The finest travel brands in the world have been unveiled at a star-studded gala ceremony in Lisbon, Portugal.
The elite of the travel industry gathered for the World Travel Awards Grand Final Gala Ceremony 2018 at the historic Pátio da Galé to find out who among them had been crowned the finest in the world.
Winners at the red-carpet reception included Jamaica, which celebrated a double victory by collecting both World’s Leading Beach Destination and World’s Leading Cruise Destination.
The ancient Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, Peru, was named World’s Leading Tourist Attraction, while Mauritius fended off stiff competition to emerge as World’s Most Romantic Destination.
The evening marked the climax of the World Travel Awards 25th anniversary and the Grand Tour 2018 – an annual search for the finest travel and tourism organisations in the world.
The winners of World Travel Awards’ six regional ceremonies going head-to-head for the coveted global titles.
Graham Cooke, founder, World Travel Awards, said: “What an incredible evening it has been here in the magnificent city of Lisbon.
“We have had the privilege of recognising the world’s leading hotels, destinations, airlines and travel providers and my congratulations to each of them.”
Hospitality winners included Armani Hotel Dubai (World’s Leading Hotel); Atlantis the Palm, Dubai (World’s Leading Landmark Resort); Frasers Hospitality (World’s Leading Serviced Apartment Brand); and Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts (World’s Leading Resort Brand).
In the aviation sector, Aeroflot capped a year of strong passenger growth by winning both World’s Leading Airline Brand and World’s Leading Airline – Business Class, while
Singapore Changi Airport was named World’s Leading Airport and Muscat International Airport was voted World’s Leading New Airport.
The strength of Portugal’s tourism economy was reflected with victories in a range of categories. Portugal was voted World’s Leading Destination, Madeira heralded World’s Leading Island Destination, while Turismo de Portugal was named World’s Leading Tourist Board.
Hundreds of the leading travel industries figureheads from across the globe attended the ceremony at Pátio da Galé, Lisbon’s landmark events and entertainment venue.
Find a full list of winners on the official World Travel Awards website.
More Information
World Travel Awards was established in 1993 to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all sectors of the tourism industry.
Today, the brand is recognised globally as the ultimate hallmark of quality, with winners setting the benchmark to which all others aspire.
Each year, World Travel Awards covers the globe with a series of regional gala ceremonies staged to recognise and celebrate individual and collective success within each key geographical region.
World Travel Awards ceremonies are widely regarded as the best networking opportunities in the travel industry, attended by government and industry leaders, luminaries and international print and broadcast media.