2nd September 2010 – Orient-Express is today celebrating numerous wins at last night’s Condé Nast Traveller 2010 Readers’ Travel Awards, including taking both first and second place in the Overseas Leisure Hotels: Europe category.

The Hotel Splendido (www.hotelsplendido.com) in Portofino, a glamorous and idyllic retreat on Italy’s Ligurian coast, took first place for Leisure Hotels in Europe, Asia Minor & the Russian Federation, moving up one spot from last year’s position, and scoring highest for family-friendliness, cuisine and restaurants, and location.

The iconic Hotel Cipriani (www.hotelcipriani.com) in Venice came second in the same category, achieving acclaim for its impeccable service and standard of accommodation. Fourth in the category was La Residencia (www.hotel-laresidencia.com) in Mallorca, signifying Orient-Express’ dominance in Europe for a second year running.

There were also wins in the Train’s category, where the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express (www.orient-express.com) won second place for its exquisite service, ambience, and legendary journeys, with the company’s Royal Scotsman (www.royalscotsman.com) and Hiram Bingham (www.perurail.com) trains coming in at sixth and seventh place respectively.

The Observatory Hotel (www.observatoryhotel.com.au) in Sydney, positioned in the historic Rocks district, just ten minutes away from Sydney Harbour, came third in the Australasia & South Pacific category, moving up three places from last year’s position.

Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge (www.sanctuarylodgehotel.com), the only hotel located adjacent to the ancient Inca citadel, came in eighth place within the Americas and Caribbean category and Hotel Monasterio (www.monasteriohotel.com), located in the heart of the ancient Inca capital of Cuzco, made its debut into the awards in the same category.

The Condé Nast Traveller Reader’s Travel Awards take place annually and are one of the most eagerly anticipated awards ceremonies in the international travel industry. Last night’s event was attended by Filip Boyen, Chief Operating Officer, and Maurizio Saccani, Vice-President and Managing Director of Italy.

Readers are asked to write in and vote on the best that the travel world has to offer in categories that range from hotels, spas, airlines, airports and trains. They are then asked to rate their choices accordingly in various categories such as location, ambience and décor, value for money, service, cuisine and environmental friendliness. These votes are calculated as an average on each criterion, which provides the overall satisfaction percentage that decides the winners.

ENDS/….

Notes to Editors
Orient-Express, (NYSE: OEH, www.orient-express.com) the name behind an elite collection of travel experiences, first came into being in 1883 as one of the world’s most exciting and indulgent train journeys. Today those same two evocative words also embrace hotels, cruises and other luxury rail adventures in 25 countries, across five continents. The Company has offered exceptional luxury travel experiences since 1976, when it first purchased Hotel Cipriani in Venice and then shortly afterwards, recreated the celebrated Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, linking London, Paris and Venice, along with other European cities. Today, the company owns or part-owns and manages 50 businesses, 41 of which are highly acclaimed hotels, each unique in style, from the Mount Nelson in Cape Town and Rio’s Copacabana Palace, to the Grand Hotel Europe in St. Petersburg and Maroma Resort & Spa on Mexico’s Riviera Maya. There is a restaurant, ‘21’ in New York, as well as two river cruise operations and six luxury trains.

For further press information please contact:

Vicky Legg Sara Mirza
Director of Public Relations Public Relations Executive - Hotels
Orient-Express Orient-Express
Tel: 020 7921 4067 Tel: 020 7921 4069
Email: vicky.legg@orient-express.com Email: sara.mirza@orient-express.com