- Ballyfin was runner-up in Condé Nast Traveller Awards – October 2018
- Voted No 2 in world in the Best Hotels in the World – July 2018
- Named hotel of the year at AA Hospitality Awards – April 2018
- Travel + Leisure Awards – top resort in Europe 2018
Ballyfin has been named Ireland’s best hotel in Condé Nast Traveller’s The Gold List 2019, featuring its editors’ all-time favourite hotels across the world.
It joins other hotels across the world, including Castello di Vicarello in Tuscany, St Regis New York and plenty to choose from in far-flung destinations, including Playa Grande Beach Club, Rio San Juan in Dominican Republic.

Condé Nast gold list 2019
It’s the latest award for the Co Laois hotel, arguably Ireland’s most exclusive five-star property, with just 20 bedrooms. It was voted second-best hotel in the world by the Best Hotels in the World and Travel + Leisure this year, and named Ireland’s hotel of the year at the AA Hospitality Awards.
Although the latest awards are dominated by hotels in the United States, Ireland has the same number of entrants – one – as larger tourism countries such as Australia and Greece.
For the first time, all of the properties featured on The Gold List can be booked directly through the Condé Nast Traveller website via its partnership with Expedia.
Full list:
Britain:
Claridge’s, London, Covent Garden Hotel, London, The Kensington, London, Soho Farmhouse, Oxfordshire, Lucknam Park, near Bath, Heckfield Place, Hampshire.
Europe – France
Hôtel de Crillon, Paris, La Réserve Paris, Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc, Antibes, Les Fermes de Marie, Megève
Italy:
Aman Venice, Belmond Hotel Caruso, Amalfi Coast, Le Sirenuse, Positano, JK Place Capri, Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli, Lake Garda, Castello di Vicarello, Tuscany, Borgo Egnazia, Puglia, Hotel Il Pellicano, Tuscany
Spain: Soho House Barcelona, Sant Francesc Hotel Singular, Palma de Mallorca,
Greece: Perivolas, Santorini
Cyprus: Anassa Hotel
Denmark: Hotel Sanders, Copenhagen
Sweden: Ett Hem, Stockholm
Iceland: Deplar Farm
Norway: The Thief, Oslo
AFRICA & THE INDIAN OCEAN
MOROCCO: La Mamounia, Marrakech, L’Hôtel Marrakech
TANZANIA: Singita Sasakwa Lodge, Grumeti
SOUTH AFRICA: Ellerman House, Cape Town
KENYA: &Beyond Bateleur Camp, Masai Mara
BOTSWANA: Jack’s Camp
MALDIVES: Amilla Fushi, Soneva Fushi
MAURITIUS: One&Only Le Saint Géran
SEYCHELLES: Six Senses Zil Pasyon
THE MIDDLE EAST
OMAN: Six Senses Zighy Bay
DUBAI: Bulgari Resort Dubai, Madinat Jumeirah
ASIA
INDIA: Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jodhpur, The Oberoi Udaivilas, Udaipur, The Leela Palace New Delhi
JAPAN: Aman Tokyo
THAILAND: Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok, The Siam, Bangkok
CAMBODIA: Song Saa Private Island
CHINA: The Upper House, Hong Kong, The Peninsula Shanghai, The Opposite House, Beijing
AUSTRALASIA & THE SOUTH PACIFIC
NEW ZEALAND: The Lodge at Kauri Cliffs, North Island
AUSTRALIA: Halcyon House, New South Wales
FRENCH POLYNESIA: The Brando
SOUTH AMERICA & MEXICO
BRAZIL: Uxua Casa Hotel & Spa, Trancoso, Hotel Unique, São Paulo
CHILE: Awasi Atacama
ARGENTINA: Palacio Duhau Park Hyatt, Buenos Aires
MEXICO: Chablé, Yucatan, Hotel Esencia, Quintana Roo
NORTH AMERICA & CARIBBEAN
USA: The Beekman, A Thompson Hotel, New York, The St. Regis New York, The Carlyle, New York, Four Seasons Resort Hualalai, Hawaii, Amangiri, Utah, Four Seasons Hotel at the Surf Club, Miami, Hotel Bel-Air, LA, Sunset Tower Hotel, LA, The Dewberry, Charleston, The Robey Chicago, Farmhouse Inn Sonoma, Wynn Las Vegas, The Peninsula Chicago
CANADA: Clayoquot, Vancouver Island
THE CARIBBEAN:
GoldenEye, Jamaica, Playa Grande Beach Club, Rio San Juan, Dominican Republic, The Cotton House, Mustique, COMO Parrot Cay, Turks & Caicos, Bahama House, Harbour Island
The full list and additional information on each hotel can be found online at: traveller.uk/goldlist. A curated list is featured in Condé Nast Traveller January/February 2019 issue, on newsstands now.