Checked In, Switched Off: The Hotels That Scored Perfection

Travel

Jun 27

They don’t just offer a bed for the night—they reframe what it means to arrive. These are the hotels that redefine luxury, as crowned by the global tastemakers at La Liste.

There are “nice” hotels. There are even “incredible” ones—beautiful, serviceable, maybe a little flashy on Instagram. And then, there are the hotels that make you momentarily forget your passport, your inbox, and your actual name. These are the transcendent stays—the ones where you feel like a better version of yourself just by walking through the lobby.

Enter La Liste, the Parisian authority best known for ranking the world’s top 1,000 restaurants (think: the culinary Oscars, only chic), which now also applies its meticulous eye to hospitality. By blending algorithms, trusted travel guides, critic reviews, and global ratings, La Liste has emerged as the quietly brilliant oracle of where to sleep—if you demand only the finest sheets, service, and spa menus.

In its hotly anticipated 2025 hotel ranking, ten properties have tied for first place with a near-perfect score of 99.5. Each one is a masterclass in experience, offering something so singular, so immersive, so detail-obsessed that even the ice cubes feel curated. From grand Parisian palaces to barefoot-luxury beach escapes, here’s what makes these ten sanctuaries truly world-class.

**La Réserve Paris – Hotel and Spa, France**

La Réserve doesn’t shout. It barely whispers. Hidden behind heavy doors off the Champs-Élysées, this 19th-century Haussmannian townhouse feels like you've stumbled into the private residence of a discreet billionaire who collects antique books and Hermès throws. Designed by Jacques Garcia, the interiors are swathed in velvet, silk, and brooding romance. But it's the service—whisper-light, anticipatory, and tailored—that elevates the experience to another plane. Add in a private library, a Michelin-starred restaurant, and a Dior-drenched spa, and you'll find yourself romanticising even the room service menu.
*Rooms from approx. £1,350/night*
lareserve-paris.com

**The Connaught, London, UK**

Mayfair has plenty of luxury hotels, but The Connaught is the one you’d actually move into. Famed for its calm elegance and art-strewn corridors, this is where royalty (literal and cultural) comes to escape the noise. But it’s not just about tradition—there’s a mischievous modernity woven through: Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s playful cuisine, the Aman spa (still one of the best-kept secrets in the city), and of course, the world-renowned Connaught Bar, where martinis are prepared from a trolley with a level of ceremony usually reserved for royal baptisms.
*Rooms from approx. £930/night*
the-connaught.co.uk

**The Savoy, London, UK**

There’s a reason this Thames-side icon has starred in everything from *Notting Hill* to Noël Coward anecdotes. The Savoy is cinematic, theatrical, unapologetically grand. The checkerboard marble floors, Louis XV flourishes, and sweeping views of the river Thames all feel effortlessly timeless. And then there’s the American Bar—home to cocktail alchemy long before it was a TikTok thing. You don’t just check in here. You join a glittering history book where everyone has a past, a monogram, and a favourite suite.
*Rooms from approx. £650/night*
thesavoylondon.com

**Il San Pietro di Positano, Italy**

Suspended like a lemon-scented dream above the Amalfi Coast, Il San Pietro is equal parts Bond lair and Riviera romance. You arrive via a panoramic lift built into the cliffside. Your suite’s terrace is draped in bougainvillaea and bathed in sea spray. And your beach? It’s private, reachable only by another hidden elevator. With its Michelin-starred Zass restaurant and terraced tennis courts clinging to the rocks, it’s no surprise this hotel has hosted everyone from Franco Zeffirelli to Franco in room 14. A fever dream in shades of turquoise and limoncello.
*Rooms from approx. £1,350/night*
ilsanpietro.it

**J.K. Place Capri, Italy**

If Slim Aarons designed a hotel, it might look like this. With just 22 rooms and a hushed, residential feel, J.K. Place Capri is a fashion editor’s fantasy: soft white linens, clean marble lines, glossy coffee-table books, and views so pristine they deserve a beauty contract. Service is friendly without fawning, and the terrace restaurant may just ruin all other lunch spots for you. Everything here is casual—but impossibly cool. Like Capri itself, if you know, you know.
*Rooms from approx. £1,100/night*
jkplace.com/capri

**Mandarin Oriental Bangkok, Thailand**

There are hotels, and then there’s the Mandarin Oriental Bangkok—a grande dame that manages to feel both palatial and intimate. Set along the Chao Phraya River, this is where Graham Greene and Joseph Conrad once wrote (and where modern guests still pretend to journal meaningfully). The teak-filled Author’s Wing nods to a more elegant era, while the riverside spa—reached by private boat—offers massages so transcendent you’ll forget your flight home. This is Asia’s answer to the Ritz, only with better cocktails and warmer smiles
*Rooms from approx. £470/night*
mandarinoriental.com/bangkok

**The Peninsula Shanghai, China**

If Gatsby ever opened a hotel in Asia, it would be this one. The Peninsula Shanghai brings a swoon-worthy Art Deco aesthetic to the Bund, with lacquered panelling, grand staircases, and views of Pudong that make you consider quitting your job and taking up calligraphy. There’s a rooftop terrace bar, a fleet of Rolls-Royces, and a spa that smells like serenity bottled. But perhaps its greatest trick? Feeling thoroughly modern while dripping in nostalgia.
*Rooms from approx. £370/night*
peninsula.com/en/shanghai

**The Peninsula Chicago, USA**

In a city known for its steel and swagger, The Peninsula is a masterclass in soft power. Tucked into the Magnificent Mile, this sanctuary of calm combines Eastern hospitality with Midwestern warmth. Think massive rooms, Frette linens, a 19th-floor pool overlooking skyscrapers, and spa treatments that might just realign your chakras. Bonus points for afternoon tea, a fleet of MINI Coopers for guest use, and the sort of concierge who can get you Hamilton tickets and a dentist in under an hour.
*Rooms from approx. £440/night*
peninsula.com/en/chicago

**Rosewood Mayakoba, Mexico**

Part jungle hideaway, part Riviera dreamscape, Rosewood Mayakoba is so lush you’ll assume it was CGI’d into existence. Villas are reached by boat, each one tucked among mangroves and kitted out with private plunge pools and outdoor showers. This isn’t just a resort—it’s an ecosystem, with sustainability stitched into every detail. The spa, hidden in the forest, feels ancient and otherworldly. And the service? Think invisible hands that somehow know when you’re craving a coconut before you do.
*Rooms from approx. £1,050/night*
rosewoodhotels.com/en/mayakoba

What unites these places isn’t just opulence—it’s intention. Every tile, cocktail, sunrise yoga session, and scent in the elevator has been considered. La Liste’s top 10 of 2025 aren’t just places to stay—they’re places that stay with you.

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