HOTELCLUB.COM.AU PRESENTS

OCEANIA’S BEST HOTELS & RESORTS 2007 

Consumers reveal their top hotel choices across

Australia, New Zealand & the Pacific Islands  

Sydney, 30 August 2007 – Leading online accommodation provider HotelClub.com.au today announced the winners of The HotelClub Hotel Awards 2007.  

The Awards recognise Best Hotels and Resorts in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. Consumers rated the Hilton Sydney, Marriott Surfers Paradise and Crown Towers Hotel Melbourne as their Top 3 Hotels across the Oceanic Region.   

In addition, top hotels in each Australian state and territory, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands were announced, as were awards recognising Best Service, Best Boutique, Best Affordable, and Best Country Hotels in the region.  

Commenting on The HotelClub Hotel Awards, Ms Chloe Lim, Managing Director of HotelClub.com.au, said the Award results are significant because it gives the industry the most accurate picture possible of what consumers are demanding today. 

“HotelClub.com.au recognises the powerful voice of consumers in making their travel and accommodation decisions. We launched our annual HotelClub.com survey in 2006 to provide a vehicle for consumers to share their travel and hotel experiences. In today’s online world, consumers are demanding that their opinions be heard through a variety of mediums including blogs, chat rooms and the like. The HotelClub Hotel Awards are a powerful interpretation of what travellers are looking for in hotels and travel providers,” she said. 

All winners were chosen by consumers through an online global survey hosted on www.HotelClub.com.au, in association with key partners Getaway and ninemsn.  

Consumers were asked to nominate hotels based on the following criteria (and to provide a score out of 10 for each criterion – with 10 being the highest): ambiance, family friendliness, rooms, restaurant facilities, cleanliness, business facilities, location, leisure facilities, staff attitude and value for money. 

More than 55,000 hotel nominations were received across the region, resulting in 6,500 hotels & resorts being nominated. Of those, 335 were short listed as finalists with a total of 37 awards presented across 18 categories.   

The HotelClub Hotel Awards 2007 was held at a gala industry event at Doltone House, Sydney on 30 August 2007 hosted by Lochie Daddo, and was presented by HotelClub.com.au in association with Getaway and ninemsn. Other partners in the online survey and Awards are Harvey World Travel, Virgin Blue, Budget Car Hire, Austereo Network, Insight Guides, Village Roadshow, Menulog.com, RosesOnly, Dymocks, Australian Traveller and NRMA Travel. 

HotelClub.com.au offers over 31,000 hotel accommodation choices in 4,500 cities and 120 countries worldwide. HotelClub.com has over 3.5 million consumer ratings and reviews that provide independent advice on each hotel.

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The HotelClub Hotel Awards 2007 winners for Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands are: 

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About HotelClub.com

HotelClub.com is a global accommodation specialist website offering hotel bookings for up to 12 months in advance.  It offers users the choice of over 31,000 hotels – at savings of up to 60% – in 120 countries. HotelClub is available in twelve languages – Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish and Thai. HotelClub is a truly global website offering its customers access through country specific sites in 10 countries including HotelClub.com, HotelClub.com.au, HotelClub.de, HotelClub.fr, HotelClub.it, HotelClub.es and HotelClub.co.uk. HotelClub is operated by Flairview Travel and is part of the Orbitz Worldwide. Orbitz Worldwide (NYSE: OWW) is a leading global online travel company that uses innovative technology to enable leisure and business travellers to research, plan and book a broad range of travel products.