The guide will launch the Star Ratings of hotels and spas in its fifth international city, Shanghai, China in April 2012.
With over fifty years of experience in hospitality ratings and information, Forbes Travel Guide continues to expand its reach around the globe with the goal of providing consumers with a unified Five-Star based rating system.
Forbes Travel Guide expanded its ratings from North America into Asia in 2008, with the introduction of its Five-Star ratings into Hong Kong, Macau, Beijing and Singapore. Its newest destination, Shanghai, will be added to the Forbes Travel Guide online social platform, Startle.com.
"We spent over a year immersing ourselves in the city and while the physical properties of the hotels and spas in Shanghai are extraordinarily impressive, it is their meticulous attention to service that makes the city an ideal Five-Star destination," said Shane O'Flaherty, Forbes Travel Guide's President, International and Ratings.
Forbes Travel Guide uses stars to represent levels of quality, with its coveted Five-Star Award certification the highest achievement for hotels, restaurants or spas. To ensure consistency, the Forbes Travel Guide inspectors make visits to every rated property. Each property receives an announced inspection during which the inspector uses a checklist to evaluate cleanliness, physical condition and location.
For qualified full-service properties, an unannounced inspector checks into each property and stays overnight for several days, evaluating the property on more than 550 service standards. Standards for Forbes Travel Guide's Five-Star Award are precise and consistent, and only 57 properties have been able to attain the designation worldwide.
In addition to its Five and Four-Star Awards, Forbes Travel Guide will also honor outstanding properties in five additional categories, recognizing the hotels in Shanghai based on their unique attributes. These categories will include Top Business Hotel, Top Historic Hotel, Top Boutique Hotel, Top New Hotel and Top Technology Hotel. All of these winners will also be announced as part of the Forbes Travel Guide Star Rating announcement in mid-April 2012.
For a detailed explanation of how Forbes Travel Guide compiles its Star Ratings, visit,
www.startle.com, the online home of Forbes Travel Guide.
