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Cebu has retained its seventh ranking in this year?s list of best island destinations in the world, while a Cebu resort, the Plantation Bay Resort and Spa has also made the grade.
Condé Nast Traveler magazine has recently released in New York the results of the 21st annual Readers? Choice Awards 2008, a listing of the best cities, islands, hotels, transportation and resorts worldwide.
"These awards celebrate the destinations, lodgings, and modes of transportation that manage to exceed our expectations," said Condé Nast Traveler Editor in Chief Klara Glowczewska.
"The Readers' Choice Awards, are a credit to the worldly expertise of our readers -- passionate travelers for whom no island is too remote, no city too challenging, and no hotel too untested," she said.
Cebu has occupied the seventh spot three times: this year at 70.9 which is two points short of last year?s 72.3 points and 2004?s 72.8 points.
Twice, it has been ranked 8th best island destination: in 2006 with 71.0 points and in 2005 with 69.5.
Rounding up this year?s top ten island destinations in the Asia/Indian Ocean group are: Maldives (86.1), Bali (84.2), Phuket (80.6), Mauritius (76.3), Seychelles (75.8), Koh Samui (74.5), Langkawi (70.0), Borneo (64.0) and Lombok (61.6).
Maldives edged out Bali who was on the top spot last year while Zanzibar, tenth place in 2007 was dropped from this year?s list. Borneo gained a foot in the door at 9th place.
Plantation Bay Resort and Spa, an 11.4 hectare resort in Mactan which advertises colonial plantation charm, was ranked 16th with 90.0 points, surpassing some resorts in Koh Samui, Bali, Phuket and Langkawi; trailing behind resorts in Krabi, Goa and Maldives in the Top Asian Resorts category. It is the only Philippine resort included in the 323 resorts with winning scores.
The annual Readers' Choice Awards is derived from the Readers' Choice Survey, the largest independent poll of consumers' preferences in the U.S. This year, 32,633 readers participated in the survey.
Each candidate was rated, criterion by criterion, on a five-point scale: excellent, very good, good, fair and poor. Criterion scores, which represent the percentage of respondents rating a candidate excellent or very good, were averaged to determine the final scores.
In the islands category, candidates were rated in the following: activities, atmosphere/ambiance, beaches, friendliness, lodging, restaurants and scenery. Resorts were rated on activities/facilities, food/dining, location, overall design, rooms and service.
The island destinations were grouped into Caribbean and Atlantic; Pacific, Asia and Indian Ocean; North America and Europe. Top cities were grouped into Asia, U.S., Europe, Africa and the Middle East; the Americas, and Australia and the Pacific.
The exclusive World?s Top 100 highlights the annual awards. It is a list of hotels, resorts, and cruise lines that achieved near perfection. This year, the list has no score below 92.5.
Four Seasons Tented Camp Golden Triangle, a camp resort in Chiang Rai along the Thai-Burmese border clinched the top spot with 98.5.
No one from the Philippines made it to this year?s World?s Top 100 list.
Three Manila-based hotels however made it to the Top 100 Hotels in Asia. They are Pan Pacific (no. 44, with 89.2), Makati Shangri-La (no. 67, with 87.2) and The Peninsula (no. 98 with 83.5).
They were rated based on food/dining, location, overall design, rooms and service.
Cebu city was shut out from the top Asian cities category which lists Bangkok (82.8), Chiang Mai (81.2) all in Thailand; Hong Kong (81.2), Singapore (79.8), Kyoto (79.3), Shanghai (77.1), Jaipur (74.5), Tokyo (73.7), Hanoi (68.8) and Beijing (68.0) in the top ten.
Readers rated cities based on atmosphere/ambience, culture/sites, friendliness, lodging, restaurants and shopping.
The full list appears on the magazine?s November 2008 issue.
Condé Nast Traveler is an American magazine published by Condé Nast Publications which specializes in luxury travel and reviews of high-priced hotels, products, and services. In 2008, it was named one of the top 10 magazines in the U.S. by both Adweek and Advertising Age.
A UK edition, Condé Nast Traveller, uses the British spelling for the title. The format and content are very similar to the U.S. edition.
