ROME, Jan 16 — With 130,253 award-winning accommodation providers, Italy continues to be the destination with the largest number of satisfied travellers on the Booking.com reservation website. Spain is ranked second and France is the third-placed country in the "Traveller Review Awards.”

Every year, accommodation properties registered on Booking.com receive a Traveller Review Award if they score highly in at least five reviews. Already at the top of the list in 2019, Italy has confirmed its leading position with 130,253 awards, ahead of Spain with 66,755 and France with 61,492. The rest of the ranking identifies a list of countries where a reservation on Booking.com is a safe bet to ensure a happy stay: Germany (49,777), Croatia (42,763), USA (42,112), UK (41,848), Poland (36,793), Russia (36,296) and Greece (33,259).

Apartments topped the list in terms of accommodation type, representing almost 40 per cent of award winners; and while hotels came second, a huge 75 per cent of the winning properties are homes, apartments and other unique types of accommodations.

In parallel with the Traveller Review Awards, Booking.com also establishes a list of the Most Welcoming Places on Earth. The winners for 2020 are Göreme in Turkey, which maintains its title from last year, followed by Tatranská Lomnica (Slovakia), Phong Nha (Vietnam), Kobarid (Slovenia), Cochem (Germany), Doolin (Ireland), Taitung City (Taiwan), Schenna (Italy), Monte Verde (Brazil) and Lake Tekapo (New Zealand). — AFP-Relaxnews