From Atlanta to ocean cruises: why the Forbes Travel Guide star awards now shape where luxury goes next
The latest Forbes Travel Guide 2026 star awards announcement, made from Atlanta, reads less like a simple list and more like a global rating map for serious travelers. As Forbes Travel Guide explains in its own words, “What is the Forbes Travel Guide? An independent global rating system for luxury hospitality.” For couples planning their next travel focused escape, this expanded travel guide now stretches across more than 100 destinations and turns the star awards into a practical planning tool rather than a distant industry ceremony.
Forbes Travel, often shortened to FTG by insiders, has pushed its rating system far beyond traditional capital city star hotels and into resort properties, cruise ship experiences and even the first star cruise recognition. Anonymous inspectors now evaluate up to 900 criteria in hotels, restaurants, spas and ocean cruises, which means each star rating reflects both classic service and newer expectations around wellness and personalization. The result is a system luxury travelers can actually use, with award winners in places like Bhutan, Croatia, Georgia, Grenada, Laos, Poland, Sri Lanka, Tanzania and Uzbekistan suddenly competing with long established legends in Paris or New York.
This year’s award winners also include a milestone for ocean cruises, with the first Five Star cruise and restaurant at sea joining the roster of hotels restaurants and restaurants spas. That move signals that the FTG global rating framework now treats a cruise ship suite and a city hotel suite as comparable luxury experiences, judged by the same guide and rating logic. For couples who split their time between land based luxury hotels and spas ocean itineraries, the Forbes Travel Guide 2026 star awards effectively create one coherent system for comparing properties, ships and destinations on a single, trusted scale.
Beyond the Ritz Carlton and Mandarin Oriental: how emerging destinations are redefining luxury
Legacy names such as the Ritz Carlton, Mandarin Oriental and the Carlton Reserve in Boca Raton still dominate many star awards categories, yet the real story lies in where new luxury hotels are opening and how they are being rated. The Forbes Travel Guide 2026 star awards have shifted attention from predictable capitals to destination driven luxury, with first time Five Star winners in Turks and Caicos, Nikko and Montenegro joining the FTG list. For couples who already know every ritz lobby by heart, these new properties offer a different kind of luxury, one where the surrounding landscape matters as much as the thread count.
Consider how the rating system now elevates properties in Bhutan or Sri Lanka, where a single star hotel accolade can transform an emerging region into a must visit travel destination. These award winners are not just about marble and chandeliers ; they are about immersion, from ocean facing villas in Grenada to mountain lodges in Georgia that still meet the strict Forbes Travel criteria. When you scan the latest guide, you see a pattern of properties that blend high touch service with a strong sense of place, which is exactly what discerning couples increasingly expect from luxury hotels.
This geographic spread also intersects with loyalty and value, especially for travelers who use premium programs to navigate the expanding system luxury landscape. Couples weighing whether to return to a trusted ritz carlton in Boca Raton or try a newly starred mandarin oriental in an unfamiliar city can lean on curated analyses of premium hotel loyalty programs, such as this detailed look at how premium hotel loyalty programs redefine luxury travel. In practice, the Forbes Travel Guide 2026 star awards now work hand in hand with these loyalty ecosystems, helping travelers decide when to chase points at a familiar hotel and when a new FTG star recommended property in a rising destination is worth paying cash for.
How to use the Forbes Travel Guide star awards to plan your next luxury trip
For couples planning 2026–2027 trips, the smartest move is to treat the Forbes Travel Guide 2026 star awards as both a filter and a starting point. Begin with the FTG list of star hotels and properties in your preferred region, then look closely at how each hotel, resort or cruise ship interprets luxury in practice. Some award winners lean into urban energy with destination restaurants and high profile spas, while others focus on quiet villas, long views and a slower rhythm of travel.
The expanded coverage of ocean cruises and spas ocean experiences means you can now compare a star cruise itinerary with a land based stay in a mandarin oriental or ritz carlton using the same rating system. If you are torn between a week on a luxury cruise ship and a stay at the Carlton Reserve in Boca Raton, the FTG global rating and narrative reviews help you weigh service, privacy and value on equal terms. For more nuanced planning, pair the guide with curated advice on how to elevate your journey with luxury hotel packages online, then cross check which packages are offered by current FTG star awards properties.
One final layer to consider is sustainability and long term quality, especially as more luxury hotels compete for a place in the Forbes Travel list. When you see a hotel or resort climbing the rating ladder, ask how it treats its buildings, its staff and its surroundings, and whether its system luxury approach aligns with your values. Thoughtful analyses such as this piece on why the greenest luxury hotel is often the one you do not demolish can sit alongside the Forbes Travel Guide 2026 star awards as a second guide, helping you choose not just the best rated properties, but the ones that will still feel like true luxury destinations a decade from now.