Readers’ Feedback: The Hotels You Loved — and the Ones You Didn’t

Some months, readers confirm what we already suspect. Others produce the more useful surprises: little-known hotels that inspire immediate loyalty, celebrated names that disappoint, and familiar favourites that continue to justify their reputation. This month’s feedback manages all three.

It also ranges unusually widely. We hear from readers travelling through Italy, France, Greece and Scandinavia, as well as Morocco, China, Indonesia, Japan, Australia, Peru, Brazil and the United States. There are reports on major international names including Aman, Four Seasons, Rosewood, Mandarin Oriental and Belmond, but also on smaller independent properties that rarely receive the same attention — among them Vocabolo Moscatelli in Umbria, Ett Hem in Stockholm and Casa Madrona in Sausalito.

That mix is precisely what makes your feedback so useful. A celebrated hotel may have the name, the setting and the design but still fall short when it comes to service, while a relatively unknown independent can inspire the sort of enthusiasm that has a guest immediately planning a return. There are also updates on long-established favourites, new openings and hotels that seem to divide opinion almost completely.