A few weeks ago, the hotel industry's heavyweights flocked to Paris for the fourth annual The 50 Best Hotels awards. When the list was unveiled, one thing was immediately clear: Asia dominated.
Seven of the top 10 hotels spanned the continent, with 18 on the wider list (or 16, discounting the two in Dubai) in Asia.
Of course, this list is by no means exhaustive, and many of my favourites didn’t make the cut. Votes come from an anonymous, 800-strong panel of travel journalists, hoteliers and well-heeled travellers, and this year’s compilation leans heavily towards city hotels, which is no surprise given the heavier traffic they see. But even with that skew, I’d happily argue that most deserve their place.
As someone who’s travelled extensively across Asia, visiting family in Hong Kong and Malaysia each year and using both as a launchpad to roam further afield, I can attest that hospitality across East and Southeast Asia stands in a league of its own. Asia’s dominance on the 50 Best list simply confirms what any regular visitor to the region already knows: there’s something about Asian hospitality that can’t be beat.
Big-name brands unsurprisingly feature heavily on this year’s list. Four Seasons, Rosewood, Raffles, Aman, and Mandarin Oriental all hold multiple spots, reflecting how deeply invested globally owned groups are in the region. Every year, the very top spots on the list fall to Asian properties: Capella Bangkok took the world’s best title in 2024, and since then, an Asian property has landed top of the podium, with Rosewood Hong Kong clinching the title two years in a row. But global brands invest heavily in the region for reasons beyond real estate: it’s rooted in a uniquely Asian way of hosting.
Take Aman Tokyo, ranked No.11 on the list. A Japanese concept, omotenashi, describes the art of anticipating a guest's needs before they're voiced, and Aman Tokyo lives and breathes it. Omotenashi isn't just personalisation; it reflects a deeper respect rooted in centuries of Japanese culture. Over the course of my stay, the small touches added up: a chauffeur materialising to shuttle me to the airport on the day of departure, a warm towel appearing at the exact moment I needed it, impossibly shiny muscat grapes in my room, in reference to a passing comment I’d made two days earlier.
Aman, which began as an Asian brand, continues to invest heavily across the continent, with openings in Seoul, Singapore, and Niseko all in the pipeline. “Since opening Amanpuri on the Andaman Sea in 1988, Asia has always been central to Aman’s identity,” a brand spokesperson tells me. “What sets Asia apart today is its ability to combine extraordinary hospitality with profound cultural immersion – offering guests a level of depth, authenticity and personal connection that resonates more strongly than ever.”
On the boutique side, Asian-owned brands hold their own on the list: The Upper House Hong Kong (No. 8) is a personal favourite of mine and returning here each year feels like a homecoming: every member of staff seems to know my name (apparently the hotel uses cutting-edge facial recognition technology to greet returning guests).
Check-in happens in the lift, on the way up to my suite, meaning no time is wasted hanging around at reception. I secure dinner reservations at the city’s most sought-after tables within minutes, and when I return to my room each evening, I find it set out with treats and even framed photographs of me and my family on the bedside table.
“At Upper House, we don't work from a script,” Simon McHendry, general manager, tells me. “A preference noted on one stay is simply there on the next, without being announced.
“When it’s done properly, the service almost disappears – what’s left is the feeling of being genuinely looked after.”
Nihi Sumba (No. 35) is another favourite of mine – and a good deal more remote than the city hotels above, set on an untouched island in Indonesia. Personalisation is the name of the game here: saying “no” to guests is practically forbidden. Minibars are stocked with homemade snacks tailored to your preferences (mine included chocolate chip cookies and oat milk; my husband’s, homemade chocolate from the on-site chocolate factory). Each afternoon, when we returned to the villa, we’d find our names spelt out in flower petals across the bed.
Nothing is too much to ask – whether that’s swimming with horses (the hotel’s signature experience) or a “spa safari” on the bluff overlooking the ocean, where you can book as many treatments as you like. Co-founder and CEO James McBride was named this year’s SevenRooms Icon (an additional award) at the ceremony.
“At Nihi, I’ve always believed the greatest luxury is simplicity, and making people feel that we really know them,” he says. “It starts with the little things – arriving to find your name written in the sand outside your villa, or remembering the horse you loved riding so they’re waiting for you again the next morning.”
So what is it about Asian hotels? It comes down to three things: intense personalisation, indefatigable efficiency, and deep-rooted respect. The personalisation leaves you feeling recognised in a way that’s hard to beat. The efficiency makes the languid service you’ll find in some European hotels look positively glacial in comparison. And the respect, rooted in centuries of tradition rather than gleaned from a manual, is why, once you've experienced it, going anywhere else feels like a step down.