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Forbes Travel Guide Stories

How To Earn A Forbes Travel Guide Rating By Forbes Travel Guide Editors

March 2, 2020

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The chairman of Forbes Travel Guide is digital media pioneer Jeff Arnold, who is the visionary behind Forbes Travel Guide and the co-founder, chairman and CEO of Sharecare, a digital health company he founded with Dr. Mehmet Oz that helps people manage all their health in one place.

In 2005, Arnold purchased the rights to Mobil Travel Guide, a well-known series of regional guidebooks that Mobil Oil had published since 1958. The guides provided independent ratings of hotels, motels and restaurants in North America. Arnold had the vision to transform the collection into a digital guide and globalize the Star Rating system, with a focus on luxury hospitality. By 2009, he evolved Mobil Travel Guide to Forbes Travel Guide, in partnership with Forbes Media LLC.

Prior to founding Sharecare and Forbes Travel Guide, Arnold was chairman and CEO of HowStuffWorks.com, an award-winning online resource used by millions of people each month, which he sold to Discovery Communications, where he served as chief digital strategy officer, as well as chief architect of The Curiosity Project until December 2011.

In 1998, he founded and served as CEO of WebMD, the first healthcare company to harness the power of the Internet to create a unified destination for consumers, healthcare institutions and physicians to find trustworthy medical information. Prior to WebMD, Jeff founded Quality Diagnostic Services (QDS), a cardiac arrhythmia monitoring company, one of the first companies to use the concept of telemedicine over 25 years ago.

Arnold has been honored for his innovative contributions to media, technology and healthcare, including the 2016 Blumenthal Award by Johns Hopkins University which recognized his exceptional ability to bridge business and technology. Additionally, he was inducted into the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International, as an Honorary Member for his superior achievements and contributions to the advancement of nursing and health care on both a national and global level. Arnold also has been honored by the World Economic Forum; inducted into the Technology Hall of Fame of Georgia; named Entrepreneur of the Year, Southeast Region by Ernst & Young; and received the prestigious Phoenix Award, which recognizes companies and individuals who embody strength, tenacity and leadership in Georgia’s healthcare information technology industry.

A well-respected, widely traveled, and assured leader in luxury hospitality, Hermann Elger brings a wealth of expertise and 30 years of global experience to his role as the chief executive officer of Forbes Travel Guide.

Serving most recently as executive vice president of travel, entertainment, and health security at digital health leader Sharecare, he led the successful launch of Sharecare’s health security verification program in partnership with Forbes Travel Guide, which now covers thousands of properties globally.

Prior to Sharecare, Elger was the managing director of Baccarat Hotel New York and chief operating officer of Baccarat Hotels and Resorts, leading the development of new properties and overseeing day-to-day operations and quality guest experiences for the flagship hotel. As general manager, he led Baccarat Hotel New York to its first Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star Award in 2018.

Elger has also served as general manager at other renowned Five-Star hotels across North America, including The St. Regis New York, Montage Beverly Hills (now The Maybourne Beverly Hills), and The Ritz-Carlton, Cancun. In nearly 18 years with The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, he supported the development of new hotels as an opening team leader for The Ritz-Carlton Aspen Highlands, Philadelphia, Dubai, and Kuala Lumpur.

Born and raised in Mexico City, Elger followed his father into the hotel industry and earned a bachelor’s degree in hospitality management from the University of Denver. From his humble beginnings as a doorman for The Brown Hotel in Denver, Colorado, this second-generation hotelier has established himself as an accomplished and innovative hospitality leader. His talents are recognized with honors including “Best GM in US and Canada” in the Travvy Awards and “Most Innovative GM” by American Express Fine Hotels and Resorts, both awarded in 2016. Elger also was named one of the “40 Most Influential Leaders in Tourism in Mexico” by Lideres magazine.

Executive Leadership

As Chief Financial Officer, Tony Hounshell brings 25 years of executive leadership experience to work in guiding Forbes Travel Guide's overall financial strategy. His department oversees a breadth of functions, including accounting, finance, treasury and tax; financial planning, analysis and corporate development; human resources; and investor relations.

Hounshell began his career in public accounting at a Big Four firm, later moving into advisory services at that firm and other global consultancies. His advisory experience spans forensic, transaction, risk management and performance improvement services. He regularly assisted boards of directors, audit committees, management and their legal counsel to address significant and complex matters. Hounshell has worked in more than 25 countries across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. He is a Certified Public Accountant and an active member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

As Director of Ratings, Kaitlyn Jahelka oversees the compilation of Ratings data that determines the annual list of Star Award winners and manages global expansion planning, determining the best new properties and destinations to be Star Rated. Working alongside the Vice President, Ratings, Jahelka is responsible for providing recommendations and input to the President of Ratings. Jahelka also plays an integral role in the annual standards revisions process and provides expertise and consultation on standards applications.

Beginning at Forbes Travel Guide in 2012, Jahelka held various roles in Evaluation Operations and Reporting, including as a full-time evaluator, before joining the Ratings team in 2018. She has stayed in more than 200 luxury hotels across 40 countries and six continents, developing a deep understanding of trends in the global hospitality industry and today’s luxury guest.

Global Ambassadors

Before joining Forbes Travel Guide, Boyen served as CEO of Small Luxury Hotels of the World, overseeing a portfolio of more than 520 exceptional independent hotels in 80 countries.

Prior to that post, the Belgium native spent 18 years with Orient-Express, the famed precursor to the Belmond brand. Joining the hospitality company as general manager of Bora Bora Lagoon Resort in Tahiti, he rose to become executive vice president and chief operating officer of Orient-Express. In between, various roles included Group Vice President Operations; Regional Vice President, Africa, Australia & Latin America; and Managing Director, Hotels & Trains.

Boyen began his hospitality career as a commis chef and stayed in the food and beverage side of the business for 10 years, working in Michelin-starred restaurants in Belgium, France and England. He even did a stint under French master chef Joël Robuchon.

For more than 20 years, Hervé Houdré has been one of the foremost advocates of sustainable hospitality, a term that he coined in the early 2000s. Houdré established the model for sustainable luxury during his time managing distinguished properties such as Hôtel Plaza Athénée, New York; Hôtel de Crillon and Hôtel Plaza Athénée in Paris; Willard InterContinental in Washington, D.C.; and during his tenure as the chief operating officer for Kempinski Hotels.

Houdré’s efforts and passion to promote sustainability in his industry have been highlighted across a wide spectrum of media in the U.S. and abroad. He was recognized as the 2006 Independent Hotelier of the World by HOTELS magazine readers, and his leadership earned him the 2009 Condé Nast Traveler World Saver Award, the D.C. Downtown Citizen honor and the D.C. Chamber of Commerce 2009 award.

Matthieu Yamoum serves as Forbes Travel Guide's Global Ambassador of Wine, sharing his deeply informed perspective in the wine and hospitality industries.

Raised among the vines in France’s Champagne region, Yamoum applied his innate passion for champagne to his career. As the wine director of Baccarat Hotel New York, he curated one of the world's most extensive champagne menus.

Yamoum released his own champagne with Piper-Heidsieck in 2020 and launched an innovative concept wine store, Maison MURA, in Miami in 2022 to rave reviews.

He is a member of the Jurade of Saint-Émilion, the Confraria do Vinho do Porto and the Sommelier Society of America, and is certified by the Wine & Spirit Education Trust.

Partner Services & Industry Outreach

An industry veteran with over 30 years of experience in the travel and hospitality industry, Richard Lebowitz is building awareness of Star Rated hotels across the global luxury travel advisor community.

Lebowitz spent nearly 25 years with Hyatt Hotels & Resorts in various leadership positions, including his last role as regional vice-president of luxury, lifestyle and leisure of North America for the global sales office. He later served as senior vice president, hotel and resort program at Signature Travel Network, a member-owned travel agency cooperative serving more than 7,000 travel advisors and 1,000 hotel and resort global partners. Most recently, Lebowitz was vice president of strategic partnerships at Sharecare and rolled out the VERIFIED™ health security program to the hotel and travel industry.

During his 15-plus-year career in luxury hospitality, Francisco Almeida served as the communications and hospitality manager at Aveleda Winery, global brand and sales manager at Monnet Cognac, and brand home manager at Bacardi. He also directed Forbes Travel Guide’s Center for Excellence in Cognac, France. In his latest role, Almeida oversees markets in Southern Europe, including France, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece. 

Working as a guest relations hostess and tour guide at Disneyland during college sparked a lifelong interest in hospitality for Veden. She eventually found a home with Marriott International, leading in various disciplines and representing all 30 brands in the company’s portfolio.

As a national recruiter and global director of Marriott’s University Relations and Property Management Staffing team, she partnered with academic institutions across the country and led a group that developed 8,000 college graduates and interns to work across Marriott brands. Veden helped design and implement the award-winning Global Voyager Leadership Development Program, to prepare the next generation of Marriott leaders.

Most recently, Veden was the director of Learning & Engagement at The Broadmoor, where she led training initiatives for the longest-running Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star hotel.

Learning & Development

William Avitia’s passion for the hospitality industry led him into human resources and training early in his career. He has worked for Starwood Hotels & Resorts properties across the United States. As Director of Human Resources at The St. Regis Aspen Resort, Avitia developed an intensive seasonal staffing and training strategy thoughtfully aligned with brand and luxury standards. Most recently, Avitia worked with IHG Hotels & Resorts developing branded and operational service solutions that scaled across 16 brands globally.

Avitia is a certified Property Service Culture Trainer, and has certified other trainers as Service Culture Champions as well as led leadership simulations in region. He holds a degree from Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration, where he focused on special operations. Avitia plays an active alumnus role for the National Society of Minorities in Hospitality. He trains in both English and Spanish.

Josh Santos is a dynamic service culture evolution facilitator with over 25 years of hospitality experience and a strong emphasis on hotel operations and training. Having served extensively in leadership roles across a broad spectrum of brands and property types, he has developed a deep-rooted understanding of what it means to own the guest relationship and keen insights on how to effectively approach individual hotel training needs.

His career began at Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth, and then he joined Starwood Hotels, leading within rooms and food and beverage divisions and overseeing hotel department openings. While there, Santos eventually became a service culture trainer. Later, he took positions like director of rooms for The Beverly Hilton and regional director of training for Loews Hotels.

Since joining Forbes Travel Guide in 2017, Santos has trained in more than 20 countries across five continents. As Director of Learning and Development, he oversees the integration of new trainers and implements programs for the continued advancement of the Learning and Development team.

He is fluent in English and French.

With a history of leading human resources and training operations for luxury brands across the Americas, Vivian Liberman knows what it takes to build exceptional teams that deliver unparalleled service in the hospitality industry.

Liberman's passion for coaching toward extraordinary service began in her role as a training manager for Sofitel Legend Santa Clara Cartagena during the brand's transition, implementing butler service and luxury sales training that emphasized the story of the historic property. Liberman continued to lend her expertise, helping train newly hired staff teams in standards, customer service and behavioral-based interviewing.

She later served as a corporate training specialist at Sofitel and Accor Hotels and administered corporate and management development training. While there, Liberman focused on developing a leadership cultivation program that facilitated the transition of line-level talent to supervisory and middle-management roles. She has previously served at Forbes Travel Guide as an inspector, lending her immense insight into the company’s quality standards.

Luxury hospitality expert Clarita Parra has a successful history of building and managing engaged, high-performing teams and helping them implement the Forbes Travel Guide standards. In addition, she spent a decade in leadership positions at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company's room division, where she gained critical executive operational experience.

Parra designed the training and development curriculum plans that achieved The Ritz-Carlton America's highest honors for excellence in productivity, guest engagement, cleanliness and profitability. Her leadership at The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay helped the property earn the Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star award in 2020.

Most recently, Parra served as the director of operations at The Ritz-Carlton Bacara, Santa Barbara. She has also lent her guidance as a trainer for various openings within the Marriott International umbrella, such as The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain; The Barcelona EDITION; and The West Hollywood EDITION. Parra is fluent in English and Spanish

With over a decade of luxury hotel experience, and two years as an Executive Trainer at Forbes Travel Guide, Summer Xiang has demonstrated her impressive ability to inspire properties to create exceptional experiences for guests and achieve their goals.

Driven by her dedication to delivering exceptional guest service, she became the Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong's youngest management team member after only one year of management training. She attributes her strong product knowledge, frontline service and management skills to the rotation experiences at this flagship property.

Xiang transferred to Four Seasons Hotel Shanghai and transitioned into the learning and development field ––– leading successful corporate and tailor-made, local-focused training programs and employee recognition activities. During her tenure as the quality assurance manager, Xiang focused on operational training while overseeing the guest experience team, significantly improving the hotel's key guest experience metrics. She eventually moved back into food and beverage operations and held the role of food and beverage manager in charge of six outlets. Xiang held the same role at Fairmont Chengdu before joining Forbes Travel Guide.

Glenda Barnatan is a seasoned hospitality professional with substantial experience developing and leading teams at luxury hotels and resorts. Her background covers all aspects of food and beverage, as well as rooms division departments including housekeeping and guest services.

Barnatan began her career at The Ritz-Carlton, Naples working in conference services and banquets, and later became food and beverage supervisor at The Ritz-Carlton, Fort Lauderdale. For more than a decade following, she led in food and beverage and other management leadership roles at glamorous properties including 1 Hotel South Beach, Acqualina Resort & Residences on the Beach, Baccarat New York, and The Hermitage Hotel. She is a passionate coach; stays upbeat, positive, and shares a warm smile. Barnatan is trilingual in English, Spanish, and Hebrew.

Joseph Barron joins Forbes Travel Guide with more than 10 years of experience in management roles across MGM Resorts International, which instilled a passion for creating memorable guest experiences through authentic interactions across all luxury hotel sectors.

Barron began his career at the Bellagio Las Vegas, where he held various leadership roles within hotel operations and rapidly expanded his knowledge of hospitality management. As hotel operations manager for Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star Skylofts at MGM Grand, Barron managed all hotel operations, including concierge, butler, housekeeping and bell and door services, ensuring each department maintained its stellar standing.

As senior hotel operations manager, Barron oversaw all MGM Grand’s luxury areas, including Skylofts, The Mansion private residences, the Estate Dining Room and the hotel’s VIP Lounge.

Throughout all of his personal endeavors, he has also encouraged and developed the professional growth of his many team members, from entry-level staffers to resort managers and directors.

At Bellagio Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Bernal led the high-paced front desk team to create memorable moments through individual guest interactions.

He went on to serve as hotel operations manager and guest relations manager for The NoMad Hotel in Las Vegas. In these roles, Bernal oversaw departments such as front desk, concierge, guest services, bellmen and door attendants, ensuring everyone worked cohesively to foster brand awareness and guest loyalty.

Then Bernal joined ARIA Sky Suites, ARIA Resort & Casino and Vdara Hotel & Spa as the luxury operations learning partner. He trained, developed and grew an 8,000-member team, ensuring every employee received proper training that maintained Forbes Travel Guide standards, excellence in service delivery and guest satisfaction.

Bernal's approachability enables him to forge meaningful connections with team members, allowing him to deliver impactful coaching and support that empower staff to create lasting impressions.

Most recently, Blagg was a front office manager at The US Grant, A Luxury Collection Hotel, where she spearheaded Marriott’s Breakthrough Leadership Training program and boosted company morale. She played an integral role in rebuilding her team, fostering growth for those new to the world of luxury. Additionally, Blagg was elected as the field trainer for Marriott’s Brand and Service Excellence program, which featured a select group that focused on elevating guest service excellence throughout Marriott’s luxury portfolio. She received recognition for her efforts as a nominee for Marriott’s Awards of Excellence in 2022.

Earlier in her nearly decade-long career, Blagg took on housekeeping and front office operations management roles at JW Marriott Chicago. Following the pandemic, her knowledge of both departments led to her success in a united rooms operation team as Chicago reopened to guests with limited resources.

Blagg’s upbringing in Tokyo has instilled in her a sense of appreciation for diverse cultures, and she is fluent in English and Japanese.

Samira Charbonnier has built long-standing relationships in the hospitality industry by consistently demonstrating strong influence skills and success in coaching multi-cultural teams. She spent a decade offering expertise in advisory, operations and international training efforts while serving as director of learning and development for global hospitality consulting firm Minds in Motion SA.

Charbonnier worked with international consulting and real estate investment banking firms PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and Eastdil Secured as an adviser focused on hotel development, marketing and sales. Prior to that, she spent four years as food and beverage manager at Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts in the United States and Canada. Charbonnier has a deeply-rooted passion for coaching and is a certified Quality Coach for the Swiss Tourism Federation, a qualification based on Six Sigma principles. She also has a Masters in Management of Hospitality from The Nolan School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University.

Nicholas Chow brings 15 years of international experience in luxury hotels, leading culturally diverse teams in achieving service excellence with a guest-centric approach.

Chow began his career at JW Marriott Hotel Hong Kong and followed that with 12 years at The Peninsula Hotels group in various room division leadership roles spanning three metropolitan cities: Hong Kong, New York and Tokyo.

At Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star Peninsula Tokyo, Chow helped teams create elevated guest experiences in his roles as guest experience manager and later assistant head of front office.   His meticulous, passionate personality led to his appointment as a first-generation trainer of Peninsula Service Principles, where he assisted in implementing the brand's guest engagement guidelines at the Tokyo property.

In February 2023, Chow was hand-selected as an opening task force member at The Peninsula Istanbul, where he successfully established a solid foundation for personalizing guest journeys.

Chow's global experience has allowed him to develop a genuine understanding of diversity. In addition to his native Cantonese, Chow is fluent in English, Mandarin and Japanese.

Collins held leadership positions with Relais & Châteaux, where she developed the skillset necessary to work with boutique properties, such as Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star The Point in New York's Adirondacks.

She then joined world-renowned Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, leading the guest experience team at The Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotel in New York City, where she implemented training initiatives that helped maintain its Four-Star rating. Collins also served as task force director of guest experience for the Five-Star Las Ventanas al Paraíso, A Rosewood Resort in Los Cabos.

Collins' meticulous attention to detail and dedication to excellence shine through her training. Her personalized coaching style and ability to connect with people foster an inspirational and positive environment.

In 12 years, Michael Conte successfully led three Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star spas in California. In addition to his work with these incredible resorts, he served on the FTG Standards Advisory Committee in 2018 and 2019. Conte has always had a passion for training and creating exceptional guest experiences.

When it opened in 2008, The Spa at Pelican Hill in Newport Beach garnered a Five-Star rating, with Conte serving as an integral part of the team. At Montage Laguna Beach, he served as executive director of spa for more than four years and was honored to be a part of the leadership team when the resort was awarded the coveted triple Five-Star rating for hotel, restaurant and spa. As executive director of spa and wellness for Meadowood Napa Valley, Conte opened the new all-suite spa, quickly receiving a Five-Star honor. He was instrumental in revamping and running the resort employee onboarding program, which led to the resort achieving a triple Five-Star award.

Conte combines this experience with creativity in his work as an Executive Trainer for Forbes Travel Guide.

Marco Coppola brings a decade of experience leading teams to create memorable guest experiences at Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star Rated properties.

Coppola’s hospitality career began in Rome at the Hotel Eden’s front desk before his promotion to Hotel Principe di Savoia, Milan’s Guest Relations Manager. In this role, he successfully led the team to implement strategies to enhance guest engagement and satisfaction.

Later, Coppola was promoted to Operations Manager at the Beverly Hills Hotel in California, followed by a promotion to the role of Creative Planning Manager. Coppola led the team dedicated to personalizing guest experiences, creating the foundation of exceptional service property wide.

Coppola’s passion for creating a memorable guest experience led him to join Forbes Travel Guide as an evaluator, lending him invaluable knowledge of the application of the Forbes Travel Guest standards in 18 different countries. As an evaluator, Coppola led post-evaluation service-focused debriefs with hotel leaders, providing detailed feedback on the property’s strengths and areas for growth.

Coppola excels at delivering unforgettable service at luxury hotels and creating an engaging learning atmosphere.

Gokani spent six years in management positions with Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, successfully implementing regulatory compliance across her departments, conducting weekly standards testing and participating in Forbes Travel Guide training to deliver service of the highest caliber.

She further broadened her industry experience at Chandon, part of LVMH, assisting the team as it rebranded, resulting in elevated offerings and service. She then worked for Forbes Travel Guide Brand Official LATHER, building and maintaining relations with multiple properties and providing luxury wellness in-room amenities to enhance the guest experience.

Gokani has created step-by-step training guides, standard operating procedures and foundational materials for inaugural roles. Her attention to detail, empathetic listening, interactive management style and passion for improving the guest experience help her guide teams to excel in luxury.

McCord Henry has passionately led food and beverage teams for over two decades, endowing him with hands-on experience in all food and beverage areas.

Henry began his hospitality career working for Eureka! Restaurant Group in Seattle. He then moved to Baltimore and held a succession of leadership roles at Sagamore Pendry Baltimore, including pool department head and assistant and food and beverage manager for the Forbes Travel Guide Recommended hotel’s fine dining establishment.

As director of food and beverage outlets for the opening of Four-Star Pendry Manhattan West, he led in-room dining operations and all banquet events. During his tenure, Henry partnered with a third-party restaurant group to implement Forbes Travel Guide’s service standards.

When selected to join Montage International’s task force, Henry assisted in opening Pendry Chicago, Washington DC – The Wharf and Newport Beach. He provided essential training for food and beverage efforts at Montage Big Sky and Five-Star Montage Kapalua Bay. Henry created the steps of service for meal periods for Montage International’s opening properties and trained new hires throughout the company’s portfolio.

Susan Hyde has worked in hospitality for more than two decades. Hyde began her career in food and beverage operations for Caesars Entertainment, where she held leadership positions in bar/lounge, in-room dining, banquets, catering and restaurants.

Later, she became the director of quality assurance at Norwegian Cruise Line. She oversaw the team that developed the company’s brand standards program, Norwegian Platinum Standards, which enabled it to obtain ISO 9001 Certification (a quality classification administered by the International Organization for Standardization).

Hyde also spent four years with the Luxury Quality team at Marriott International, where she led efforts to facilitate process-improvement projects and training to better the guest experience while driving operational results across the Americas.

In addition, Hyde contributed to the textbook, Operations Management in the Hospitality Industry, and is a certified Green and Black Belt in Lean Six Sigma. She holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of Miami and a Bachelor of Science in hospitality from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

When she was a front office manager with Hilton Hotels & Resorts and guest services manager with Loews Hotels & Co., both teams ranked at the top of their respective brands for guest satisfaction and arrival experience. At Loews Kansas City Hotel, Muller pivoted from a rooms division leadership position to teaching brand standards. She led the retraining of the front office team at the brand’s legacy resort in Arizona and opened Loews Coral Gables Hotel as task force director of rooms. Known for her command of brand standards and ability to teach quality service, she represented 26 properties and the customer engagement center on a committee for leaders working on elevating the guest experience and promoting property productivity.

Muller brings her keen eye for detail, coaching management style, passion for service and comprehensive understanding of training to Forbes Travel Guide.

Gregory Ng is a passionate and guest-centered hospitality leader with over a decade of well-rounded operational and managerial experience in renowned luxury hotels globally. Ng's extensive food and beverage expertise includes fine dining, bars, lounges, all-day-dining operations, banqueting and in-room dining.

As part of Peninsula Clubs and Consultancy Services, Ng focused on its clubs and properties portfolio, eventually becoming assistant operations manager at The Repulse Bay Hong Kong. In the United States, Ng directed the food and beverage team at The Peninsula New York and served as The Peninsula Chicago's interim department head as part of a task force.

Ng returned to Asia to lead Sir Elly's restaurant and bar team at The Peninsula Shanghai's fine-dining outlet. Ng later became the food and beverage director of the wellness hospitality group Octave Institute. He championed its food and beverage transformation program and other new initiatives in the group's Shanghai portfolio.

Ng's wealth of knowledge and experience in operations allows him to excel at tailoring training programs to suit a brand's culture.

She held learning and development roles for world-renowned luxury brands and properties, including The St. Regis Mexico City, Rosewood Mayakoba, Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort and One&Only Palmilla, Los Cabos Resort.

In 2018, Orezza joined Montage Los Cabos’ executive team for its opening and subsequently took leadership positions for property openings and task force teams for Pendry Park City, Pendry Manhattan West, Pendry Washington DC – The Wharf and Montage Deer Valley.

Next, Orezza joined Montage’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Strategy group to guide and implement the practices for Montage Laguna Beach and Montage Kapalua Bay. Most recently, as director of learning and sustainability, she led Montage Los Cabos’ sustainability strategy.

Orezza approaches developing, auditing and implementing standards, procedures and learning initiatives with remarkable passion, thoughtfulness and thorough attention to detail.

Ewan Riccio-Laing's talent for creating luxury guest experiences began at the age of thirteen while working in a small Scottish countryside restaurant. Riccio-Laing has excelled in various operational and training roles throughout his two-decade hospitality career.

Riccio-Laing moved into the front office with Marriott International before setting sail with Disney Cruise Line as a guest relations manager. He realized his passion for training and joined Disney's human resources team, training cast and crew across the high seas.

Riccio-Laing became learning and development manager for Genting Casinos, UK, reimagining their company-wide service culture and building a digital leadership and career development platform that supported staff across the company's 42 casinos, including some of the world's most prestigious high-roller clubs.

Returning to the seas as fleet director of service excellence for Celebrity Cruise's global fleet, Riccio-Laing supported shipboard teams in adopting Forbes Travel Guide standards to become the world's first officially star-rated cruise line.

Riccio-Laing uses his passion for hospitality to deliver engaging, memorable training experiences and shares his vast operational knowledge with Forbes Travel Guide partners.

With nearly a decade of experience in leading operational teams at Forbes Travel Guide Star-Rated properties, Judit Sipos brings first-hand knowledge in training employees to deliver personalized service and memorable guest experiences.

Sipos’ previous trainer assignments within Marriott International Luxury Brands (MILUX) — including The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong; JW Marriott Istanbul Bosphorus; and JW Marriott Hotel Riyadh — demonstrate her cultural fluency and understanding of the needs of properties in the pre-opening phase.

She started her career heading up the guest experience team of The Ritz-Carlton, Budapest, where, after various leadership positions, she was promoted to training and quality manager. Next, she transferred to the same position at The Ritz-Carlton, Vienna, where she developed training programs and mentored newly hired quality managers in Europe and the Middle East within the MILUX group.

Sipos attributes her success to her empathy, ability to engage and inspire individuals from diverse backgrounds and abundant professional experience.

She is fluent in English and Hungarian.

Susan Wang brings 15 years of hospitality experience at Marriott International and Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts to her role as an executive trainer. She attributes her success to her passion for creating memorable customer experiences, training and developing staff service standards and driving strategic execution plans to achieve goals.

Wang's career began as a front desk trainee and soon held room division leadership roles in Sydney hotels. At Four Seasons Hotel Sydney, she earned the highest room upsell revenue globally and increased staff engagement by over 30 percent at Pier One Sydney Harbour.

In 2018, Wang held the position of director of loyalty operations in Marriott International's Hong Kong corporate office and launched Marriott Bonvoy's loyalty program across 24 brands and over 800 hotels. As director, she facilitated in-person and virtual training workshops to deliver a shared vision for the loyalty program and encourage member engagement across 16 Asian-Pacific markets – leading the continent to attain No. 1 in new member sign-ups globally while maintaining the highest member appreciation satisfaction score across all continents.

Gayani Wasalathanthri’s formative years in Sri Lanka informed her commitment to upholding her culture’s value of hospitality throughout her nearly two-decades-long career.

Wasalathanthri got her start in guest services at various properties in Sri Lanka, including Galle Face Hotel, the country’s oldest property, and Taj hotel group, executing a rebranding of one of its properties and implementing new business strategies.

Next, Wasalathanthri began developing her passion for leadership as a corporate trainer at Crown & Champa Resorts, guiding her team to deliver luxury hospitality standards. She then joined Marriott’s flagship W resort, W Maldives, providing essential learning and development support aligned with the brand’s distinctive style of luxury hospitality. During her time at Marriott, Wasalathanthri also received certifications that allowed her to conduct service-related training and employee career development across the brand.

Most recently, Wasalathanthri held the position of director of human resources at Bandos Maldives. In this role, she directed business strategy and supported employees at all levels, including performance management and career development.

Service & Quality Development

Before joining Forbes Travel Guide, Silvia Nauta worked in some of the best hotels in the world. Nauta began her career at the iconic Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane and held various management roles in both housekeeping and front office departments. She later took the front office manager position at Acqualina Resort & Spa in Sunny Isles, Florida, where she concentrated on standardizing quality delivery in the division and developing a service program for the residential component of the resort.

Nauta served as guest relations manager on the pre-opening management team at Mandarin Oriental, Las Vegas. Later as learning and development manager there, she focused on the hotel’s vision of obtaining three Forbes Travel Guide Five-Stars, which was achieved in 2012. As director of training at The Breakers Palm Beach, she was integral in establishing the training department and company service quality cycle and restructuring the overall service focus. Nauta’s latest appointment was at The Hermitage Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee, where she held the role of director of human resources and strategic planning. 

Working at The Ritz London and Hotel Plaza Athénée Paris equipped her with the knowledge required to create and implement new learning initiatives informed by the highest level of luxury service.

Most recently, Van Elsalande served as Baccarat Hotel New York’s director of food and beverage. Her oversight and dedication to quality and excellence in guest service contributed to Baccarat Hotel New York obtaining its Five-Star award in 2017, just two years after opening.

In every role, Van Elslande established a culture of best practices by emphasizing service requirements as a means of top performance and has proved herself instrumental in leading hospitality teams in applying Forbes Travel Guide standards.

Gabriela Manjarres’ 19 years of experience leading and developing luxury hospitality teams has only deepened an innate ability to inspire and develop generations of hoteliers.

Manjarres expanded her knowledge and grew her career within roles across the rooms division and operations as guest services manager at The Westin Diplomat & Resort, leader of the front office team at The St. Regis Atlanta and assistant director of rooms at JW Marriott Miami Turnberry Resort & Spa.

Most recently, Manjarres worked as a learning and development manager with Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. This position allowed her to spearhead the development and execution of training in Latin America and the United States, deliver customized training sessions in partnership with property-specific needs and provide training solutions for various brands, including pre-opening and transitions.

She brings this guest-centered and detailed training approach to all properties within the Forbes Travel Guide community.

Operations & Engagement

As Senior Vice President, Evaluation Operations, Theresa Tellock oversees the quality, execution and delivery of evaluations. She supervises Forbes Travel Guide’s international team of evaluators, is responsible for upholding the integrity and accuracy of the evaluation process and manages the complex logistics behind the global evaluation schedule.

With the company since 2011, Tellock held several operational roles related to producing reports reflective of the luxury guest experience. She developed custom standards for clients across a variety of verticals, including airlines, golf courses, private residences, medical practices and luxury retail. Tellock personally executed hundreds of evaluations at hotels, restaurants and spas around the world, making her an authority on global luxury standards and the evaluation process.

As the vice president/executive editor at Forbes Travel Guide, Jennifer Kester oversees the editorial department. Kester covers everything that touches upon luxury travel — food and drink, culture, wellness and, of course, hotels. She has visited hundreds of luxury hotels, and her travels have brought her everywhere from Toronto to Tallinn to Tokyo to Tasmania during her more than two-decades-long career. One of the leading hospitality journalists, Kester has been an editor and writer for Forbes Travel Guide since 2008, serving as executive editor since 2015.

As the Director of Client Success, Amy Zeller is focused on driving client experience and engaging with Forbes Travel Guide clients to address their needs. She also oversees the team and systems FTG uses to communicate with clients.

Zeller is a PMI-certified Project Management Professional (PMP) with an extensive background in partner engagement, sales and marketing, operational systems, and product and project management. She has been with Forbes Travel Guide for more than seven years and has shaped all aspects of supporting clients with the graciousness, expertise and responsiveness for which FTG is known.

Center for Excellence

Before overseeing Forbes Travel Guide’s Center for Excellence at Le Logis, Philippe Abraham spent 10-plus years in the cruise and hospitality industries. Abraham rose through the ranks of Club Med, serving as general manager for properties in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Japan. He then advanced to his position as director of product and development for Club Med China, successfully integrating the brand into the Chinese market and working with the local government to develop tourism in the region.

In Abraham’s following role as the director of the Club Med Cruises Department, he oversaw all operations, ensuring the passenger experience met luxury hospitality standards.

Afterward, Abraham, a passionate enologist, lent his expertise to the wine and spirits industry as a consultant.

Ksenia Mauxion supports guests and groups planning to visit Le Logis and Forbes Travel Guide's Center for Excellence . Prior to FTG, Mauxion served for four years as team leader at Le Logis for Grey Goose (the Center for Excellence’s predecessor), overseeing the property’s operational and commercial sectors. She was previously a trilingual tour guide and then manager of the team at The Royal Chateau of Cognac.  

Bastien Gardrat offers 10 years of experience in the spirit industry, working for brands like the Martell cognac house. The bartender and educator served in client-facing roles—crafting cocktails and leading tastings and hosting events as Bacardi’s Head Bartender—and as a consultant for a variety of spirit companies, designing drink and spirit digital marketing strategies and growing brand awareness. Learn more about the Center for Excellence at Le Logis here.

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Hoteliers had better sleep with one eye open.

The restless restaurant gurus at Michelin have decided to cast their famously critical eyes on the world’s most luxurious hotels, establishing a key rating system for the first time — and just 124 snooze shops around the world managed to snag a slot on the tiremaker’s debut list for the US, released Wednesday.

Out of that already elite group, 11 pampering palaces — sticking to the mix of American destinations where Michelin publishes a restaurant guide — were considered worthy of the coveted “3 Keys” award, with four of the properties found right here in the Big Apple.

Aman , Casa Cipriani , Crosby Street Hotel and the Whitby Hotel were named the best in New York.

The 83-suite Aman brings the elite retreat brand — better known for remote resorts around the world — into the heart of Midtown, where guests are invited to leave the city behind and disappear into the spacious hotel spa, relax on the garden terrace or canoodle in a speakeasy-style, underground club.

And while a 1906 ferry terminal at the foot of the FDR Drive might not seem like the most exclusive spot, the 47-room and suite Casa Cipriani has wowed some of the pickiest celebrity travelers since its debut with stunning river views and an onsite supper club.

In Soho, nestled between Spring and Prince, London’s can’t-fail Firmdale Hotels knocked it out of the park with the Crosby Street Hotel — its first stateside effort — delivering one of the Big Apple’s finest stays on one of its most charming streets.

And proving the Crosby Street was no one-hit wonder, Firmdale Hotels swept into Midtown with the Whitby Hotel to remind the giant palaces that predominate in the neighborhood that scale and luxury are two different things.

Michelin has been recommending hotels for years, however the key system is new.

“With this new distinction, the Michelin Guide has opened up a brand-new chapter in the service it provides for travelers, which has been its lifeblood for the past 124 years,” said Gwendal Poullennec, international director, in a statement.

“Steadfast in our field-based approach, the Michelin Guide inspectors drew up this unprecedented list to share their best hotel experiences in the US. Every establishment awarded one, two or three Michelin Keys is a gem sculpted by talented professionals,” he added.

The first key awards — for France, naturellement — were announced April 8. The US awards were announced at a ceremony in Manhattan Wednesday.

“Over the last four years, our selection team of passionate, independent experts vetted, scrutinized, and ultimately determined more than 5,000 remarkable hotels for inclusion in our collection,” an earlier statement read.

“Each has been selected for its remarkable quality. Out of these thousands of hotels, those offering the most outstanding stays will be awarded the special Michelin Key distinction.”

So what do the Michelin keys mean?

“Just like the famous Stars that indicate the best culinary experiences in the Michelin Guide restaurant selection, the Michelin Keys reveal accommodations in the Guide’s hotel selection that offer the most outstanding stays. They are a new benchmark for travelers, qualifying each hotel experience in broader terms than simple amenities,” the publisher stated.

A One-Key Michelin hotel is described as a “very special stay.”

“This is a true gem with its own character and personality. It may break the mould, offer something different or simply be one of the best of its type. Service always goes the extra mile and provides significantly more than similarly priced establishments,” the experts said.

For one level up, a Two Key is “an exceptional stay.”

“Somewhere truly unique and exceptional in every way, where a memorable experience is always guaranteed. A hotel of character, personality and charm that’s operated with obvious pride and considerable care. Eye-catching design or architecture, and a real sense of the locale make this an exceptional place to stay,” the pros explained.

Three Key is the cream of the crop, described as “an extraordinary stay.”

“It’s all about astonishment and indulgence here – this is the ultimate in comfort and service, style and elegance. It is one of the world’s most remarkable and extraordinary hotels and a destination in itself for that trip of a lifetime. All the elements of truly great hospitality are here to ensure any stay will live long in the memory and hearts.”

Here are the 11 Three Michelin Key hotels for 2024 in the United States:

• Aman , New York
• Auberge du Soleil , Napa Valley, Calif.
• The Bel-Air Hotel , Los Angeles
• The Beverly Hills Hotel , Los Angeles
• Canyon Ranch Woodside , California
• Casa Cipriani , New York
• Crosby Street Hotel , New York
• Meadowood , Napa Valley, Calif.
• Post Ranch Inn , Big Sur, Calif.
• SingleThread Inn , Healdsburg, Calif.
• The Whitby Hotel , New York

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