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If someone asked you where the world’s best hotel was located, what would you say? If you were one of the people who participated in Travel and Leisure’s annual poll on the topic, you might have said Udaipur, India. The hotel that made the number one spot on 2007’s list of the world’s top 500 hotels was Oberoi Udaivilas in this Indian destination. This award is of particular importance to India as it’s the first time that one of the country’s hotels grabbed the top spot on the list.

Although the hotel itself is of obvious importance to the award, this also marks an important trend in the country’s development as a travel destination. Forty years ago, the people who traveled to India from America were primarily hippies seeking spiritual enlightenment. Their travel style was “on the cheap” and they were most likely to camp or spend time in hostels while backpacking around the country. Although you can still travel to India on a budget, there has been a shift in recent years towards accommodating a more luxurious type of traveler.

Oberoi Udaivilas exemplifies this shift. It is a resort spa with suites that challenge the best in Europe and North America. Amenities include a swimming pool that overlooks a magnificent lake, massage therapists trained in both Eastern and Western healing techniques, and an exquisite restaurant that looks out onto the City Palace. The “world’s best hotel” is located in what some may say is the world’s hottest travel destination.

(Photo via flickr cc)

You might think there’d be plenty of great places to eat out in Hong Kong, and you’re probably right: but how will you decide where to go? Rather than relying on the recommendations of hotel staff (I have a feeling those people never actually eat in the places they recommend), there is a great website with independent restaurant reviews for Hong Kong. Suitably enough, it’s called the WOM Guide - WOM stands for Word Of Mouth, and that’s definitely the method for finding the best place for a meal.

The WOM Guide website has recently been relaunched and so it’s actually easy and fun to use, which I like; I think choosing a restaurant should be a good experience, as you linger over menu items that sound delicious or read about a good atmosphere in an old favorite restaurant. It’s targeted at both visiting travelers and locals, so it’s not just a load of tourist recommendations.

You can search by locality or cuisine, including 11 different varieties of Chinese, plus international cuisines as varied as Russian, Mexican, Thai and Moroccan. You’ll need to register and log-in to see the ratings and additional information, which is perhaps a bit of an unnecessary step when you’re only looking for a restaurant on a one-off trip to Hong Kong, but I guess they do it that way to limit the possibility of restaurants rigging votes, so it’s all for a good cause. Happy dining in Hong Kong!