Two readers’ polls came out within two months of each other, from Condé Nast Traveler and Travel & Leisure. There is a bit of overlap in the results, but not much, which I find quite odd. Considering how similar those two magazines are (I forget which one I’m holding half the time unless I look at the cover), it’s strange that their readers would have such divergent opinions. It is especially pronounced when you look at the best hotels in Mexico, Central America, and South America–an area we know quite well here at Luxury Latin America.

The verdict? The Travel & Leisure one is spot-on. No publication on the newsstand or web has hit as many hotels in the region first-hand as we have and the Travel & Leisure results show that their readers have also been out and about quite a bit. The Condé Nast Traveler one? Well, let’s just say that somebody has figured out how to beat the system or their readers just plain don’t know what they’re talking about. It’s loaded with hotels that rarely rise above average and there are lots of properties known more for their convention facilities than the quality of their rooms or service.

We’re talking curveballs like Secrets Capri Riviera Cancun–listed as #39 in the world–is this a joke?! JW Marriott Cancun the third best resort in Mexico? The regular Cancun Marriott #17 in Mexico? I detect some serious ballot stuffing.

For a more accurate view of the best of the region, here’s the top-20 from Travel & Leisure, with links to our reviews where available.

1. La Casa Que Canta, Zihuatanejo, Mexico (just visited–review coming soon)
2. Four Seasons Hotel, Buenos Aires
3. Esperanza, Los Cabos, Mexico
4. Ritz-Carlton Santiago, Chile
5. One & Only Palmilla, Los Cabos, Mexico
6. Turtle Inn, Placencia, Belize (pictured above)
7. Alvear Palace Hotel, Buenos Aires
8. Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo
9. Las Mañanitas, Cuernavaca, Mexico
10. Royal Hideaway Playacar, Playa del Carmen, Mexico
11. Lapa Rios, Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica
12. Park Hyatt Mendoza, Argentina
13. Blancaneaux Lodge, Mountain Pine Ridge Reserve, Belize
14. Hotel Villa del Sol, Zihuatanejo, Mexico (review coming soon)
15. Tides Riviera Maya, Playa del Carmen, Mexico
16. Maroma Resort & Spa, Riviera Maya, Mexico
17. Four Seasons Resort Punta Mita, Mexico
18. The Lodge at Chaa Creek, San Ignacio, Belize
19. Hotel Monasterio, Cuzco, Peru
20. Four Seasons Hotel México D.F., Mexico City
21. Casa Santo Domingo, Antigua, Guatemala
22. Marquis Los Cabos, Mexico
23. Las Ventanas al Paraíso, Los Cabos, Mexico
24. Llao Llao Hotel & Resort, San Carlos de Bariloche, Argentina
25. Ritz-Carlton Cancun

I wouldn’t put too much stock in who’s number 5 and who’s number 25 since readers can only rate a place they’ve stayed in and don’t know how one hotel compares to the other. It’s safe to say though that you can’t go wrong with any of these fine hotels.

Speaking of Panama, we now have reviews posted for five of the best hotels in the country. For the most part you won’t find opulent luxury here that will blow you away, but it does look like the hotel industry in Panama is waking up to its potential finally.

In the past they just haven’t gotten enough visitors to warrant the creation of upscale hotels catering to affluent travelers. The Panamanian tourism officials still don’t seem to have much of a budget or a strategy to remedy this, but the people who own two of the hotels we’ve reviewed have taken things into their own hands, inviting prominent travel writers and agents down to check the country out and report back on what they see. Word is finally getting out that Panama has almost as much to offer as Costa Rica in terms of natural beauty, but with lower prices and fewer crowds.

Also, while Costa Rica’s San Jose is nothing to write home about, Panama City is the most cosmopolitan and well, “happening” city in Central America.

We hope to get wind of new luxury hotels in Panama that we can add to our reviews in the future, but meanwhile we suggest looking into a vacation there now, while you can beat the crowds and get the kind of deal you used to get in Costa Rica before word got out.

A quick congratulations to Christopher Baker, who has contributed hotel reviews in Costa Rica and Panama for Luxury Latin America. This past Monday the Society of American Travel Writers awarded Baker a Lowell Thomas Silver Prize for one of his guidebooks Moon Handbooks: Cuba.

Baker is no stranger to this recognition. In previous years he won awards from SATW six different times, in various categories. We like to say that the reviews in Luxury Latin America are written by experienced travel writers who can evaluate a hotel or travel tour with authority. Christopher Baker is one of the leading authorities out there on this region of the world and we are proud to have him as part of our ensemble of experts.

I try to present the ugly as well as the pretty in this Luxury Latin America blog and on that note, be sure to pack plenty of DEET mosquito repellent if you are heading to Costa Rica. My local ad sales guy based there just got hit with dengue fever. He says, “We have such a bad case of Dengue right now that there are about 28 dengue “hot-spots” within San Jose.

Unfortunately, he is not alone in coming down with it. According to this article, Dengue Fever Forces State of Emergency in Costa Rica, 2007 has been a very bad year for the disease. “There have been over 10,000 cases by August this year whereas for the entire year of 2006 there were only 11,000 cases.”

In all fairness to Costa Rica, other parts of Latin America are also having problems. Mexico seems to have done more to stem the spread, but there has been a big jump in Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuela according to this AP article.

Unlike with malaria, there’s no vaccine you can take to better your chances of avoiding dengue. You just have to be really careful about keeping the mosquitoes at bay. So if you are going to Costa Rica on vacation or to scope out property, stock up on repellent and I would also suggest picking up some BUZZ OFF Clothing from ExOfficio.com for extra protection.