Burj Al Arab named world’s most beautiful five-star hotel

The research was based on the number of Instagram hashtags the hotel has garnered

Burj Al Arab had 2,428,501 Instagram tags as of December 2021. AFP

Its futuristic architecture, gilded lifts and flamboyant chandeliers have all contributed to Burj Al Arab being named the world’s most beautiful and Insta-worthy five-star hotel. The list was compiled by Money.co.uk based purely on the number of Instagram hashtags a hotel has garnered over the years, with the team analysing more than 10 million hashtags associated with high-end hotels.

Of these, Burj Al Arab has been tagged nearly 2.5 million times, and two million times more than the second name on the list, Soneva Jani in the Maldives that has 415,461 hashtags.

“Although it is officially rated as five stars, the Burj Al Arab Jumeirah is widely known as a seven-star hotel as a result of its extravagance; guests are offered Rolls-Royce chauffeur service, a pillow menu so you can customise your comfort, and endless photo opportunities outside its dhow-shaped architecture,” the report said.

Bellagio in Las Vegas, The Plaza in New York and The Beverly Hills Hotel in California secured positions three, four and five respectively.

Dubai’s Palazzo Versace was at number 17 in the top 20 list, with 43,615 hashtags.

Top 10 hotels in the Middle East

The list also analysed the most beautiful hotels by region. In the Middle East, eight out of the top 10 hotels are located in Dubai, including Burj Al Arab and Palazzo Versace, followed by Jumeirah Al Naseem, Taj Dubai and Park Hyatt Dubai in the next three spots.

Elsewhere on the list are The St Regis Saadiyat Island Resort in Abu Dhabi and Muscat’s Al Bustan Palace, a Ritz-Carlton Hotel, at spots eight and nine respectively.

Here are the top 10 most picturesque hotels in the Middle East and the number of Instagram hashtags each has, as of December 2021:

1. Burj Al Arab, Dubai (2,428,501)
2. Palazzo Versace, Dubai (43,615)
3. Jumeirah Al Naseem, Dubai (28,487)
4. Taj Dubai (23,510)
5. Park Hyatt Dubai (14,710)
6. Le Royal Meridien Beach Resort and Spa, Dubai (14,125)
7. Waldorf Astoria Dubai Palm Jumeirah (11,982)
8. The St Regis Saadiyat Island Resort, Abu Dhabi (9,351)
9. Al Bustan Palace, Muscat (9,097)
10. W Dubai – The Palm, Dubai (8,919)

Pretty properties

Elsewhere, Claridge's Hotel in London was named Europe’s most beautiful hotel; Brazil’s Palacio Tangara was at the top of the South America list; the Palazzo Versace property on Australia’s Gold Coast was decreed most beautiful in the Oceania region; and Marrakesh’s La Mamounia was first on the Africa list.