Condé Nast Traveler has just released their annual Gold List for 2012 listing the 511 top rated hotels, resorts and cruise lines in the world, as voted for by their well-traveled readership.

After over eight million votes through their readers choice survey, eleven hotels throughout Thailand- six in Bangkok, two each in Chiang Mai and Phuket and one in Chiang Rai have come out amongst the best in the world.

Readers were asked to rate hotels on six aspects; rooms, service, food, location, design and activities. Each property is awarded an overall score as well as each category being scored separately.

Mandarin Oriental Bangkok

A perennial favorite among tourists, the Mandarin Oriental Bangkok scored the highest of all hotels in Thailand, achieving an overall 97.9 points. Broken down by category as follows:

• Rooms- 98
• Service- 98.7
• Food- 97.4
• Location- 97.4
• Design- 98

Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi

Good news for the Mandarin Group as they snag the two highest rated hotels in Thailand this year. The Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi in Chiang Mai garnered some attention last year when it hosted an episode of the American ABC reality show The Bachelorette, and scored an overall 95.7 points on the Gold List this year.

• Rooms- 98
• Service- 100
• Food- 96
• Location- 88
• Design- 96

Four Seasons Chiang Mai

This luxurious 5 star resort blends in beautifully with its surroundings – lush vegetation, rice paddy fields, and distant mountains, create a scenic backdrop for the Four Seasons Resort Chiang Mai, which earned an overall score of 94.8 in this years list.

• Rooms- 94.9
• Service- 94.9
• Food- 97.4
• Location- 93.5
• Design- 96.2
• Activities- 91.5

The Peninsula Bangkok

The Penisula Bangkok is another famous riverside hotel that is well regarded among many and appears on many people’s bucket lists. With an overall score of 94.2, The Peninsula has appeared on this Gold for more than five years in a row.

• Rooms- 95.5
• Service- 94.9
• Food- 94.4
• Location- 92.1
• Design- 94.4

Amanpuri Phuket

Amanpuri Resort Phuket is the first of two Phuket resorts to earn a place on this year’s Gold List. Overall score of 93.2.

• Rooms- 90.9
• Service- 95.5
• Food- 86.4
• Location- 95.5
• Design- 100
• Activities- 90.9

Shangri-La Hotel Bangkok

Another Bangkok hotel on the banks of the Chao Phraya River, the Shangri-La collected 92.3 overall points and is a long term resident of the Hot List.

• Rooms- 92.6
• Service- 94.2
• Food- 89.3
• Location- 93.4
• Design- 91.7

Four Seasons Tented Camp Golden Triangle

“Set on a jungle hillside along the Mekong River, the stunning Four Seasons Tented Camp has views of three countries—Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos. Three tents have custom-made wooden hot tubs on the decks, with views of the surrounding jungle.” Overall score of 90.7

• Rooms- 96
• Service- 88
• Food- 92
• Location- 92
• Design- 88
• Activities- 88

Banyan Tree Phuket

“Each low-rise villa at the Banyan Tree Phuket is set next to a private landscaped garden and has his-and-hers dressing areas, an open-air sunken bath, teak-framed floor-to-ceiling windows, and dominant colors of black, gold, and red. The 24 two-bedroom pool villas have private infinity pools along the lagoon, plus 24-hour butler and in-villa chef services and a separate check-in lobby” An overall score of 88.6

• Rooms- 88
• Service- 84
• Food- 88
• Location- 96
• Design- 88
• Activities- 87

JW Marriott Bangkok

The JW Marriott Hotel Bangkok embraces traditional Thai hospitality and offers guests a quiet retreat from the hustle and bustle of Bangkok streets. In true Marriott style, the hotel offers contemporary, well-designed suites, personalized service and top class dining venues. Overall score of 88.4

• Rooms- 94.7
• Service- 92.1
• Food- 78.9
• Location- 86.8
• Design- 89.3

Grand Hyatt Erawan

I’m glad to see one of my all-time favorite hotels, the Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok on this list. With a fantastic location, great rooms and always a cool, busy atmosphere in the public spaces, this is always the first hotel I stay in whenever I am in Bangkok. The Erawan scored an overall 88 on the list this year.

• Rooms- 83.3
• Service- 90
• Food- 93.3
• Location- 86.7
• Design- 86.7

The Sukhothai

The Sukhothai on Sathorn is another well established Bangkok hotel that has made a solid appearance on this list for more than five years running. An overall score of 87.8.

• Rooms- 95.7
• Service- 91.3
• Food- 913
• Location- 69.6
• Design- 91.3

While I am happy to see some personal favorites, such as the Grand Hyatt Erawan and the Chiang Mai Four Seasons, I am a little surprised that some of the newer properties such as Siam Kempinski and Hansar didn’t get a mention. These two hotels are both quite new and are probably still under most people’s radar (though the Hansar is consistently fully booked), but I think that they can certainly offer a serious alternative to some of the hotels on this list, especially the aging Peninsula and Oriental.

What do you think of this list? Do you think all of these hotels deserve their spots? What, if any, other hotels do you think should be added to the list of best hotels in Thailand?

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