A decorated legend has been supplanted by a younger competitor. And we’re not talking about rejected headlines from the Super Bowl.
U.S. News & World Report on Tuesday released its Best Hotels in the USA rankings for 2019 and there was a shakeup at the top within Colorado.
The Little Nell in Aspen was recognized as the best hotel in the state and the 19th best in the country in this year’s rankings. It outdid the historic Broadmoor resort in Colorado Springs, which at No. 29, ranks as Colorado’s second-best hotel, according to U.S. News’ analysis. The two purveyors of luxury accommodations were Colorado’s only Top 50 finishers this year.
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Both hotels made U.S. News’ top 50 hotels in the country for 2018, but The Broadmoor was ranked highest among Colorado destinations, coming in 30th while The Little Nell was No. 33.
In its 2019 write up, U.S. News laud’s the Little Nell’s proximity to skiing — it’s at the base of Aspen Mountain — its two fine dining restaurants and a spa ideal for post-powder day relaxation. Beyond the amenities, though, are the people. The list entry tips its cap to the Nell’s “Ski Concierge team” that can line up lift tickets, gear rentals and more. Recent guests have described the hotel’s employees as “some of the nicest they have ever met,” according to U.S. News.
“I think we just have a really strong connection with our guests,” Little Nell spokeswoman May Selby said of the 92-room hotel that opened in 1989. “We have a really high percentage repeat guest and I think that is only growing. And we’re pet-friendly.”
U.S. News & World Report compiles its annual lists of luxury resorts and hotels — a collection of rankings which now includes the best hotels in the Caribbean, the best hotels in Mexico and best hotels in Europe — by aggregating the opinions of published travel experts and customer reviews shared online through TripAdvisor.
In years past, hotels and resorts had to have a class rating of at least 4 stars to be considered, but in 2019, U.S. hotels with 3.5-star ratings were also included so long as they had received “industry accolades.” In total, 3,878 U.S. hotels made the rankings this year, up from 2,194 a year ago.
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Colorado showed well in 2019. Twenty-nine hotels in the state earned “Gold badge” recognition, meaning they were ranked in the top 10 percent of all hotels that made the list. That’s the fourth most of any state, behind Florida, New York and California. In total, 133 Colorado hotels were ranked.
The top-rated hotel in Denver this year was the Four Seasons at 1111 14th St. downtown.
Some newer hotels — like the Gaylord Rockies Resort in Aurora and the Source Hotel in Denver’s RiNo neighborhood — will have to wait and see how they stack up. U.S. News starts compiling ranking material the summer before releasing results, so some hotels that opened in the fall and winter don’t make the cut in their first year.
