Booking.com Spotlights the Best in Travel with its Traveller Review Awards 2020

Toronto, ON - January 14, 2020 - Today, Booking.com, the platform making it easier for everyone to experience the world, announced the winners of the Traveller Review Awards 2020, with over 8,500 awards given out in Canada. The awards recognize these partners for their incredible hospitality, giving travellers an exceptional experience when booking accommodation, rental car or airport taxi. In total, Booking.com awarded nearly one million (986,449) hospitality partners, across 220 countries and territories. 

“With nearly one million awards given across accommodation and transport providers, I am thrilled to announce this year’s Traveller Review Awardees, who are helping us deliver seamless trip experiences,” said Arjan Dijk, SVP and Chief Marketing Officer for Booking.com. “We are proud to have a record number of our partners across the travel industry receiving consistently great reviews and representing the best of the best in hospitality around the globe.”

2020’s Most Welcoming Places in Canada

From a small historic town in the centre of wine country to a breathtaking mountain town with first class hospitality, the Most Welcoming Places in Canada are leading the way in providing amazing experiences for their visitors. Notably, Niagara-on-the-lake (Ontario) claimed the top spot, followed by Jasper (Alberta), Golden (British Columbia), Stratford (Ontario), St. John’s (Newfoundland), Baie Saint Paul (Quebec), Quebec City (Quebec), Tofino (British Columbia), La Malbaie (Quebec) and Magog-Orford (Quebec) to round out the top ten. Quebec dominated Canada’s most welcoming places, with six cities in the top twenty recognized, followed closely by British Columbia with five.

Globally, Goreme (Turkey) was recognized as the Most Welcoming Place on Earth for the second year in a row, followed by Tatranska Lomnica (Slovakia), Phong Nha (Vietnam), Kobarid (Slovenia), Cochem (Germany), Doolin (Ireland), Taitung City (Taiwan), Schenna (Italy), Monte Verde (Brazil), and Lake Tekapo (New Zealand) - another 2018 winner.

Travellers in Canada Still Appreciate the Comfort and Convenience Hotels Provide

Hotels led the list of awards by accommodation type in Canada, with a whopping 2,263 awards. Surprisingly, traditional accommodation types accounted for three of the top five top-awarded accommodating types: Hotels (2,263), B&Bs (1,592), Apartments (1,388), Motels (692), and Inns (504).

While hotels were the most awarded-accommodation type in Canada, the results across all countries showed three quarters (75%) of all the winning properties are homes, apartments and other unique places to stay, including everything from boats and igloos to homestays and country houses. With recent research by Booking.com surveying over 22,000 travellers revealing that nearly two fifths (39%) of global travellers would prefer to stay in a holiday home or apartment over a hotel, Booking.com is proud to offer so many unique places to stay that provide superior hospitality.

For First Time, Transport Providers Honored with Traveller Review Awards

Creating a seamless accommodation experience for travelers has been Booking.com’s core focus for many years, but there is much more to your trip than where you stay. Whether travellers want to explore the country, get out to the beach, move around the city or just get home, Booking.com’s ground transport offering is helping travellers make it happen. That’s why this year, for the first time ever, Booking.com is bringing Traveller Review Awards to car rental and airport taxi partners to ensure that travellers can have the best experience possible, whatever their transportation needs may be.

This year, 2,931 pick-up locations of Booking.com’s car rental offering, which spans 160 countries and territories, have been awarded. The top awarded rental car pick-up locations globally include Alghero Airport, Italy (13); Menorca Airport, Spain (12); Krakow Airport, Poland (12); Adelaide Airport, Australia (12); Christchurch Airport, New Zealand (12); Stuttgart Airport, Germany (11); Paphos Airport, Cyprus (11); Cairns Airport, Australia (11); Budapest Airport, Hungary (11); and Coolangatta Gold Coast Airport, Australia (11).

Airport taxis, which are available in over 750 destinations globally, are being recognized for their outstanding service for the first time ever as well, with 2,114 drivers across 27 providers winning Traveller Review Awards. As 2020 approaches, travellers can look to these airport taxi providers to keep them moving on their next trip.

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CONTACT DETAILS

Booking.com Canada Press Office:

Hello@goldiepr.com

Note to Editors:

To be recognized with an Award, accommodation properties and car rental had to have an average review score of 8.0 (out of 10) or higher based on at least 5 reviews as of 11:59pm (CET) on October 31, 2019. To be recognized for an Award, airport taxis had to have an average review score of 4.5 (out of 5) or higher and completed 2,000 rides as of 11:59pm (CET) on October 31, 2019. Only customers that have actually stayed at an accommodation or rented a car can leave a review of their experience on Booking.com. As these reviews are never edited or adjusted in any way, travelers can reference them for an authentic account of what the real traveler experience is like at every place to stay or with every ground transport provider on Booking.com. 

About Booking.com:

Founded in 1996 in Amsterdam, Booking.com has grown from a small Dutch startup to one of the world’s leading digital travel companies. Part of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: BKNG), Booking.com invests in technology that helps take the friction out of travel. With a mission to make it easier for everyone to experience the world, Booking.com seamlessly connects millions of travellers with memorable experiences, convenient transportation options and incredible places to stay - from homes to hotels and much much more. Booking.com also provides a marketplace for entrepreneurs of all sizes in the travel and experiences industries to reach a global audience and grow their businesses. Booking.com is available in 43 languages and offers more than 29 million total reported accommodation listings, including more than 6.2 million listings alone of homes, apartments and other unique places to stay. With everything from convenient rides and great places to eat, as well as attractions, tours, events and activities across the globe, no matter where you want to go or what you want to do, Booking.com makes it easy and backs it all up with 24/7 customer support.

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