Looking for a touch of glamour this summer? While new hotels regularly steal the spotlight with grand openings and appearances on “must-visit” lists, Esquire argues that true luxury is measured over time rather than by first impressions.
The magazine has unveiled its latest Hotel Hall of Fame, a selection of the world’s best hotels where consistency and reputation matter more than novelty. The list celebrates hotels that have themselves become destinations, places where the hotel experience is as much a reason to travel as the surrounding city or landscape.
To qualify, hotels must have been open for at least five years, establishing themselves as a constant presence in their community and shaping the region in which they are located. The list recognises properties that have stood the test of time by combining heritage, atmosphere, service, and a strong sense of place.
Europe’s grand hotels remain well represented, with nine of the 21 properties located in France, Italy, Monaco, Switzerland, the UK and Ireland.
Notably absent from the list, however, is Asia, despite being home to some of the world’s most legendary hotels. Examples include Bangkok’s historic Mandarin Oriental, which is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year, and Singapore’s Raffles, which opened in 1887 and has been attracting glamorous society globetrotters and culturalists from around the globe ever since. Both properties have long been destinations in their own right.
Paris claims two spots with some of its most legendary addresses: Hôtel de Crillon, A Rosewood Hotel, overlooking Place de la Concorde, and Le Meurice, the historic palace hotel on Rue de Rivoli that has welcomed artists, royalty and international travellers for generations.
Italy does not disappoint either, with three properties included. On the shores of Lake Como, the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni and the Grand Hotel Tremezzo embody the kind of lakeside elegance that has attracted visitors to northern Italy for over a century. The former has been owned by the same family for four generations. In the capital, the Hotel Eden Rome completes the trio, offering a more secluded form of luxury overlooking the Eternal City.
Monaco’s famous Hôtel de Paris Monte Carlo, a symbol of Riviera glamour since the 19th century, also makes the cut, alongside Badrutt’s Palace in St Moritz, the Swiss alpine institution credited with helping turn the mountain town into one of the world’s most exclusive winter destinations.
Meanwhile, in the UK and Ireland, London’s Hotel Café Royal and Ballyfin Demesne in County Laois receive the magazine’s nod of approval. The latter, a restored 19th-century Irish country estate, is praised for offering a luxury experience far removed from the noise of modern city life.
American classics also feature prominently across the Atlantic, including The Peninsula Beverly Hills, The Mark in New York, The Colony in Palm Beach, and the Hotel Bel-Air in Los Angeles, where Marilyn Monroe lived during her marriage to Joe DiMaggio and returned in 1962 for her final Vogue photoshoot. Mexico is represented by Rosewood Mayakoba and Las Ventanas al Paraíso.
Nine hotels joined the Hall of Fame this year, including the Hôtel de Paris Monte Carlo, the Hotel Bel-Air in Los Angeles, and the Carlyle, a Rosewood Hotel in New York.
According to Esquire, a key aspect of legendary hospitality is the pleasure guests experience when served champagne upon arrival. Psychologists and hospitality experts call this the “Peak-End Rule”, whereby people judge an experience largely based on how they felt at its peak and at its very beginning.
Trends may come and go, but according to the list, true luxury is perhaps less about being the newest name on the map and more about becoming part of the map itself.
