Press release

Which? reveals the world’s cheapest five-star hotels - with prices from as little as £22 a night

From a luxurious European hotel with a spa, bakery and bellboy for £87, to roof top terrace and private beach access in South East Asia for only £22 - Which? Travel experts have found some of the cheapest five-star hotels around the world
7 min read
Press Team

The consumer champion sifted through listings for hotels that were advertised as five stars on Hotels.com to find the most affordable luxury accommodation across the world. Researchers excluded any hotels with a lower customer rating than eight out of 10, or properties in especially hard to reach locations. 

The cheapest hotel out of the 76 countries Which? looked at was the Emerald Bay Hotel & Spa in Nha Trang, Vietnam. For the bargain price of £22 a night, guests can enjoy sea views on a roof top terrace as well as access to a private beach. One guest called the hotel a “hidden gem”. 

Angkor Miracle Resort and Spa in Cambodia was the second cheapest five-star hotel Which? found - at just £49 a night. The enormous rooms feature traditional Cambodian decor, with dark wood floors and carved furniture. The outside of the hotel also boasts an infinity pool surrounded by cushioned loungers and tropical greenery. One visitor said it was an “incredible resort”.

One of the most impressive European hotels on Which?’s list was the Grand Hotel Continental Bucharest, Romania. At £87 a night, this centrally-located hotel has a turn-down service and a concierge to book tickets and recommend restaurants. There’s a hot tub, sauna and gym, plus a fine-dining restaurant – including silverware, candelabras, baroque furniture and waistcoated waiters. One guest said the hotel offered a “grand experience at an affordable price”.

For a mountain getaway, Which? found the Suites Plaza Hotel & Wellness Andorra offers rates starting at just £107 per night. Located near Andorra la Vella's historic center, it's just 15 minutes from the Vallnord ski slopes. The hotel features a wellness center with a sauna, indoor pool, gym, and a family-friendly spa. Guests can enjoy three restaurants serving international and regional dishes, plus themed rooms for children. One guest described breakfast as ‘outstanding’.

The list also includes Hotel Riu Plaza Guadalajara, Mexico located in the heart of Guadalajara, in the most exclusive area of the city. For £83 a night, the hotel boasts a rooftop bar with breathtaking panoramic views of the city as well as a personal health and wellness center. One guest said: “This is by far the best hotel in the city. The experience was outstanding, with attentive staff providing excellent service.”

For somewhere closer to home, the cheapest five-star hotels Which? found in the UK were The Roseate in Berkshire (£135), The Grand Central Hotel, Belfast (£189), The Marcliffe in Aberdeen (£205) and voco St David’s, Cardiff (£301). 

The Marcliffe is the first UK hotel in several years the undercover inspectors at Which? felt deserved the highest rating they could give. The hotel offers understated luxury with tartan carpets, high tea in the drawing room and impeccable service. One visitor said the Marcliffe was “The best hotel in Aberdeen” with “amazing service and great surroundings”.

For a short-haul experience with sun and culture, Which? found the Riad Jona, Marrakech, Morocco, available for £79 a night. This hotel boasts a heated plunge pool and hot tub on the rooftop, as well as sun loungers on which to unwind from the chaos of the Medina and its bustling markets round the corner. The luxury rooms are dressed in soothing whites and rich fabrics set around a traditional storied courtyard with a small fountain filled with rose petals. One guest described the hotel as “an oasis of calm in a busy city.”

Which? recommends that anyone looking to book a five-star hotel, does some research to establish whether the hotel looks like it matches their expectations. There is no single definition of a five-star hotel - official classifications are inconsistent and the hotel booking site where Which? found its data allows properties to upload their official star rating, but also carries out spot checks for accuracy. 

The consumer champion excluded anywhere with a lower Hotels.com customer rating than eight out of 10 or properties in especially hard to reach locations. Even after all these checks, some properties had to be cut. Although some properties appeared as beautiful boutique hotels they had no facilities, restaurants or a pool or spa. For this reason, Which? removed any lodgings that didn’t seem luxurious enough, as well as hotels that only offered all-inclusive stays.

Rory Boland, Editor of Which? Travel said:

“A five-star hotel may seem too expensive for the average holidaymaker, but we have found impressive levels of luxury for as little as £22 per night. 

“If you can afford the flight, South East Asia has the cheapest five-star hotels, but even if you don’t want to travel so far, there are plenty of affordable options closer to home.

“There is no single definition of a five-star hotel, so if you don't want to be disappointed it's worth doing some research and checking reviews before committing. The good news is that a five-star stay could be cheaper than you think so don’t discount it from your options.”

ENDS

Notes to Eds

The findings are the cheapest properties advertised as five stars on Hotels.com on either 2 August or 18 January (whichever is closest to peak season for individual countries) for two travellers in one room. Hotels.com was the cheapest hotel booking site from our latest survey, Jan 2024.

There is no single definition of a five-star hotel; official classifications are inconsistent and the hotel booking site where we found our data allows properties to upload their official star rating, but carries out spot checks for accuracy.

Images available on request

Full list of hotels

(Cheapest 5* hotel price found on Hotels.com for 2 Aug, 2 travellers 1 room OR 18 Jan)

  • Emerald Bay Hotel & Spa, Nha Trang, Vietnam (£22)
  • Angkor Miracle Resort & Spa, Siem Reap, Cambodia (£49)
  • Mandarina Colombo, Colombo, Sri Lanka (£52)
  • Dusit Princess Srinakarin, Bangkok, Thailand (£52)
  • Ra Suites Simatupang, Jakarta, Indonesia (£53)
  • Delta Hotels by Marriott Istanbul West, Istanbul, Turkey (£54)
  • Riviera Rayhaan by Rotana Doha, Doha, Qatar (£60)
  • Cullinan HPlus Premium, Brasilia, Brazil, (£64)
  • Hilton Alexandria Green Plaza, Port Alexandria, Egypt (£72)
  • New Coast Hotel Manila, Manila Central, Philippines (£74)
  • La Kasbah, Kairouan, Tunisia (£77)
  • AC Hotel Palacio, Arroyo de la Encomienda, Spain (£78)
  • Radisson Blu Kaushambi Delhi NCR, Delhi, India (£78)
  • Albergo Diffuso Borgo Montemaggiore, Colli al Metauro, Italy (£79)
  • Riad Jona, Marrakesh, Morocco (£79)
  • Capital on the Park, Johannesburg, South Africa (£80)
  • Crowne Plaza Porto, Porto, Portugal (£80)
  • Muong Thanh Luxury Vientiane, Vientiane, Laos (£81)
  • Mövenpick Hotel Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand (£81)
  • Hotel Riu Plaza Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Mexico (£83)
  • Ramada Kathmandu Dhumbarahi, Kathmandu, Nepal (£85)
  • Hotel Kościuszko, Krakow, Poland (£87)
  • Grand Hotel Continental Bucuresti, Bucharest, Romania (£87)
  • Sheraton Oman Hotel, Muscat, Oman (£88)
  • Petra Moon Luxury Hotel, Petra, Jordan (£90)
  • Sofia Balkan Palace, Sofia, Bulgaria (£90)
  • Pullman Riga Old Town, Riga, Latvia (£92)
  • Melia Lima, Lima, Peru (£95)
  • Avani Deira Dubai Hotel, Dubai, United Arab Emirates (£98)
  • DoubleTree by Hilton Skopje, Skopje, North Macedonia (£105)
  • Suites Plaza Hotel & Wellness, Andorra la Vella, Andorra (£107)
  • Hotel Ziya, Podgorica, Montenegro (£108)
  • Pullman Santiago Vitacura, Santiago, Chile (£113)
  • Radisson Collection Astorija Hotel, Vilnius, Lithuania (£115)
  • InterContinental Dhaka, an IHG Hotel, Dhaka, Bangladesh (£115)
  • Sheraton Carlton Hotel, Nuremberg, Germany (£119)
  • Swissôtel Tbilisi, Tbilisi, Georgia (£119)
  • The William Inglis, Sydney, Australia (£123)
  • Hilton Rotterdam, Rotterdam, Netherlands (£124)
  • Green Suites Boutique Hotel, Athens, Greece (£126)
  • The Villa Boutique & Spa, Naxxar, Malta (£128)
  • Marrol's Boutique Hotel, Bratislava, Slovakia (£132)
  • Swissotel Tallinn, Tallinn, Estonia (£133)
  • Roseate Reading, United Kingdom (£135)
  • Rogner Hotel, Tirana, Albania (£136)
  • Sofitel Lyon Bellecour, Lyon, France (£136)
  • Buenos Aires Marriott, Buenos Aires, Argentina (£150)
  • The Ciao Stelio Deluxe Hotel, Larnaca, Cyprus (£154)
  • Hilton Vienna Park, Vienna, Austria (£156)
  • The Royal Garden, Kowloon, HK Island, Hong Kong (£156)
  • Art'otel, Zagreb, Croatia (£159)
  • InterContinental Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia (£163)
  • Radisson Blu Leogrand Hotel, Chisinau, Moldova (£164)
  • Lily Country Club, Ullensaker, Oslo, Norway (£164)
  • Le Louise Hotel Brussels - MGallery, Brussels, Belgium (£167)
  • Nobis Hotel Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden (£171)
  • Capri By Fraser China Square, Financial District, Singapore (£174)
  • Sofitel Luxembourg Europe, Luxembourg (£181)
  • Grand Central Hotel Belfast, Northern Ireland (£189)
  • Sentinel Hotel, Portland, United States (£189)
  • Hotel Haven, Helsinki, Finland (£202)
  • Marcliffe Hotel and Spa, Aberdeen, Scotland (£205)
  • Sunborn Gibraltar Yacht Hotel Resort, Gibraltar (£209)
  • Boutique Hotel Royal, Aarhus, Denmark (£214)
  • JW Marriott Hotel Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (£222)
  • Swissotel Nankai Osaka, Osaka, Japan (£226)
  • Heritage Le Telfair Golf & Wellness Resort, Bel Ombre, Mauritius (£231)
  • Beau Rivage Hotel, Neuchatel, Switzerland (£244)
  • Hilton Cabo Verde Sal, Sal, Cape Verde (£247)
  • Lyrath Estate Hotel Spa & Convention Centre, Kilkenny, Ireland (ROI) (£250)
  • Grand Jersey Hotel & Spa, St Helier, Jersey (£255)
  • Savoy Seychelles Resort & Spa, Seychelles (£258)
  • voco St David's Cardiff, Cardiff, Wales (£301)
  • Furaveri Maldives, Maldives (£341)
  • Hotel Birks, Montreal, Canada (£366)
  • The Reykjavik EDITION, Reykjavik, Iceland (£647)
  • Makanda by the Sea, Quepos, Costa Rica (£593)
  • Saint Peter's Bay, Speightstown, Barbados (£854)

About Which?

Which? is the UK’s consumer champion, here to make life simpler, fairer and safer for everyone. Our research gets to the heart of consumer issues, our advice is impartial, and our rigorous product tests lead to expert recommendations. We’re the independent consumer voice that influences politicians and lawmakers, investigates, holds businesses to account and makes change happen. As an organisation we’re not for profit and all for making consumers more powerful.

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