98 Acres Resort & Spa clinches top global honours at World Luxury Hotel Awards

98 Acres Resort & Spa puts Sri Lanka on the map for luxury tourism standard

98 Acres Resort & Spa, the ultimate luxury getaway, clinched top global honours as the best ‘Luxury Mountain Resort’ in the world at the coveted World Luxury Hotel Awards 2015 (WLHA) held in Hong Kong recently.

Inspired by the richness of its Sri Lankan heritage, 98 Acres Resort & Spa as the perfect tranquil retreat, has received the pinnacle achievement being adjudged the best luxury mountain resort in the world. Noteworthy, the resort is one of only two global winners from Sri Lanka for WLHA 2015 – the ultimate achievement in global hoteliering.

Held annually, the World Luxury Hotel Awards is an exclusive tribute given to exceptional luxury hotels worldwide. Founded in 2006, the World Luxury Hotel Awards is a celebration of ultimate achievement in service excellence rewarding hotels that have shone beyond the normal standards of quality and service. 

Speaking on the occasion A.P.D. Aberathna, Chairman UHE Group, (98 Acres Resort& Spa, a member of the UHE Group) said, “We are honoured and delighted to receive this prestigious award. The World Luxury Hotel Awards are a global recognition of world class service excellence which we are very proud to offer our guests at levels surpassing the highest international standards. We have reached the highest tier among outstanding hotels around the globe contributing to Sri Lanka’s worthiness as a top tourist destination.”

“This coveted award win is all the more impressive since results of the World Luxury Hotel Awards are based on votes cast by International tour operators, travel agents and hotel guests, which reflect not only the magnificence and luxuriousness of our Resort but also the service excellence consistently delivered by our staff,” Aberathna added.

“You can design, create and build the most beautiful place in the world but you need people to make it a reality,” he added.

For 2015, over 1,000 hotels from more than 145 countries were nominated to participate in the prestigious awards.

“It gives me great pleasure to thank the tireless and truly award winning efforts of the Group General Manager Inthikab Alam for his leadership, and his team for their dedication. It is due to their efforts that we have reached a truly outstanding achievement motivating us to focus further on our quest to provide exceptional services and facilities surpassing the expectations of our guests,” he added.

“Beyond 98 acres, properties such as Secret Kandy, Yala and Ella, sister hotels run as a chain of luxury boutique hotels too have also ranked within the top tier in their respective tourist cities on TripAdvisor (Kandy ranking No.1 and Ella ranking No.2),” concluded Aberathna.

The latest victory sits proudly alongside other notable honours achieved by 98 Acres. The resort was listed in the travel industry respected and renowned blogger review site, with over 10,000 shares around the world – ‘Where cool things happen’ as among the No. 2 of 14 coolest hotels in the world.

Additionally, this year the resort received the TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence 2015, Travellers Choice ‘Romance’ Award Winner 2015 (also by TripAdvisor) and placed No.18 of the Top 25 luxury hotels in Sri Lanka 2015.

Previously 98 Acres received the Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Award 2104, ranked No. 17 of top 25 luxury hotels in Sri Lanka 2014, and ranked No. 1 in Ella – 2014/2015. 

Continuing to provide guest its signature Sri Lankan grace, warmth and care, 98 Acres Resort will inspire to greater levels of excellence exceeding customer expectations.