Shortlisted Hotels for the 2024 GREAT Awards Announced

GuestRevu is excited to reveal the shortlisted properties for the 2024 GuestRevu GREAT Awards, celebrating the GREATest hotels and guesthouses from around the world. Following the analysis of over 70,000 online guest reviews of hotels from more than 55 countries worldwide, we’ve identified properties that consistently deliver excellence in service, guest experience and satisfaction.

This year, shortlisted entrants, sponsors and leading minds in the hospitality industry will celebrate and recognise the best in global hospitality at two splendid events. The first awards evening, at which the winners in the Europe and Americas & APAC categories will be announced, will be held on 6 November during WTM London at Tapa Tapa Wine Bar. 

Due to the overwhelming global response to the call for entries, the organisers have expanded the awards programme this year to include a second awards evening to be held at the end of January in Cape Town to recognise top hotels in Africa.

Both events will feature panel discussions, talks, canapes, drinks and live music befitting of a celebration of the very GREATest in guest-rated excellence in accommodation and travel. 

"These awards are unique in that they are solely determined by guest feedback, making the results truly reflective of exceptional service. Now that we are in our second year of the GREAT Awards we saw an amazing response from both past entries and new hoteliers who were looking to see how they measure up" says GuestRevu founder Chris Alexandre.

GREATest in Africa 

<20 Rooms

• 138 Marine Beachfront Guesthouse (Link) 
• Agulhas Ocean House (Link)
• Cape Finest Guest House located in De Waterkant (Link) 
• Fleur du Soleil Luxury Guesthouse (Link)
• Knysna Elephant Park (Link)
• Ocean Vista Boutique Guest House (Link)
• Pamarah Lodge (Link)
• The Feather Hill Boutique Hotel (Link)
• The Potting Shed Accommodation (Link)
• Wielewaal Bush Lodge (Link)

20-49 Rooms

• aha | Shepherd’s Tree Game Lodge (Link)
• Bonne Esperance Guest House (Link) 
• Buffelsdrift Game Lodge (Link)
• Garden Route Game Lodge (Link)
• Home Suite Hotels Rosebank (Link)
• Home Suite Hotels Sea Point (Link)
• Home Suite Hotels Station House (Link)
• Kruger Shalati (Link)
• The Marine Hermanus (Link)

50-99 Rooms

• aha | Ivory Tree Game Lodge (Link)
• Eka Eldoret (Link)
• Kapama River Lodge (Link)
• Mestil Hotel & Residences (Link)
• SALT of Palmar (Link)
• Thaba Eco Hotel (Link)
• The Cape Milner (Link)
• The Cellars-Hohenort (Link)
• The David Livingstone Safari Lodge (Link)
• The Houghton Hotel (Link)
  
  

100+ Rooms

• Arabella Hotel, Golf & Spa (Link)
• Cathedral Peak Hotel (Link)
• Eka Hotel (Link)
• Hotel Verde Cape Town Airport (Link)
• Kruger Gate Hotel (Link)
• Mabalingwe Nature Reserve (Link)
• Palm Royale Resort Soma Bay (Link)
• The Capital Mbombela (Link)
• Trademark Hotel (Link)
• uMhlanga Sands Resort (Link)
• Kruger Park Lodge (Link)

GREATest in APAC & The Americas 

<50 Rooms 

• Craigleith Manor Bed and Breakfast (Link)
• ITH Los Angeles Beach Hostel (Link)
• ITH San Francisco Pacific Tradewinds Hostel (Link)
• ITH Santa Barbara Beach Hostel (Link)
• Superior Stay Hotel (Link)

50+ Rooms 

• Alma Resort Cam Ranh (Link)
• FUGO Hotel Banjarmasin (Link)
• FUGO Hotel Samarinda (Link)
• Tamarin Hotel Jakarta (Link)
• The Golden Ridge Hotel (Link)
  
  

GREATest in Europe 

<20 Rooms

• Brooklands Guest House (Link)
• Bryn Woodlands House (Link)
• Burnside Cottage B&B (Link)
• Elton Guest House (Link)
• Greystoke House (Link)
• Haven Cottage Bed & Breakfast (Link)
• Lion House Bed & Breakfast with Restaurant (Link)
• New Hall Bank (Link)
• The Auld Kirk B&B (Link)
• The Wayside and Whisky Barn (Link)

20-49 Rooms

• China Fleet Country Club (Link)
• Cliveden House (Link)
• Feversham Arms Hotel & Verbena Spa (Link)
• Hotel Angelo d'Oro (Link)
• L'oscar London (Link)
• The Belmore at Sale (Link)
• The Borrowdale Gates Hotel (Link)
• The George Hotel, Dorchester-on-Thames (Link)
• The Pheasant Hotel, Holt (Link)

50-99 Rooms

• Absolute Hotel Limerick (Link)
• Belmore Court & Motel (Link)
• Granville Hotel (Link)
• Kronwell Brasov Hotel (Link)
• Manor House Country Hotel (Link)
• Monart Destination Spa (Link)
• Porto Mykonos Hotel (Link)
• Roomzzz Aparthotel - York (Link)
• The Carlyon Bay Hotel (Link)
• The Imperial Hotel Barnstaple (Link)
• Lakeside Hotel & Leisure Centre (Link)

100+ Rooms

• AlpenGold Hotel Davos (Link)
• Auchrannie Resort (Link)
• Cafe Royal Hotel (Link)
• Hope Street Hotel (Link)
• Hotel Bellevue Palace (Link)
• Hotel Schweizerhof Zermatt (Link)
• Lutetia Paris (Link)
• Qosmo Brasov Hotel (Link)
• Victoria Jungfrau Grand Hotel & Spa (Link)
• Voya Beach Resort (Link)
  
  

GREATest Food & Beverage Establishment 

• Greyhound, Altrincham (Link)
• Spread Eagle Hotel, Lymm (Link)
• The Goshawk (Link)
• The Plough & Flail (Link)
• Yamazato Restaurant (Link)

The shortlist for the GREAT Awards has been determined based on publically available online reviews of participating hotels from the three biggest online guest review sources: Google Reviews, Booking.com and Tripadvisor, which were collected and consolidated using GuestRevu LITE, the free version of GuestRevu’s award-winning reputation management software for hotels. This ensures fairness, transparency, and impartial results, and makes the awards an authentic reflection of the quality of service and guest experiences at each nominated venue.

To ensure objectivity, fairness, and transparency, the Hotel Management School of Stenden South Africa oversaw the data collection and review for the GREAT Awards. Dr Wouter Hensens, Executive Dean of Stenden South Africa, was instrumental in ensuring that appropriate academic rigour was applied to the analysis of the data. As co-author ofThe Good, The Bad, and The Emoji Mastering the Art of Review Data, Dr Hensens is uniquely positioned to understand the data illuminated in the thousands of reviews collected during the GREAT Awards.

“Over the last decade, online guest reviews have had an increasing impact on the global hospitality industry,” asserts Dr Hensens. “They have made it easier for consumers to access information about hospitality businesses, and this increased transparency has empowered consumers to make more informed decisions based on feedback from other guests.”

With regards to the process, Dr Hensens was tasked to ensure that the data collection and interpretation were fair and consistent: “We have paid particular attention to the number of reviews and the weighting of reviews as they were sourced from different platforms. Having reviewed the data I believe that these awards directly reflect the appreciation of the guests that have stayed in these properties and thus their authentic voice.”

"Based on our extensive experience analysing guest reviews, we've come to understand industry benchmarks," says Chris Alexandre, GuestRevu's founder and CEO. "However, this year's GREAT Awards contestants have surpassed expectations. Following on from last year's fantastic results this year's competitors seem to have pulled out all of the stops. Their exceptional review scores are a testament to their dedication and commitment to delivering outstanding guest experiences."

Representatives from the shortlisted hotels are invited to attend the glamorous GuestRevu GREAT Awards evening at Tapa Tapal in London on 6 November 2024. Thanks to sponsorship by industry-leading hospitality technology providers Hop and industry body HOSPA, the awards ceremony promises to be a spectacular and unforgettable occasion. It is a night for the hotel industry to come together, celebrate their successes, and honour the outstanding efforts of hoteliers who have earned the trust and loyalty of their guests.

About GuestRevu 
GuestRevu helps hospitality professionals to listen to, learn from and earn from their guests by enabling them to leverage the power of their guest data to build lasting loyalty and drive revenue. GuestRevu’s mission is to give hospitality professionals award-winning tools that they can use every day to develop a guest-centric culture, optimise their guest experience, and the running of their business and, ultimately, drive revenue using online surveys and reputation management. GuestRevu offers local support in South Africa and the United Kingdom and is a Tripadvisor Platinum Review Collection Partner.

About Stenden University 
Stenden South Africa is a Private Higher Education Institution and an international campus of NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences in The Netherlands.  It has built a reputation for offering premium higher education to the African market and being a strong catalyst to its surrounding communities whilst providing internationalisation opportunities for hundreds of European students annually. Its BCom Hospitality Management programme enjoys benchmark status on the African continent whereas its BBA Disaster Relief Management has opened a unique pathway to feed the Disaster Management sector with much-needed professionals who can hit the ground running. Stenden South Africa’s credo of Unleashing Potential is visible in the exceptional career paths of its graduates.