The world's leading hotel price comparison website, HotelsCombined, today announced the winners of the second annual 'Stellar Stays' Awards. Thirteen outstanding hotels across Australia and New Zealand have been honoured based on a stringent set of criteria.

The 2014 HotelsCombined 'Stellar Stays' hotels across Australia and New Zealand are:

• The Langham Melbourne (Victoria, Australia)
• InterContinental Melbourne the Rialto (Victoria, Australia)
• Emporium Hotel, Brisbane (Queensland, Australia)
• Lizard Island Resort (Queensland, Australia)
• Four Seasons Hotel Sydney (New South Wales, Australia)
• Westin Sydney, (New South Wales, Australia)
• Shangri-La Sydney, (New South Wales, Australia)
• Sydney Harbour YHA, (New South Wales, Australia)
• The Langham Auckland (Auckland, New Zealand)
• The Rees Hotel and Luxury Apartments (Queenstown, New Zealand)
• The Millbrook Resort (Arrowtown, New Zealand)
• Queenstown Park Hotel (Queenstown, New Zealand)
• The George Christchurch, (Christchurch, New Zealand)

There are three Australian newcomers – Four Seasons Hotel Sydney, Westin Sydney and Sydney Harbour YHA – to the Stellar Stays Award list in 2014 as well as three New Zealand newcomers – The Rees Hotel and Luxury Apartments, Queenstown Park Hotel and The George Christchurch.

In order to be considered a 'Stellar Stay', properties must be currently ranked at 9.0 or above, with a minimum of 250 customer reviews on HotelsCombined.com. The properties must have a significant community or environmental program underway and have received at least three major industry awards within the last 12 months.

Global PR and Content Manager at HotelsCombined, Alycia Simons, said the strict award criteria ensures the calibre of properties remains very high.

“Each property named to the 2014 HotelsCombined Stellar Stays Awards has achieved a rating above 9.0 out of a possible ten and has a significant number of customer reviews on HotelsCombined. The Stellar Stays Awards emphasize value and encompass a range of accommodation options. With over 25 million users to our site a month and a database of over 800,000 properties, we know that guests of these properties have been highly satisfied with their stay,” she said.

 “Responsible tourism is very important to HotelsCombined and the Stellar Stays Awards aim to encourage and highlight the benefits of sustainable tourism practices. Each of the awarded hotels has contributed to the local community or environment in some way. This may be through the implementation of international best practice standards and procedures or via an ongoing commitment to community programs and initiatives,” Ms Simons said.

Jessica Somers, Director of Communications for the Shangri-La Hotel, Sydney, said that recognition by the 2014 Stellar Stays Awards highlights the importance of operating in an economically and environmentally-responsible manner.

 “At Shangri-La Hotel, Sydney we are passionate about sustainability and strive to be a leader in corporate citizenship and sustainable development. As part of our Care for Nature Project, we have partnered with The Urban Beehive Company and were the first five-star luxury hotel in Sydney tap into the urban bee-keeping trend,” Mrs Somers said.  

“Additionally, our Care for People Project aims to promote the highest level of education and health support in underprivileged communities. We are delighted to have been recognised, “she said.

Alycia Simons

Global PR and Content Manager

HotelsCombined

alycia@hotelscombined.com

About HotelsCombined
HotelsCombined is the world's leading hotel price comparison site, allowing travellers to find the best prices from all the best travel sites in one search. More than 300 million people every year use HotelsCombined.com to find the best prices for 800,000 properties in 120,000 destinations worldwide. HotelsCombined is available in over 40 languages and delivers prices in 120 currencies. Established in Australia in 2005, HotelsCombined is Australian-owned and employs more than 200 people. www.hotelscombined.com