The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC, a Marriott International luxury brand, was honoured with two top awards by the highly-respected Hurun Report's Chinese Luxury Traveller Report 2017. Announced at the recent International Luxury Travel Mart (ILTM) in Shanghai, the brand was recognised as the “Most Popular Luxury Hotel”, as voted for by Chinese high net-worth individuals for the second consecutive year. In addition, Ritz-Carlton Rewards also topped the voting as the “Most Popular Luxury Hotel membership programme”.

The Chinese Luxury Traveller Report 2017 is published by Hurun Research, which conducted in-depth research into Chinese high net worth individuals, their travel and lifestyle patterns, and key trends.

“Chinese luxury travellers are sophisticated and savvy – they seek authentic experiences wherever they travel and true personal service is highly valued, which is why The Ritz-Carlton has been recognised with these two prestigious awards,” said Rupert Hoogewerf, Chairman and Chief Researcher, The Hurun Report.

The report also revealed that affluent Chinese are travelling overseas with increasing frequency and their choice of experiences is reflected in their accommodation choices. In winning The Most Popular Hotel award, The Ritz-Carlton was recognised for its globally renowned personalised service, which Chinese travellers ranked as their top factor when choosing a hotel.

“We are delighted that our guests and readers of The Hurun Report have awarded The Ritz-Carlton with this double honour of Most Popular Hotel Brand and Most Popular Luxury Hotel Membership programme,” said Rainer Burkle, Vice President, Greater China, Luxury Brands, Marriott International. “These awards honour our Ladies and Gentlemen who dedicate themselves to creating exceptional personalised experiences that drive the preference of our guests.”

In addition to the attentive service, other highly valued factors include the facilities and amenities such as The Ritz-Carlton Club Level, which combines intimacy, comfort, and exceptional attention to detail for today's guests. With exceptional views over each destination, the Club Level forms the heart of an unrivalled experience, which includes 24-hour access to The Club Lounge, personalized check-in and check-out service, complimentary pressing, complimentary WIFI, dedicated Club concierge service, and exclusive hotel car access so they can arrive at local landmarks and meetings in style.

Programmes enhancing the guest experience also include Ritz Kids, the world's first globally consistent, immersive programming from a hotel company to build on the adventures of travel for children. Drawing on each child's natural curiosity, Ritz Kids takes a tailored approach to creating memories for children visiting a resort or city property to foster learning centred around four key pillars – water, land, environmental responsibility and culture.

Amongst the young high-end Chinese travellers, recognition through exclusive membership reward programmes with status and benefits is also a popular consideration according to the research, and contributed to The Ritz-Carlton Rewards programme earning first place in this year's Hurun Report. This year, Ritz-Carlton Rewards experienced a surge of 19% in popularity, as 61% of the polled members ranked the loyalty programme as their favourite.

The Ritz-Carlton Rewards is a world of unique opportunities and refined tastes that offers access to the extraordinary through its exclusive membership and rewards programme. Designed to create even more memories with each stay, it allows members at Silver, Gold, and Platinum levels to enjoy ever increasingly remarkable experiences with accumulated rewards. The customised programme features offers that range from a weekend with a golf celebrity to earning vacation stay packages with flights in the world-class points earning and redemption system. The popularity of the programme amongst affluent Chinese travellers in part is due to the Elite status rewards with enhanced hotel benefits and services for continuous stays.

The Luxury Chinese Traveller Report 2017 by Hurun Research is based on the responses of 334 high-end travellers from cities across China with an average travel consumption of US$55,000.

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About The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC
The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C., of Chevy Chase, MD., part of Marriott International, Inc., currently operates more than 90 hotels and 40 residential properties in more than 30 countries and territories. The Ritz-Carlton is proud to participate in the industry's award-winning loyalty program, Marriott Rewards® which includes The Ritz-Carlton Rewards®. Members can now link accounts with Starwood Preferred Guest® at members.marriott.com for instant elite status matching and unlimited points transfer. For more information or reservations, visit the company web site at www.ritzcarlton.com, for the latest company updates, visit news.ritzcarlton.com and to join the live conversation, use #RCMemories and follow along on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR).

About Ritz-Carlton Rewards
The Ritz-Carlton Rewards is the loyalty program of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C., of Chevy Chase, Md., which currently operates nearly 100 hotels and resorts in 31 countries and territories. Members can earn and redeem points at participating The Ritz-Carlton and Marriott International properties worldwide. Members of Marriott Rewards® - which includes The Ritz-Carlton Rewards® - can link their accounts with Starwood Preferred Guest® at members.marriott.com for expanded benefits including instant elite status matching and unlimited points transfer across portfolios. For more information, or reservations, visit the company web site at www.ritzcarlton.com The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:  MAR).

About Hurun Report
Established as a research unit in 1999 by British accountant Rupert Hoogewerf, Hurun Report Inc. has grown into a leading luxury publishing group based in Shanghai, China. Hurun Report Inc has four divisions: Media; Conferences & PR; Market Research; and Investments. Hurun Report is widely recognized as the foremost authority in tracking the rapid changes amongst China's high net worth individuals. Hurun controlled circulation of 110,000, which includes 3,000 of the richest individuals from the China Rich List. Hurun Report's flagship product is the China Rich List, considered the bible of wealth and de-facto Who's Who of Chinese business.

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