The Oberoi Group has scored a first by receiving top honours in the prestigious Travel + Leisure World's Best Awards 2007 readers' survey.

The Oberoi Udaivilas, the luxury hotel in Udaipur, has been ranked the best hotel in the world with the highest overall score of 94.36.

This recognition, the most recent in a series of accolades for The Oberoi Group, comes from the readers of Travel + Leisure, in what is acknowledged amongst the most revered ranking in the international travel industry.

To arrive at this ranking hotels across the world were evaluated on characteristics ranging from accommodation and service to location.

In the same survey, The Oberoi Amarvilas, Agra has been ranked the 10th best hotel in the world and The Oberoi Rajvilas, Jaipur has been rated the 11th best hotel in the world.

'This year's results underline Travel + Leisure readers' ever-increasing embrace of global travel in their search for distinctive and authentic experiences. The extraordinary rise of India among the top hotels and resorts in the world is one sure reflection of this tendency, with The Oberoi Udaivilas ranking number one hotel in the world, and The Oberoi Amarvilas and The Oberoi Rajvilas coming in at 10 and 11 overall,' said editor-in-chief of Travel + Leisure Nancy Novogrod.

'I am happy and proud that an Oberoi hotel has been ranked the best in the world. This is a significant landmark for Indian tourism and will further encourage tourists to visit the country,' said chairman of The Oberoi Group P R S Oberoi.Trade Arabia News Service