The planet is sprinkled with some jaw-droppingly gorgeous hotels, and they’re hidden inside everywhere from villas in Italy and castles in Ireland to hilltops in Bali, vineyards in Australia and desert-surrounded spots in Tunisia. In fact, just published its shiny new collection of the most beautiful hotels in the world, which showcases the loveliest of all.
However, World’s 50 Best also knows a thing or two about the finest hotels out there, and the longlist for its annual hotel ranking has just landed.
This highlights the latter half of what the publication has deemed as the 100 best hotels in the world, and it includes a plethora of jaw-dropping stays from across the Maldives, Peru, Hong Kong, Thailand, Mexico, and more.
Two spots in Los Angeles have made the cut – The Beverly Hills Hotel, which sits in spot number 65, and Hotel Bel-Air, in place 57 – and editor Leonie Cooper has reviewed both.
About the former – which is the actual Hotel California, immortalised on the cover of the Eagles’ best-selling 1976 album – Leonie says the Beverly Hills Hotel ‘remains impressively chic; the old school, country club-styled salmon-pink exterior largely untouched. As such, it’s a go-to for the Hollywood set (we end up having to change our booking date due to an Emmys party taking over the entire hotel).’
The Hotel Bel-Air, on the other hand, is described simply as the ‘embodiment of Old Hollywood glamour’, with 60 acres of gorgeously landscaped garden and over 1,200 different types of plants, from jasmine to fruit trees as well as the stunning purple lonchocarpus tree that drapes itself wantonly over the hotel restaurant’s al fresco terrace.’
Nine hotels in total from across North America have made the list, with these LA inclusions accompanying three spots in New York City. However, Asia dominates this year’s ranking, with 20 different hotels claiming a space in the 51-100 ranking – seven of which are in Japan.
The most impressive, in our opinion, is the Hoshinoya in Tokyo, which we recently named one of the world’s most stunning stays.
‘Despite being situated in the middle of Tokyo’s stultifying financial district, Hoshinoya’s otherworldly interior will have you forgetting about mundane reality in no time,’ writes UK’s editor-in-chief Joe Mackertich, who reviewed the hotel, ‘This futuristic take on the traditional ryokan transforms a 17-storey skyscraper into a self-contained sanctuary of tatami, softly lit corridors, communal tea rooms and one of the city’s most extraordinary rooftop onsens.’
Other inclusions from the Japanese capital include Janu and the Park Hyatt, as well as The Okura, the Four Seasons, and the Palace Hotel.
But, what about in Europe? Well, stealing 100th place on the list is Scotland’s legendary Gleneagles hotel, which is a stately property just over an hour’s drive from Edinburgh, surrounded by swathes of verdant countryside and golf courses. However, there’s plenty more where that came from – scroll on for the full longlist from this year’s World’s 50 Best hotels.
The longlist of the World’s 50 Best Hotels for 2026, from 51-100
- La Réserve Paris, Paris
- Janu Tokyo, Tokyo
- Park Hyatt Tokyo, Tokyo
- Palacio Nazarenas, Cusco
- Soneva Fushi, Maldives
- Rosewood London, London
- Hotel Bel-Air, Los Angeles
- Il San Pietro di Positano, Positano
- Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong, Hong Kong
- Splendido, Portofino
- Mandapa, Bali
- Castiglion del Bosco, Montalcino
- Sofitel Legend Casco Viejo, Panama City
- Hotel Esencia, Tulum
- The Beverly Hills Hotel, Los Angeles
- Orient Express La Minerva, Rome
- Montage Los Cabos, Cabo San Lucas
- Forestis Dolomites, Brixen
- The Okura, Tokyo
- Rosewood Bangkok, Bangkok
- Amangalla, Galle
- Ritz Paris, Paris
- Palace Hotel Tokyo, Tokyo
- Four Seasons Tamarindo, La Manzanilla
- La Mamounia, Marrakech
- Maçakızı, Bodrum
- Hotel das Cataratas, Iguassu Falls
- The Fifth Avenue Hotel, New York
- Hotel The Mitsui, Kyoto
- Carlton Cannes, Cannes
- Capella Hanoi, Hanoi
- Huka Lodge, Taupō
- The Calile, Brisbane
- Borgo Santandrea, Amalfi
- Hoshinoya Tokyo, Tokyo
- Four Seasons Hong Kong, Hong Kong
- Aman New York, New York
- Borgo Egnazia, Savelletri
- Waldorf Astoria Osaka, Osaka
- Mandarin Oriental Shenzhen, Shenzhen
- Villa Treville, Positano
- The Greenwich Hotel, New York
- The Maybourne Riviera, Roquebrune-Cap-Martin
- The Johri, Jaipur
- Reschio, Lisciano Niccone
- Wynn Palace, Macau
- Capella Singapore, Singapore
- The Oberoi Udaivilas, Udaipur
- The Peninsula Shanghai, Shanghai
- Gleneagles, Auchterarder
🏩 Oh, and don’t forget to browse our list of the world’s most beautiful hotels.
Did you see that France is set to be overtaken as the world’s most-visited country by 2040?
Plus: This is officially the best city in the world for nightlife right now, according to locals.
Stay in the loop: sign up to our free Travel newsletter for all the latest travel news and best stuff happening across the world.
