Amsterdam,
02
February
2021
|
04:43
Europe/Amsterdam

Booking.com Traveller Review Awards 2021 Recognize Over 18,000 Partners Across Australia

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 over 18,000 Traveller Review Awards for 2021 to partners in Australia who made travel experiences more memorable for travelers, whether they were booking a place to stay, rental car or airport taxi. 

Out of 220 countries and territories, Australia placed 14th for the highest number of awards. 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 across the country amidst a year of untold challenges for the entire industry.

Luke Wilson, Area Manager of Booking.com Australia, said the country’s award achievements highlight the excellent hospitality Aussies are known for. 

“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 Wilson, 

“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 in Australia together.”

With so many incredible winners to highlight, Booking.com is uncovering the key attributes of a great stay, the Most Welcoming Regions on Earth and the incredible 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 travelers appreciate staff, cleanliness and location most when reviewing award-winning properties on the platform, with those attributes scoring highest among the categories that travelers rate following their stay. With consumers increasingly conscious of health and hygiene, notably, on average, winners 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.

Most Welcoming Destinations

As well as rewarding thousands of incredible Australian properties, Booking.com has uncovered the Most Welcoming Destinations in the country based on the share of properties receiving a Traveller Review Award in 2021.

Booking.com’s top ten most welcoming destinations in Australia 

  1. Maleny, QLD
  2. Denmark, WA
  3. Hervey Bay, QLD
  4. Margaret River Town, WA
  5. Montville, QLD
  6. Rockhampton, QLD
  7. Mildura, VIC
  8. Bendigo, VIC
  9. Tanunda, SA
  10. Mount Tamborine, QLD

Destinations had to have at least 50 eligible accommodations to be included in this list and were sorted by the highest share of winners per destination. 

Homes, Apartments and Unique Places Remain Top Traveler Favorites

While hotels were the second most-awarded accommodation type globally in 2021, in Australia travellers dished out the greatest number of awards to apartments and holiday homes. Motels had the third highest number of awards, suggesting locals favour independent, quintessential Aussie road trips due to state border restrictions. 

Bed and breakfasts, farm stays, country houses, inns and guest houses accounted for the most welcoming accommodation types globally, signaling just how memorable unique stay experiences are for travelers across the globe.** 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 24% of travelers globally took a road trip in 2020 and 32% traveled more domestically in 2020 when compared to 2019***. As road trips and domestic travel 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 Christchurch Airport (New Zealand), Coolangagtta Gold Coast Airport (Australia), Queenstown Airport (New Zealand), Orlando International Airport (United States), Tenerife Airport North (Spain), Thessaloniki Airport (Greece), Santorini Airport (Greece), Paphos Airport (Greece) and Larnaca Airport (Cyprus). 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.