they managed to provide incredible travel experiences for people in every corner of the globe amidst a year of untold challenges for the entire industry.
“As trips became fewer and further between, each and every trip meant more to travelers than ever before, and it has become even more important to celebrate the outstanding service that the Traveller Review Award winners displayed during a year like no other,” said Michelle Gao, Booking.com Regional Manager, Mekong Region. “On our mission to make it easier for everyone to experience the world, our partners play such an impactful role in delivering amazing experiences to travelers and I know that with their tenacity, partnership and passion, we can rebuild travel together, and help more and more travelers to rediscover our beautiful world over time.”
With so many incredible winners to highlight, including 13,390 in Thailand, Booking.com is uncovering the key attributes of a great stay, the Most Welcoming Places in Thailand and the incredibly diverse offering that makes up the pool of partners that can proudly display a Traveller Review Award 2021.
Drawing on millions of customer reviews, today Booking.com announced it will present 1,147,344 Traveller Review Awards for 2021, recognizing partners across 220 countries and territories who made travel experiences more memorable for travelers. The breadth and spread of winners in the Awards’ ninth year is a powerful testament to Booking.com’s partners’ dedication and resilience, as they managed to provide incredible travel experiences for people in every corner of the globe amidst a year of untold challenges for the entire industry.
“As trips became fewer and further between, each and every trip meant more to travelers than ever before, and it has become even more important to celebrate the outstanding service that the Traveller Review Award winners displayed during a year like no other,” said Michelle Gao, Booking.com Regional Manager, Mekong Region. “On our mission to make it easier for everyone to experience the world, our partners play such an impactful role in delivering amazing experiences to travelers and I know that with their tenacity, partnership and passion, we can rebuild travel together, and help more and more travelers to rediscover our beautiful world over time.”
With so many incredible winners to highlight, including 13,390 in Thailand, Booking.com is uncovering the key attributes of a great stay, the Most Welcoming Places in Thailand and the incredibly diverse offering that makes up the pool of partners that can proudly display a Traveller Review Award 2021.
Essential Attributes of a Great Stay
The Booking.com Traveller Review Awards 2021 reveal insights into traveler preferences throughout the past year, uncovering that global travelers appreciate staff, cleanliness, location, and comfort most when reviewing award-winning properties on the platform, with those attributes scoring highest among the categories that travelers rate following their stay.
Thai travelers’ preferences are also consistent with global trends, except that they view both comfort and location attributes as being equally important. With consumers increasingly conscious of health and hygiene, notably, on average, winning accommodations around the world had a cleanliness score that was 17% higher than the average cleanliness score for non-winners, suggesting it may be a differentiator for a more perfect welcome.
2021’s Most Welcoming Places
Based on the share of properties across Thailand receiving a Traveller Review Award 2021, Booking.com is revealing the most welcoming provinces and destinations in Thailand* where travelers can expect to experience the best in hospitality and friendliness according to customer reviews. The top five provinces with the highest percentage of properties winning Traveller Review Awards 2021 are Krabi, Trat, Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai and Nakhon Ratchasima. And the top five most welcoming destinations in Thailand are Khao Sok (Surat Thani), Khao Lak (Phang Nga), Ko Yao Noi (Phang Nga), Ko Lanta (Krabi) and Ko Lipe (Satun). These amazing destinations represent the country’s diverse cultural and natural attractions across geographic spread, including beach escapes and family getaways that encourage domestic travelers to explore the endless charm of Thailand.
Among Traveller Review Award 2021 winners in Thailand, these favorite stays received rave reviews from Booking.com customers with a 9.9 score:
Homes, Apartments and Unique Places Remain Top Traveler Favorites
While hotels remained the second most-awarded accommodation type globally for 2021, for the fourth consecutive year, four out of the five top-awarded accommodation types globally are unique places to stay: apartments, hotels, holiday homes, guest houses, and bed & breakfasts. The most-awarded accommodation types in Thailand for 2021 include hotels, resorts, apartments, guest houses and hostels.
Across the world, bed & breakfasts, farm stays, country houses, inns and guest houses accounted for the most welcoming accommodation types, signaling just how memorable unique stay experiences are for global travelers.** With alternative accommodations accounting for 30% of all new bookings in the third quarter of 2020, Booking.com is proud to offer so many unique stay experiences bringing superior hospitality to travelers.
Transport Partners Kept Travelers Moving
Recent Booking.com research shows that 45% of Thais traveled more domestically in 2020 when compared to 2019, inline with the global number of 32%***. As domestic travel and road trips became more common over the last year, Booking.com understands the immense undertaking that its transport partners faced including increased customer demand in certain markets and swift introduction of increased cleanliness measures in between pick-ups, provision of masks and sanitizers and minimizing customer contact and social distancing, among other initiatives.
This year, 2,100 rental car pick-up locations available on Booking.com, which offers rental cars in 160 countries worldwide, have been awarded. The top-awarded car rental pick-up locations globally include Phuket Airport (Thailand), Christchurch Airport (New Zealand), Coolangagtta Gold Coast Airport (Australia) and Queenstown Airport (New Zealand). Airport taxis, which are available in over 800 destinations globally, are also being recognized for their outstanding service, with 2,830 drivers across 18 providers winning Traveller Review Awards.
The Booking.com Traveller Review Awards 2021 reveal insights into traveler preferences throughout the past year, uncovering that global travelers appreciate staff, cleanliness, location, and comfort most when reviewing award-winning properties on the platform, with those attributes scoring highest among the categories that travelers rate following their stay.
Thai travelers’ preferences are also consistent with global trends, except that they view both comfort and location attributes as being equally important. With consumers increasingly conscious of health and hygiene, notably, on average, winning accommodations around the world had a cleanliness score that was 17% higher than the average cleanliness score for non-winners, suggesting it may be a differentiator for a more perfect welcome.
2021’s Most Welcoming Places
Based on the share of properties across Thailand receiving a Traveller Review Award 2021, Booking.com is revealing the most welcoming provinces and destinations in Thailand* where travelers can expect to experience the best in hospitality and friendliness according to customer reviews. The top five provinces with the highest percentage of properties winning Traveller Review Awards 2021 are Krabi, Trat, Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai and Nakhon Ratchasima. And the top five most welcoming destinations in Thailand are Khao Sok (Surat Thani), Khao Lak (Phang Nga), Ko Yao Noi (Phang Nga), Ko Lanta (Krabi) and Ko Lipe (Satun). These amazing destinations represent the country’s diverse cultural and natural attractions across geographic spread, including beach escapes and family getaways that encourage domestic travelers to explore the endless charm of Thailand.
Among Traveller Review Award 2021 winners in Thailand, these favorite stays received rave reviews from Booking.com customers with a 9.9 score:
- Inn Oon Chiang Mai Home
- Plus Hostel Ayutthaya
- Villa Yao Yai Ko Samui
- Lennon Maison Ko Samui
- Chiangmai Sika Deer Garden
Homes, Apartments and Unique Places Remain Top Traveler Favorites
While hotels remained the second most-awarded accommodation type globally for 2021, for the fourth consecutive year, four out of the five top-awarded accommodation types globally are unique places to stay: apartments, hotels, holiday homes, guest houses, and bed & breakfasts. The most-awarded accommodation types in Thailand for 2021 include hotels, resorts, apartments, guest houses and hostels.
Across the world, bed & breakfasts, farm stays, country houses, inns and guest houses accounted for the most welcoming accommodation types, signaling just how memorable unique stay experiences are for global travelers.** With alternative accommodations accounting for 30% of all new bookings in the third quarter of 2020, Booking.com is proud to offer so many unique stay experiences bringing superior hospitality to travelers.
Transport Partners Kept Travelers Moving
Recent Booking.com research shows that 45% of Thais traveled more domestically in 2020 when compared to 2019, inline with the global number of 32%***. As domestic travel and road trips became more common over the last year, Booking.com understands the immense undertaking that its transport partners faced including increased customer demand in certain markets and swift introduction of increased cleanliness measures in between pick-ups, provision of masks and sanitizers and minimizing customer contact and social distancing, among other initiatives.
This year, 2,100 rental car pick-up locations available on Booking.com, which offers rental cars in 160 countries worldwide, have been awarded. The top-awarded car rental pick-up locations globally include Phuket Airport (Thailand), Christchurch Airport (New Zealand), Coolangagtta Gold Coast Airport (Australia) and Queenstown Airport (New Zealand). Airport taxis, which are available in over 800 destinations globally, are also being recognized for their outstanding service, with 2,830 drivers across 18 providers winning Traveller Review Awards.