Michelin Guide moves to rank hotels from next year
The guide, first launched in 1900, is expanding its mandate to hotel rankings
It’s one of the most prestigious accolades in hospitality, and now the Michelin Guide has announced that it will start ranking hotels.
International director of the Guide, Gwendal Poullennec made the announcement in Paris yesterday. He said the plan to expand the mandate after 125 years is to create a “trusted reference” that helps travellers cut through the vast array of online hotel suggestions.
“Users spend on average 10 hours in front of screens to prepare for a trip and consult more than 10 platforms – it's an obstacle course,” he said.
An initial selection of 5300 hotels have already been collated by the Michelin team from 120 countries worldwide. So now, instead of stars awarded to top restaurants, the best hotels will get keys. The selection process will be based around criteria that include architecture, individuality, service, comfort and price.
There will be an emphasis on how hotels contribute to the local experience, excellence in design, personality as well as consistency in service.
Just like with the restaurant rankings, the eponymous publication which is owned by the French tiremakers, intends to create a stir by revealing its list of hotels at a ceremony in the first half of 2024.
The guide, first launched in 1900, was created to give practical advice to people driving around France. Just two decades later, it was charging for guidebooks filed with lists of hotels in Paris. This latest announcement is part of its wider global expansion plan. Michelin Keys will be awarded by a panel of Michelin judges who anonymously stay at the hotels prior to the release of the first list.
