Hotel Inspiration
The World’s 50 Best Hotels 2026: The European Ones
Photo: Alexander Baranov from Montpellier, France / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
- Category
- Hotel Inspiration
- Reading time
- 3 min read
- Published
- October 13, 2026
The World’s 50 Best Hotels 2026 was revealed in Paris on 15 September 2026. Twenty of the hotels in its top 50 are in Europe. This guide takes eight of the main ones in rank order, says what each is known for according to the list’s own pages, then names the other twelve and the fifteen more European hotels in ranks 51 to 100. We are not affiliated with The World’s 50 Best Hotels; this is a summary of its published list.
No. 5, Passalacqua, Lake Como
A boutique hotel in an 18th-century villa in Moltrasio, on Lake Como, with 24 rooms across three buildings and about seven acres of terraced gardens. The list describes Baroque-style interiors with original frescoes, Murano chandeliers and gilded mirrors, and names it the Best Hotel in Europe 2026.
No. 12, Four Seasons Firenze, Florence
A restored 15th-century Medici palace with what the list calls Florence’s largest private garden. It has 121 rooms across the Palazzo della Gherardesca and the former convent of the Palazzo del Nero, a small chapel with original 15th-century frescoes and Il Palagio, a Michelin-starred restaurant.
No. 13, Claridge’s, London
Open since 1856 and described as sumptuous English eccentricity in gleaming Art Deco surrounds. A seven-year excavation, from 2015 to 2022, added a Japanese-inspired spa and a 25-metre pool. It has 269 rooms.
No. 14, Hôtel de Crillon, Paris
A palace hotel on the Place de la Concorde, a hotel since 1909, relaunched in 2017 after a four-year renovation. It has 124 rooms and suites, Les Grands Appartements designed by Karl Lagerfeld, and a personal butler service around the clock.
No. 19, Le Bristol, Paris
Opened in 1925 on the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré. It has 190 rooms and suites, Epicure with three Michelin stars overlooking a flower-filled courtyard, and a rooftop pool.
No. 20, Cheval Blanc Paris
In La Samaritaine beside the Pont Neuf, with interiors by Peter Marino. The list counts 72 rooms, 46 of them suites, many overlooking the Seine, a Dior Spa and Plénitude, a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
No. 28, Raffles London at The OWO, London
In the Grade II-listed former Old War Office on Whitehall, linked to Winston Churchill. It has 120 suites named for the building’s past occupants, nine restaurants, and a Spy Bar in former MI5 and MI6 interrogation rooms.
No. 40, Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo, Monaco
On Casino Square since 1864, with Le Louis XV by Alain Ducasse and a wine cellar of about 6,000 varieties. It appeared in two James Bond films.
The other twelve in the top 50
No. 18 Casa Maria Luigia, Modena, which received the Highest New Entry Award 2026. No. 27 Four Seasons Astir Palace Hotel, Athens. No. 32 Bulgari Hotel Roma. No. 36 Badrutt’s Palace, St. Moritz. No. 38 Hôtel du Couvent, Nice. No. 39 Portrait Milano. No. 41 Hôtel Plaza Athénée, Paris. No. 42 Hotel Sacher Wien. No. 43 Estelle Manor, Witney. No. 44 Hôtel du Cap-Eden-Roc, Antibes. No. 49 The Connaught, London. No. 50 San Domenico Palace, Taormina.
The Peninsula Istanbul, at No. 31, is in a city that spans two continents, so we have not counted it.
Ranks 51 to 100
Fifteen more European hotels appear: La Réserve Paris (51), Rosewood London (56), Il San Pietro di Positano (58), Splendido, Portofino (60), Castiglion del Bosco (62), Orient Express La Minerva, Rome (66), Forestis Dolomites (68), Ritz Paris (72), Carlton Cannes (80), Borgo Santandrea (84), Borgo Egnazia (88), Villa Treville (91), The Maybourne Riviera (93), Reschio (95) and Gleneagles (100).
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Frequently asked questions
How many European hotels are in the top 50? Twenty, not counting The Peninsula Istanbul.
Which European hotel ranks highest? Passalacqua, on Lake Como, at No. 5, named the Best Hotel in Europe 2026.
Where was the list revealed? In Paris, on 15 September 2026.
Photo credits
- Phyrexian / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Sailko / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0
- Chris Sampson / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
- Elliott Brown from Birmingham, United Kingdom / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
- Joeshlabotnik / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
- Arthur Weidmann / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Colin Smith / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Arnaud 25 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Kecko from Switzerland (Rheintal SG) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
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Hôtel de Crillon
An 18th-century palace on Place de la Concorde, run by Rosewood Hotels — its apartment-style signature suites reimagined by Karl Lagerfeld himself. Marie-Antoinette once took piano lessons in this building, and a suite is named for her. From June 2026, Executive Chef Alan Taudon oversees all dining, headlined by chef Paul Pairet's French grill, Nonos & Comestibles.
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Cheval Blanc Paris
LVMH's flagship hotel in Paris, set within the restored Art Deco Samaritaine building on the Seine and designed by architect Peter Marino, with just 72 rooms and suites. Plénitude, led by chef Arnaud Donckele, earned three Michelin stars within seven months of opening; Le Tout-Paris, on the 7th floor, is also Michelin-starred. The 30-metre infinity pool at Dior Spa Cheval Blanc is the longest of any Paris hotel.
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Opened in 1913 at 25 Avenue Montaigne, its red awnings among the most recognisable in Paris — at the centre of the haute couture district, with the Eiffel Tower at one end of the avenue and the Champs-Élysées at the other. Part of Dorchester Collection, 208 rooms and suites, home to the one-Michelin-starred La Grande Table du Plaza Athénée under chef Jocelyn Herland.
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